A NOTE FROM CHRIS

We could have looked the other way when Zach asked us for help with his Cox modem. I mean, a $252 overcharge for equipment is no big deal, right?

Not to my team — and not to me. We fight for our readers every day, no matter how small the case is. If we think we can win it, we’ll jump into the ring for you.

I created our nonprofit organization to advocate for people like Zach. And I created Elliott Confidential PRO to keep people like him out of trouble — and to offer exclusive insights I’ve gathered over the last three decades in consumer journalism.

I want you to have those helpful insights, so I’m extending the 30% subscription price cut this week. A full year for $59.50 instead of $85 — about $1.14 a week.

Catch up on the latest stories from the Elliott Report

Can your internet provider charge you for equipment you already own?
Zachary Scott owned the modem and router he used on his Cox Communications account for years. When his military orders sent him from Virginia to Hawaii, Cox billed him $252 for equipment it says he kept, then referred the unpaid charge to a collections agency. A $252 delinquency is now on his credit report.

Refundable booking? You may not get all your money back
William Farrer read terms promising a New Orleans hotel room was refundable for a limited period, then got an email seconds after booking saying the period had closed on his $3,228. Agencies now subtract a $30 distribution charge and their own cancellation fees from rates still advertised as refundable, and small hotels bill back the cost of sending the money home.

Are holiday flights too expensive?
Thanksgiving round trips average $402 and Christmas fares $452, both the highest in a decade. Jet fuel is up almost 70% this year, which is the industry’s explanation, but Delta’s chief executive told analysts in October that he sees limited resistance from passengers.

No, your pet doesn’t want to go on vacation with you
I’ve never heard a pet ask to go on vacation, and unless you’ve been taking hallucinogenic drugs, neither have you.

Is your hotel room safe? The mistake you’re making right now
Nala Fox left a balcony door cracked at a five-star resort in Negril, Jamaica, and woke from a nap to find her carry-on and passport gone, with the security desk telling her this sometimes happens. Hotel security consultants call the condition resort security amnesia, and it shows up in cloned key cards, key sleeves with the room number printed on them and balconies an intruder can cross at night.

Holland America canceled my cruise because of a pricing error. Can it do that?
Cindy Woodring booked a 10-day Zuiderdam sailing at $479 a person, applied a $200 credit and paid the $758 balance in full. Three days later Holland America called the fare a pricing error and billed her $1,530 more, then offered a complimentary stateroom upgrade to anyone willing to pay it.

Hells bells! How did these AC/DC tickets go from front stage to the worst seats in the house?
Jerry Auer paid $506 for AC/DC tickets at Notre Dame Stadium after StubHub’s seating chart showed Section 121 beside the stage, and the official venue map put those seats behind it. StubHub fixed the flipped map the day after he reported it, then used the corrected version to tell him he had bought precisely what he ordered.

Rita Constantine bought SeatGeek tickets to a Bad Bunny show in Puerto Rico, and nothing in the listing warned her about an obstructed view. She spent the concert looking past netting and sound equipment, then found those same seats labeled obstructed the next day. A manager, a Better Business Bureau report and a credit card dispute got her nowhere. Does the relabeling prove her case? Here’s our team’s advice on Backchannel.