Bait & Switch: Advocating for consumers
Why I’m Becoming an Advocate
We’ve all been there: You see an amazing offer, you sign the papers, and then the painful reality of the fine print sets in. This is the "bait and switch"—a predatory tactic where a company lures you in with one attractive promise, only to switch the terms, the product, or the price once you’re committed.
I recently realized my whole life has been a slow-burn training session in recognizing this consumer injustice. These are two times I fell for the switch, and what I learned about fighting back.
Case Study 1: HP Printer Ink (A new kind of nightmare)
I needed to buy ink for my HP printer. The price was astronomical, something over $100. Desperate, I stumbled upon HP's "Instant Ink" program.
The BAIT was the promise of affordability: It was advertised as only $6 a month for ink and $3 for paper. I immediately gave them my debit card information, believing I was saving money.
The SWITCH came when I realized I would be billed $40 a month, not the advertised $9.
I was horrified when I realized that I was effectively paying per page. If I wanted to pay per page, I would go to Kinko's, Staples, or the library!
The true fraud, however, was the control: If my card blocked the transaction, the chips in the HP ink would send a signal to my printer, disabling it from printing until I allowed the charge to go through. When I finally tried to cancel the account, a pop-up said, "Are you sure you want to do that? HP Ink costs $135." They were openly rubbing in their devious business practice of bait and switch, not to mention their product's overly inflated price.
Case Study 2: My AT&T Experience
If the printer ink was a trap, my experience with AT&T was a masterclass in deception. This wasn't just about a hidden fee; it was a calculated bait-and-switch that turned a simple purchase into a year-long financial nightmare.
The BAIT: The $25 Promise
It started simply enough. I was in the market for an iPad, and AT&T had an offer that seemed perfect. The advertisement was clear: get an iPad Air 5 and a service plan for $25.00 a month.
I did my due diligence. I asked the sales representative to confirm the price. I looked at the Installment Agreement, which stated in black and white:
"Amount of Monthly Payment: $25.00."
It seemed transparent. It seemed affordable. I signed the contract, believing I had secured a great deal for a device I needed for school and my future real estate career.
The SWITCH: The $445 Bill & The Hidden Trigger
The reality hit me like a freight train a month later. My very first bill wasn't for $25, or even $50 with taxes. It was for $445.87.
I was in shock. I immediately called AT&T, assuming it was a mistake. But instead of fixing it, they pointed to a "disclosure."
Buried deep within a 68-page "Customer Service Summary"—a document I was never shown at the point of sale—was a single sentence of fine print. It said that the $20.99 tablet plan price was conditional on maintaining a phone line. Because I had canceled a phone line on my account, that tiny clause allowed them to unilaterally triple the price of my plan from $20.99 to $75.99 a month.
They had lured me in with a $25 price tag, waited for a specific account change (canceling a line), and then used a hidden term to explode my bill.
The VICIOUS CYCLE: Debt by Design It didn't stop at the high bill. Because I couldn't afford to pay a surprise $445 charge, AT&T declared me "past due."
They shut off my service—the very service I was being overcharged for.
They then charged me "Restoral Fees" of $35 to turn it back on.
Then came the "Late Payment Fees."
I was trapped in a cycle of debt engineered by their initial lie. I was paying for a service that didn't even work at my house (another issue they ignored), and every month the bill grew larger with penalties for not paying a fraudulent amount. Over 13 months, that "$25/month" iPad ended up costing me over $6,000.
The FIGHT: Taking Them to Court
I didn't just take it. I filed FCC complaints. I wrote to their "Office of the President." And finally, I took them to Small Claims Court.
I learned something crucial in that courtroom: Corporations count on you giving up. They count on you not reading the 68 pages. They count on you being too intimidated to sue. And even when you do fight, they will use every procedural trick and technicality to win.
Although I lost my specific small claims case on a strict contract technicality (because I did sign the document with the hidden fine print), the experience lit a fire in me. I realized that "legal" does not always mean "right."
Conclusion: From Victim to Advocate
These experiences with HP and AT&T taught me that the system is often designed to trap consumers, not serve them. But they also taught me that we have power. We can file complaints. We can go to court. We can tell our stories.
As I move into my career in real estate and aviation, I am taking this hard-earned wisdom with me. I will be the person who reads the fine print for my clients. I will be the advocate who spots the "switch" before the "bait" is swallowed.
My art series, The Heroine's Journey, explores this very theme: the struggle of the individual against corrupt systems. Because in the end, the only way to stop the switcheroo is to shine a light on it.