Proud to be Canadian?

Over the past 5 years, CBC Marketplace has done a bang-up job in uncovering hidden secrets about companies and their awful practices, which leads one to wonder: Why on earth are they allowed to get away with it all?

Since 2003, there have been stories on the program about harmful cleaning products that aren't regulated, banks that scam customers in mortgage insurance, medical ghost-writing where drug companies cover up negative side-effects of their products, a well-known electronic store that aggressively sells extended warranties with false promises, and so on.

Companies pretty much scam consumers and they get away with it.

Is that what consumers deserve?

In the past couple of weeks, we've heard about how companies have quietly raised prices in response to the GST cut. An opera house, in particular, refused to honour the printed prices on its brochure, and in fact was going to make a lot more profit out of it.

Kudos to Tim Horton's and Starbucks, among others, whose prices have remained static.

Also, two weeks ago, the program ran the story about a Canadian who was denied mortgage insurance when he became sick, and another one whose family was also denied when he died.

Basically, what allegedly happens is that bank employees are told to aggressively sell mortgage insurance despite the fact that they are 1) unlicensed, 2) not concerned about informing the customer about the specific details.

So this basically means you'll have to hire a lawyer when signing on the dotted line.

Again, this begs the question: What kind of world do we live in?

Five years ago, a story came out on CBC Marketplace claiming that a certain electronic chain--which shall remain unnamed--aggressively promotes extended warranties. Employees were told to sell them (and maintain a target) or else, according to a former employee.

And one teenager who paid for the warranty was told if the gadget broke, all he had to do was bring it back for a replacement.

Guess what he got.

And the intriguing thing was that if you went to different locations--which the reporter did (to three stores, no less), with a hidden camera--you will find that warranties on the same product DIFFER in price! Depends on the person selling it, I guess.

And the sales clerks recorded on camera all claim that even if you dropped the product and it broke, you would be entitled to a replacement.

Lies.

Of course, that chain denied it all, but who would you believe? The former employee, or the store?

And just last week, I went to that store, and of course, one of the sales clerks was aggressive in selling that useless piece of paper.

I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same.

What a disgrace, when one of the top five banks in Canada is implicated... along with those other big corporations trying to scam consumers.