What pointless one woman/man boycott are you staging?

[nevergoogle]

Here's my one woman boycotts.

I have boycotted Wadebridge because they elected a total wanker to the town council who said that disabled children should be culled to save money. I rarely visit Wadebridge anyway.

I have also boycotted Dartington Hall Estate for unreasonable parking fines. I park outside the grounds. Nobody cares.

And lego minifigures as DS2 always ends up with a frigging princess or mermaid or something and we have to deal with the tears. I'm sure their sales figures are unaffected.

None of my boycotts will make any difference whatsoever. I realise this.

So what are your pointless boycotts?

I boycott Starbucks because I don't want to give my name. I never go in coffee shops anyway so completely pointless! It's the principle though, if I were to go to a coffee shop, Starbucks would miss out.

I boycott vauxhall cars too due to the heap of crap that was our last car.

I always plan to boycott tesco because I hate it but that only lasts until I need something

God I'm intolerant - remembered another 2.
Scottish power (must be pre Direct debits!) starting sending a bill due NOW and if you hadn't paid within 2 weeks threatened to 'fine' you - added money to your bill. At the time I was really really busy - I paid all my bills once a month. They sent me a bill just after I'd done my bill paying, then the 'fine' letter. Phoned them to pay and ask for the bills to be sent around a certain date -apparently that wasn't possible and I got a spiel about if I was suffering financial hardship etc. No I just don't have time - let me set a date or give me a month to pay. More financial hardship spiel and how I could get help with budgeting etc - right I don't have time for this shit, I have the money but I don't have the time, I pay all my bills at the same time once a month - more financial hardship spiel ...dumped them and moved to Scottish gas who were just as crap but (slightly) less annoying about it...
Hydroelectric - hate with a passion - don't know where to start...
I moved into a flat with a card meter - discovered previous tenants had used most of the £20 emergency electric - I had £1.20 left. Was told it would take them almost a week to come and reset meter. Previous tenants had left their payment card - asked if I put money on there to see me though would it be taken into account. Yes. It wasn't. I paid for the previous tenants electricity and it ended up being more than £20 - didn't discover this until I was leaving by which stage I'd agreed to use them at the house I was moving to. They completely bodge the transfer. Told me they'd do an electrical safety check -they wouldn't. So I moved again - they messed that up too - I have a cheque somewhere for £300 they sent me but didn't owe me (part of me thinks I should have banked it and they would never have realised....)
Then one of their salesmen got my DP rushed off his feet at Christmas at his restaurant. Salesman wouldn't go away - DP signed something to get rid of him - thinking he was going to get something in the post and he could fire them off then - nope that was a long (2 or 3yr) contract signed with a ridiculous get out penalty at a not very cheap rate. (He could have cancelled within so many days - but he was waiting for the written confirmation - should have read the small print!!!!)

A local taxi company. I'd used 'em for ten years, regularly after nights out as a student and then an adult, as well as shopping trips when I was car-less, recommended them to others etc.

Then ONE night, I got in, the driver didn't recognise me and tried to insist I paid £10 (more than the whole fare!) upfront, and when I refused tried to get me to get out. It was 4 am and I was alone.

He said he'd had gangs of lads intimidate him when they'd refused to pay (I'm a 5'3, 9st ish female), and this was why, and said he didnt' recognise me-I protested that he'd picked me up several times albeit from my old house.

I knew the owner of the firm and name dropped saying I was going to complain to him and it was appalling to treat a loyal customer this way and I would never use them again, and I haven't.

When he dropped me off he had put the fare as a couple of £ more than usual.

I paid my usual and when he said I owed him I said, 'I don't think so' and got out and ran off. Not the way I'd usually behave at all but really riled me did that!I think loyal customers are the bread and butter of a company and should be valued!

I have an ongoing standoff with American Express. They owe me £5.10 on a credit card I had years ago. They send me a bill every month telling me this and inviting me to call them and they will refund!

Well I won't! I figure it is costing them far more than what I am owed over the years to send me these bills. Why the hell would I use my time and money to call them! It gives me great sense of satisfaction that in my mind at least, I am beating them at their own game Well worth the five pounds they owe me.

Macmillan...since they diverted the ALS icebucket challenge to their coffers
I have stopped my DD
I have arranged that our school PTA have a MND coffee morning rather than a Macmillan coffee morning

I tell everyone

Liverpool after dating a typical scouser in the worst sense for many years. Throughout our relationship he constanty whinged because supposedly my city where we lived was shit compared to his beloved Liverpool. When we broke up, he moved back there and found that he couldn't get a job and it wasn't so rosy afterall. The last time I flew over Liverpool, I took great delight in using the toilet.

