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In Depth

Consumers

Introduction

Last Updated September 26, 2006

From retail to e-tail, it's a buyer-beware world out there. This section is a guide to news and information that savvy Canadian consumers need to know.

Browse the links in the menu to the right to find out more about the issues faced by Canadian consumers. How can you tell the knockoffs and snake oil from the real deal? Is a product safe, or has it been recalled? Is the latest thing really something worth spending your hard-earned dollars on? What do the experts recommend? Get the knowledge you need to ask the right questions, avoid the pitfalls, find the bargains and make the smartest deals when shopping around for goods and services.

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10 tips for holiday globetrotters
Alternative gifts
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Alternative presentation ideas for holiday gifts
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Inside ARGs
Athletic shoes
Auto arbitration
Back-to-school shopping trends
Barbecue tips for food
Bargain flights
Bottled water
Carbon footprints
Minimizing a trip's CO2 impact on the planet
Cellphone breakout
The pros and cons of unlocked handsets
Cellphone chic
Phones have become a fashion accessory
Christmas tree safety
Citronella
Clear-out sales: How not to be taken
Compulsive shopping
Costly toys
Counterfeit goods
Cross-border shopping
Cruise crime
Cruise vacations
Cultural diversity
Dollar parity
Donated Clothing (Part I)
Donated Clothing (Part II)
Dropping prices?
Dryer safety
Eco-garden
Eco-friendly dying
Environmentally friendly entertaining
Father's Day
Food: Canada's cuisine comes of age
Funny fare
Hunting down Canada's national food treasures
Fireworks
Foie gras frenzy divides Chicago
Fur: sustainable resource or fashion faux pas?
Giving to charities
Going solo
Travel tips for women backpacking it alone
Green cleaning
Green gadgetry
Green packaging
Hearing Aids
Helium: A disappearing gas?
Hidden fees
Holiday feasts
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Home alone
Hot destinations
Year of the Asian vacation?
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Warm getaways that are off the beaten path
Inflatable pools
Identity theft
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Legal fees
Long-distance flying
Making connections
Tips for getting online when travelling
Making connections
Phones to go
Mothers' Day
Pet food safety
Pet food, alternatives
Phone deregulation
Pickpockets
Plastic: What's in it, and is it safe?
Recalls and advisories
Redeeming rebates
Refunds: How to get your money back
Repelling mosquitoes
Santa's knee: 10 tips on preparing kids to see the man in red
Scooter sales rev up
School bus safety
School shopping
Second-hand sales
Smoke detectors
Student survival guide
Sunscreen
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Tips: Is your waiter playing mind games?
Toy stereotypes
Travel: Strategies to stretch your cash in Europe
Vermiculite
Water safety for kids
Winterizing your car
Year in review: Consumer Life 2006
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World »

Whitney Houston's family calls loss a 'tragedy' video
The family of Whitney Houston, who died suddenly this weekend, has issued a statement calling her death an"unimaginable tragedy," as fans rush to buy her albums and download her hit singles.
Athens burns as Greece bailout passed video
Riots engulfed central Athens and at least 10 buildings went up in flames in mass protests late Sunday as lawmakers prepared for a parliamentary vote on harsh austerity measures aimed at keeping the country solvent.
Child rescued from Kosovo avalanche that killed 9
Rescuers have pulled a child alive from the rubble of a house flattened by a massive avalanche that killed both her parents and at least seven of her relatives in a remote mountain village in southern Kosovo.
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Canada »

Quebec town 'heartbroken' after killing of woman, sisters
A small Quebec town is in mourning Sunday after a Quebec man was charged with killing his nieces and his mother, who were found dead in their family home.
NDP leadership hopefuls face off in Quebec City video
Federal NDP leadership candidates argued over Canada's global standing, climate change and language during a French-only debate in Quebec City on Sunday.
Manitoba man dies after falling off moving SUV
A 23-year-old man from Elie, Man., has died from injuries he sustained after falling off the outside of a vehicle as it was driving down a highway, according to RCMP.
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Politics »

