QUICK TIP--ASK THE RIGHT QUESTION AND YOU CAN SAVE MONEY

Although many would disagree with me, silence is rarely golden, especially when it comes to looking at charges for services. Recently, I saved $90 with two simple questions. Behold:

Howard and I had annual car service and inspection appointments a week apart. Howard went first. We had a coupon for $50 off of a service. This included the inspection. When he presented the coupon, his bill went from $113 to $63. $50 savings is nice. I went for my appointment a week later. The coupon had expired and had also been used. Did that stop me from trying for a reasonable deal? Of course not! I told the service rep about the coupon, Howard’s bill, and asked him to match the $63 price. My thought process—the coupon was a dealer coupon, and I doubted that they would send out a coupon that would result in a ding in their financial wellbeing. As a matter of fact, the full charge seemed a bit high without the coupon. Did I have to argue? Not at all. The rep smiled, agreed to the discount, and I walked out with the same $63 bill that Howard had been charged. If I had stuck to rigid rules—a single coupon, expired—I would be out $50. It’s always a good idea to question, even if there seems to be a rule. It’s kind of like Bed Bath and Beyond coupons. They have expiration dates, but the store ignores them. I usually ignore rules if they don’t make sense. And most of the time, things go better when I do.

Then, there was the new phone a few weeks later. AT&T has made the real purchase cost a bit more transparent. There are no more “deals”, where the advertised cost is $199, but you find that you pay a monthly fee forever on a higher charge. Now, they just tell you the real cost, and still charge the monthly fee until the full charge is paid. I appreciate the transparency. I don’t appreciate the avarice. When I needed a new phone, I was about to leave after finishing the transaction. Wait a minute—what happens to my old phone? It was a bit slow, but still physically intact and not dead. I asked about a trade-in credit. The rep replied that she could take the old phone for $40. If I hadn’t asked, I’d have a useless phone, and AT&T would have my $40. I probably shouldn’t be so jaded, but I wonder about an ulterior AT&T motive and think that the rep should have talked about trade in without my having to ask. But, ask I did, so I walked out $40 to the good.

SILENCE NEVER YIELDS RESULTS. SO THINK THINGS THROUGH, QUESTION, QUESTION, QUESTION AND SAVE MONEY!