Preparing for a Blockbuster Lawsuit

With Blockbuster raising prices, cutting back on subscriber benefits, expanding shipping times, etc., customers are bound to become outraged at some point. Hundreds of thousands of outraged customers are going to create a hostile consumer environment, which is almost certainly going to lead to lawsuits against Blockbuster.

If you do not trust Blockbuster to deliver the unlimited DVD rental service for which you are paying, you will want to prepare for the possibility that you, one day, will be furious with Blockbuster and want some justice. A little bit of effort on your part now will help you build your case against Blockbuster should you need to take action in the future.

The most important thing you can do to build your case against Blockbuster is to keep track of each Blockbuster DVD you receive. As Blockbuster sends each DVD, make a note of the title, the date Blockbuster shipped it, the date you received it, the date you returned it, the date Blockbuster acknowledged receipt, and the date Blockbuster shipped the next title. You can record this information on paper or digitally. The easiest way to record this data is in a spreadsheet.

Recording all of this Blockbuster shipping data may seem like overkill, but if you think there is even a remote chance you may want to sue Blockbuster, participate in a class action lawsuit, or have Blockbuster investigated for fraud, this data will be very useful to the attorney or investigators. If you do not have this data available, the only source for the data will be Blockbuster. They, of course, will be reluctant to provide it and may not do so without a subpoena. If you record the data yourself, you will have it readily available, and it can eventually be used to crosscheck and verify the accuracy of whatever data Blockbuster releases.

Also, keep track of all of your communication with Blockbuster. Keep copies of every letter, email, etc. If you call Blockbuster, make a quick note about when you called and what was discussed. This information will be valuable later when you need to establish you have been a responsible, concerned, and proactive consumer.

Lastly, log in to your Blockbuster account and copy your entire rental history. It is important you do this as soon as possible, because Blockbuster controls this information and has the power to remove it at any moment.

To copy your rental history, follow the steps below.

1. Click on My Account on Blockbuster.com.
2. Verify your login information.
3. On the My Account page, click on View Rental History.
4. The My Rental History page will appear.
5. With your mouse, highlight all of the titles and dates. (Note: Speed up the process by setting the Results Per Page to 100.)
6. Copy the data by pressing [Ctrl + C] on your keyboard.
7. Paste the data into a document or spreadsheet by opening the desired application and pressing [Ctrl + V].
8. Make sure to save the data.
   

This easy process will take only a few minutes. If Blockbuster ever does anything shady and despicable like concealing your subscriber data, you will already have it.

In summary, you can protect yourself as a consumer by taking a few simple actions. By tracking your rentals, recording your correspondence, and copying your account history, you can build an arsenal of information, which will become useful if you should ever need to sue Blockbuster or have them investigated by a government agency.

The Reality of Blockbuster’s Practical Plan Caps

As far as we know, Blockbuster does not have any official subscriber plan caps which actually limit the number of DVDs a subscriber is permitted to receive in any given time period. This, of course, excludes limits which are specifically established as the terms of specific plans (e.g., the cap on the LIMITED Through the Mail plan).

Official plan caps are not necessary, because all Blockbuster subscriptions come with built-in plan caps--or practical caps--which are imposed by the USPS delivery schedule and Blockbuster’s shipping days. Given that Blockbuster has limited full shipping days, your DVDs will most likely ship only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. This small shipping window significantly limits the amount of DVDs you can receive in any given week.

For example, if you were to maximize your TotalAccess Premium plan by exchanging all of your online rentals for in-store rentals the same day those online rentals arrive, you would not be able to average more than twelve DVDs (six online and six in-store) per week. In order to reach this lofty maximum, you would have to generally receive your DVDs the day after shipping, and here is where we find another problem: transit times.

Not all DVDs arrive the next day. Rare titles, old titles, brand new releases, etc. commonly ship from distant shipping centers and take longer to arrive. These longer transit periods increase turnaround times and greatly reduce the amount of DVDs you can receive in a week. Even if you are diligent about exchanging your online rentals for in-store rentals the same day they arrive, you may find it very difficult to get more than six DVDs (three online and three in-store) per week if some of your DVDs are taking an extra day or two to arrive.

So, there you have it. Limited shipping days and transit times are working against you. Even under perfect circumstances, no matter what you do as a consumer, your Blockbuster TotalAccess Premium plan has a practical cap of around twelve DVDs per average week. If your circumstances are less than perfect, you might experience a practical cap of around six DVDs per week. Realistically, you will probably find that you can average no more than ten DVDs per week on a TotalAccess Premium account, and accomplishing that feat will require a great deal of determination and effort on your part.