Rental car charges and a StubHub scalping scheme exposed: CBC's Marketplace Cheat Sheet

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How this couple beat a $9.5K car rental damage claim | Go Public

Kelly and Katherine Graves say returning their rental car was uneventful. 

A week later, they were accused of damaging it.

Enterprise says the Kelowna, B.C., couple put diesel fuel into a gasoline-powered SUV — despite receipts showing they bought gasoline, filled up at a pump that does not dispense diesel and rented a vehicle designed to prevent that kind of mistake.

"I was a little anxious," said Kelly. "My blood pressure went up."

The company pursued the claim for months, backing down only after a lawyer intervened and Go Public started asking questions.

In a statement, the company said that because of the passage of time, it was "unable to verify additional details regarding the fueling source."

The company would not say why it kept pursuing the claim for so long, or whether it would cover the Graves' legal expenses.

The Graves' experience speaks to a broader concern about how rental companies substantiate claims, disclose evidence and pursue customers months later, said Abu Khurana, a lawyer who specializes in corporate and business law.

"You're dealing with a large corporation. They're telling you you owe them thousands of dollars, often with very little explanation," he said. "Most people don't have the time, resources or legal knowledge to push back."

Read more from Go Public’s Erica Johnson and Ana Komnenic.

When Adele fans went online to buy tickets to the pop superstar's world tour last year, they had no idea what exactly they were up against.

An army of tech-savvy resellers that included a little-known Canadian superscalper named Julien Lavallée managed to vacuum up thousands of tickets in a matter of minutes in one of the quickest tour sellouts in history.

The many fans who were shut out would have to pay scalpers like Lavallée a steep premium if they still wanted to see their favourite singer.

Despite a four-ticket-per-customer limit, his business snatched up 310 seats in 25 minutes, charged to 15 different names in 12 different locations.

The grand total? Nearly $52,000 worth of tickets at face value.

What does AI baby slop look like?

With their bright visuals and slickly animated babies or colourful trains, you might think you've stumbled onto your average online video teaching kids their ABCs. 

But it might actually be an example of nonsensical content mass-generated with artificial intelligence known as AI slop spreading on YouTube that's alarming child development experts and advocacy groups like Fairplay. This month, the group sent YouTube's parent company Google a letter raising concern about artificial intelligence slop, and requesting changes to how AI videos are displayed and distributed on the platform.

AI slop "harms children’s development by distorting their sense of reality, overwhelming their learning processes, and hijacking their attention," the letter states.

Italian brain rot videos and other AI "slop content" previously ensnared older audiences, but experts say baby slop is a more recent wave of generative AI-created videos directly aimed at toddlers and preschoolers.

The videos might have bright colours, repetitive sounds and familiar characters from popular movies and TV shows, said Keri Ewart, an associate professor of education at Wilfrid Laurier University who researches AI literacy.

However, she says such content "doesn't really have any developmental, cognitive coherence or intention to it."

One-time GST top-up to land in Canadians' accounts in June, Grocery Benefit in July

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Fresh veggies cost 7.8 per cent more in March compared to March last year, says StatsCan

Public grocery stores are having a moment. Can they really make food more affordable?

Toronto city council to present plan for public grocery pilot next spring

WestJet increases fees for checked baggage, matching recent Air Canada move

Price hike is 3rd increase to baggage fees in 3 years, after last increase in September 2025

Teen's death prompts push to ban energy drink sales to Quebec youth under 16

After Zachary Miron died, schools, unions and his family have joined forces to demand restrictions

Are you getting what you paid for at the gas pump? Marketplace wants to hear from you about wonky meters, price discrepancies and other examples of consumers getting hosed. Email us at marketplace@cbc.ca.

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