Newpaper delivery equal fuel surcharge?

July 25, 2008

Around dinner time yesterday I sat down to pay some bills (oh that is always fun isn’t it?) and opened the bill for the newspaper. Now I pay to get the paper delivered daily for my dad, hubby and I don’t really read it, well I do occasionally peek at the employment section because I like to keep my eyes open for admin jobs, because you never know I may find one with the perfect hours, and I read the ad’s in Sunday’s paper and keep the coupons for when I grocery shop. Other than that I don’t read it. Hubby only looks at the Sunday paper. But since I am caring for my dad and his money is tight, we just pay for the paper. In May I paid through July 15th. When I opened the statement that came “late” the billing was for June 15 to August 15. Of course this raises a red flag for me as I write in the checkbook from date to date when I pay the paper and I already paid for June. So then I continue to read the statement and we now have to pay a fuel surcharge? What the hell is that? They back dated that to June (this is why my statement reads the way it does).

Now let me tell you something, the girl who does our route I know her, use to babysit for her, but when I had her child more than her, it was time to say grow up be a mom. This was about 4 years ago when I quit sitting for her. So when we moved here to our house two years ago, a few months after that she started delivering the paper. Wow small world isn’t it. Well there are “many times” we don’t get a paper and if i call her she tells me someone stole it. Oh OK, just happens to be my house all the time. But I didn’t press the issue.

Well after much thought and talking to my dad, we decided to cancel the paper. I understand the price of fuel right now but when you take what each house has to pay, we are all paying for her gas period. It’s bad enough the price of clothing, food and other necessities of life you need have gone to smaller sizes but up in price. No I can send my son on his bike to pick up a paper. NO fuel charge!

After I called and spoke to customer service to cancel delivery and pay what we owe to date, I found out my carrier has had 1000 complaints, well that tells me get a new carrier! So the representative gave us a credit then offered us just Sundays and Wednesdays paper for $1.16 a week for 12 weeks, then $1.52 after that. I agreed we try this, since winter is around the corner. BUT I don’t want it just tossed anywhere, I want it on our porch or right by the door to make it easier for my dad, since he is the early bird in the house! They agreed. I paid up through September 15th. So I will monitor the statement again next time to see, if they try and pull something again, they are so out of here!

Posted by Suzie Q | Filed Under Jaw Breakers