15 Completely Legal frauds In Society That Weve Been Forced To Normalize | Latest Lifestyle News
Coming to the realization that our lives are littered with legal scams that affect us in an unbelievable number of ways can be a hard pill to swallow…
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But if you aren’t quite sure what those scams you’re falling for — or just want to find reassurance for what you’ve already been thinking — Reddit user u/odikuart asked the question, “What’s the biggest legal scam still operating today?” and a hefty amount of people gave some pretty infuriating examples:
1.”Just went to Vegas. Why is there a resort fee on top of booking a hotel room? Why do we have to pay for parking, too? Someone learned they could add hidden fees and were successful, so now nearly all of Vegas does it also.”
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2.”Companies that change their terms of service to force you to pay an annual subscription to continue using a product you’ve had for years that didn’t require a subscription to begin with.”
3.”College textbooks. New edition every year, barely any changes, and somehow still $300-plus a pop.”
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4.”Ticketmaster ‘convenience fees.’ The price doubles at checkout, and there’s nothing convenient about it.”
5.”Churches not being taxed like the big business they obviously are.”
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6.”Subscriptions. To everything. Streaming kicked it off, and then everyone figured out they could bleed us dry, one ‘feature’ at a time. No ads on your music? Subscribe! Unlimited skips? Subscribe! Remote start and heated seats in winter? Subscribe! Want your toilet to spray water? Subscribe!”
7.”Actively shutting down your product when it detects unofficial repairs. I can accept that owners may lose warranty over unofficial repairs, but going as far as completely making the device non-functional after the repair is just corporate speak for ‘you no longer own the physical device you bought; you just have a license to use it. We still own it.'”
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—u/timchenw
8.”TurboTax for 99% of us. The IRS knows our income and could just send us a bill/check…but that would kill the rent-seeking industry of tax prep.”
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9.”The insurance industry. Any kind. Health, auto, home, life, or any insurance. Insurance is the biggest legal scam that exists. You pay them money every month, ‘just in case,’ and when something happens and the time comes for payouts, they try their damnedest to not fork over anything but still expect that monthly premium.”
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10.”Small town cops ticketing out-of-towners in speed traps as a means of revenue generation. Happened to me three times. And cops wonder why the public doesn’t respect them. Public safety, my ass.”
11.”Corporate money in politics. It hurts everyone, even the business eventually.”
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12.”Bank overdraft fees. Instead of just denying the transaction, they charge like $40 to someone who doesn’t have the money to begin with.”
13.”Paid parking…at the hospital.”
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Related: 30 Photos Of Excruciatingly Embarrassing Moments That People Totally Brought On Themselves
14.”Heads of government programs who give favorable deals to companies then magically get a seat/job at the company or board of directors they helped.”
And finally, here’s one that nearly 43 million (and counting) Americans can relate to:
15.”The predatory nature of student loans. I’ve been out of school for almost 8 years. When I graduated, my student loan balance was almost $90,000. I have been paying faithfully since graduation. At times when I was on an income-based plan, I was even paying extra. Now, my income-based plan has gotten more expensive. Current loan balance after all this time and payments? $87,000.”
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—u/dxguy
Are there other legal scams you’re hip to that are ridiculously affecting our lives and society? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.Â
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