NDP leadership hopefuls face off in Quebec City video
Federal NDP leadership candidates argued over Canada's global standing, climate change and language during a French-only debate in Quebec City on Sunday.
Tibet PM sees human-rights 'tragedy' unfolding
In an exclusive interview Saturday on CBC Radio's The House, the prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, Lobsang Sangay, sounded the alarm on the "tragedy" unfolding in Tibet and called on Canada to take action.
Attawapiskat receives first modular home
The first of 22 modular homes promised by the federal government to Attawapiskat has arrived to the remote northern Ontario First Nations community, the Aboriginal Affairs minister's office has confirmed.
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Health »

Chronic fatigue may be reversed with exercise
Taking it easy is not the best treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome, rather exercise and behaviour therapy are, a large study finds.
AT&T buys T-Mobile USA for $39B US
AT&T Inc. said Sunday it will buy T-Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom AG in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $39 billion US, becoming the largest cellphone company in the U.S.
Milky Way home to 50 billion planets: NASA
Scientists have compiled the first cosmic census of planets in our galaxy: at least 50 billion planets are estimated to call the Milky Way home.
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Arts & Entertainment»

updated Grammy artists remember Whitney Houston
Music artists paid tribute to the late Whitney Houston as they walked the red carpet for the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles Sunday evening.
Britain's BAFTAs honours The Artist
Silent movie The Artist dominated the British Academy Film awards, the U.K. equivalent of the Oscars, winning seven awards, including best picture.
Whitney Houston's family calls loss a 'tragedy' video
The family of Whitney Houston, who died suddenly this weekend, has issued a statement calling her death an"unimaginable tragedy," as fans rush to buy her albums and download her hit singles.
more »

Technology & Science »

NASA to scale back Mars exploration
Scientists say NASA is about to propose major cuts in its exploration of other planets, especially Mars, with the space agency's former science chief calling the plan irrational.
Ancient Antarctic lake may harbour microbial life
If scientists find microbes in a frigid lake 3.2 kilometres beneath the thick ice of Antarctica, it will illustrate once again that somehow life finds a way to survive in the strangest and harshest places, and it will offer hope that life exists beyond Earth.
B.C. killer whale habitat protection ruled a legal duty
The federal minister of fisheries has no discretion when it comes to protecting the critical habitat of B.C.'s southern resident killer whales, the Federal Court of Appeal has ruled.
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Money »

Athens burns as Greece bailout passed video
Riots engulfed central Athens and at least 10 buildings went up in flames in mass protests late Sunday as lawmakers prepared for a parliamentary vote on harsh austerity measures aimed at keeping the country solvent.
Air Canada reaches tentative deal with dispatchers
Air Canada has reached a tentative collective agreement with the Canadian Airline Dispatchers Association, representing the airline's 74 flight dispatchers.
Old Age Security untouched until 2020, Flaherty says video
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty says Canadians should expect no changes to Old Age Security benefits before 2020 or 2025, and details about reform would be outlined over more than one budget.
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Consumer Life »

Honda recalls Fit subcompacts
Honda Canada says it will recall 14,640 of its 2009 and 2010 Fit subcompact cars to replace lost motion springs.
U.S. travel fee proposal criticized by Harper
Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he doesn't think much of a new border tax that's being proposed by the United States, calling it a cash grab designed to help a budget crisis.
Bell class action suit approved by Que. court
A Quebec Superior Court judge has authorized a class action lawsuit to go ahead against Bell Mobility.
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Sports »

Scores: NHL NBA

Duhamel, Radford finish 4th at Four Continents
China's Sui Wenjing and Han Cong won the pairs title with a sharp and powerful free skate program at the Four Continents Championships. Canada's Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford finished fourth.
Raptors' comeback falls short in loss to Lakers
Kobe Bryant poured in 27 points, including a long fadeaway jumper with four seconds to play, to lift the Los Angeles Lakers to a 94-92 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday.
blog PEI hockey players are proud and inspire each other
Gerard Gallant had Errol Thompson. Brad Richards had Gallant. Mark Flood and Adam McQuaid had Richards. Somewhere down the line there will be other hockey players from Prince Edward Island who will be inspired by McQuaid or Flood, writes Tim Wharnsby.
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Diversions »

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