Has your home insurance gone up? Wendy Mesley, co-host of MARKETPLACE, looks into why many insurance companies are checking your credit scores and discovers that this can be happening without homeowners’ knowledge or express consent. On Rate Hike Rage, airing Friday, April 9 at 8:30 p.m. (9 NT), a new MARKETPLACE poll finds that an overwhelming number of Canadians are in the dark about this growing practice.
The MARKETPLACE poll by Vision Critical found:
· 87 per cent of Canadians didn’t know credit scores could be used in the first place
· 86 per cent of Canadians don’t think insurance companies should be using our credit scores
In addition to these findings, the 2010 season of MARKETPLACE has generated a terrific amount of viewers and audience feedback. The show connected in new ways with viewers via Facebook, Twitter and through weekly online video messages from Erica Johnson and Wendy Mesley. And, its investigations have brought to light unscrupulous practices and poor customer service, often prompting individuals and organizations to make amends.
Below are some highlights from the 2010 season on MARKETPLACE:
MARKETPLACE’s top three shows of 2010:
· Grow-Op Cover Up (January 8): 783,000 viewers
· Canada’s Worst Cellphone Bill (March 5): 710,000 viewers
· GPS Distraction (January 15): 638,000 viewers
Forcing organizations to do better:
* Road to Rich Dad (January 29): This season, MARKETPLACE took viewers inside the “Learn to be Rich” workshops affiliated with best-selling financial guru Robert Kiyosaki of Rich Dad, Poor Dad fame. Using hidden cameras, the show exposed high-pressure sales tactics where participants were urged to spend tens of thousands of dollars on questionable real estate investment courses. Two months after the show confronted Kiyosaki with its findings, he announced his intention to restructure his relationship with the company that uses his name to stage the workshops. That new agreement promises better customer service, and gives Rich Dad companies more say in the quality and content of the workshops.
· Canada’s Worst Cellphone Bill (March 5): In this segment, the show took customers’ disputed bills straight to the companies. Following MARKETPLACE’s investigation, Bell Mobility agreed that the customer was right, apologized and offered compensation. Virgin Mobile also compensated its customer and informed the show that they have changed their customer service policy saying, “if excessive charges are disputed, they are immediately escalated to our directors and the amounts are credited while the dispute is being investigated.” This segment generated the most comments on the show’s Web site (274).
MARKETPLACE airs Fridays at 8:30 p.m. (9 NT) on CBC-TV and rebroadcasts on CBC News Network Saturdays, at 5:30 p.m. ET (2:30 p.m. PT).
MARKETPLACE is CBC’s award-winning consumer investigative show. Trusted by viewers across Canada, the program has been providing audiences with tough consumer reports for more than 35 years. Executive producer is Tassie Notar.
