Friday, January 11, 2008

Gotcha Capitalism Author: Bob Sullivan Publisher: Ballantine Books ASIN: 0345496132

About This Book

You didn’t fill up the rental car with gas? Gotcha! Gas costs $7 a gallon here. Your bank balance fell to $999.99 for one day? Gotcha! That’ll be $12. You miss one payment on that 18-month same-as-cash loan? Gotcha! That’ll be $512 extra. You’re one day late on that electric bill? Gotcha! All your credit cards now have a 29.99% interest rate.

Here are just a few eye-popping examples of how big business can get you: Coughing up $4 fees for ATM transactions. Iron-clad cell phone contracts you can’t get out of with a crowbar. Paying big bucks for insurance you don’t need on a rental car or forking over $20 a day for supposedly “free” wireless internet. Every day we use banks, cell phones, and credit cards. Every day we book hotels and airline tickets. And every day we get ripped off.

In Gotcha Capitalism, MSNBC.com’s “Red Tape Chronicles” columnist Bob Sullivan exposes the ways we’re all cheated by big business. The book, subtitlede "How Hidden Fees Rip You Off Every Day-and What You Can Do About It" outlines how to get money back. Sullivan says that using his tips can save you up to $1,000 per year. Hey Big Business, "Gotcha!"