Currys after they didn't fit my cooker properly and caused a gas leak, then left my new expensive heavy fridge in the front garden in the rain when they couldn't get it through my front door and refused to go around the back because of mud.

Our local Subway. The second time they got my pickup order wrong. Hope they are suffering missing my approximately 2 sub-of-the-day orders a month.
I also refuse to fly Virgin for letting one DC fly from LA to LHR with no in flight entertainment unit.

Nestle.

Not any more. What was the point

I boycott Starbucks because I don't want to give my name. I never go in coffee shops anyway so completely pointless! It's the principle though, if I were to go to a coffee shop, Starbucks would miss out.

The fun is in giving a false name - I think. Nothing outlandish necessary either
My daughter has Katy as her Starbucks name

Vodafone..too many reasons.
PC world..see above.

Pet Planet, Tesco direct, ..any online ordering company that has bought cheap incorrect postcode database and insist that my house and the other 300 on my road don't exist on this road but adjacent one, despite being built in 1860's. Corker from Tesco guy on phone that they couldn't deliver a new bike to my house but would deliver to same number on adjacent road (despite that address having different postcode apparently that meant nothing) and I could just go round and get it...from closed down restaurant???

Tesco..filthy local "superstore" you go upstairs look at the chaos that is their clothing department, mostly appears to be on the floor, then go back down escalator where you have a delightful view of discarded packaging, dust and dirt on the tops of the shelves, dust so deep you can see tracks from where most recent packaging has been pushed on.
If this is on show then wtf is going on where I can't see??

Basically Tesco. (I used to boycott Safeway and look what happened to them!)

They sent me 6 Milky Bars. Which I suppose is technically a years worth, if I only ate one every other month.

They were having a laugh weren't they? That's not a month's supply even (or might be that I'm just greedy)

If I gave a false name in Starbucks I'd promptly forget what my name was meant to be and make a complete tit of myself

I refuse to go to KFC because they serve beans with their meals! Beans have no place in a fast food store!

I boycott our local Asda except when I'm desperate for something because it's such an overfilled, soulless place. I'd rather drive to Sainsburys

In defence of Keswick it's paradise for lovers of outdoor stores. I nearly wet myself with excitement at the sheer number of stores selling walking boots and technical clothing You can wear a fleece with pride in Keswick, that's as good as it gets for me........

^

The fun is in giving a false name - I think. Nothing outlandish necessary either

My (female) friend uses "Stephen" when they look at her questioningly, she says "with a ph".

Currys - my most dramatic boycott. Spent weeks arguing over numerous failed delivery of tumble dryer. When it eventually arrived it was the wrong one. After many discussions saying they would not collect with a friends help I took it back to the store I had bought it from. Set it down between the automatic doors that kept opening and hitting it. Sat on top of it too. Telling customers outside the shop not to bother going in. Telling those inside the shop to be very wary of buying goods. Manager eventually came down. I was given a full refund plus £200 for my distress! At first they offered me the refund and distress money in the form of Currys vouchers - you can imagine my response. Cheque it was and I have boycotted them ever since!

Wow! This thread has been a rollercoaster of emotions for me. First I was boycotting Wadebridge, then I remembered I'd been there recently and panicked, but now we're allowed to go to Wadebridge again. Phew!

I'm boycotting:
Cesar Milan
Bakers Dog Food.
Cod
Esso
The vets in our town that wouldn't book my rabbit in for vaccinations "because it's cheaper just to buy a new one"
Burma

Happy to join in some other boycotts. 1971/1973, Woody Allen, Liverpool, Hollyoaks and Cilla Black all added to the list.

Flipflopwaddle - My DH and I boycott bath in the summer as we went their once, bought ice creams and thought we would eat them in the park, but they were charging to go into a public park.

We found a tiny bit of grass to sit and eat on

Everytime we think about Bath we remember how they charge to sit in a park - never again!

Like Doyouthink I have a similar issue with Lloyds TSB (another one ) -charged me £24 for not paying my card on time...3 weeks after DD2 was born. And I had tried to pay by telephone banking 5 min after the afternoon cutoff on the day ...they would have wavered it but they had 2 years before, bill must have been lost in post - the first time in 20yrs I hadn't paid it off in full on time...
My only mistake was I closed down the card, should have kept it and not used it. But then I moved all my money less £50 out of my current account so they have to keep sending me new cards and statements etc...
(Do I admit I own their shares - not many, cba to sell them - so I'm effectively boycotting myself .. hey ho)

Soda Siphon although I really want one but when googling it to buy one found it's primary manufacturing plant is on a settlement in the occupied West Bank.

I too boycott palm oil, too. The vids and pictures online of Orangutangs screaming in pain and distress as their habitats were wiped out,their babies taken and their homes destroyed, they're among our closest relatives-It's awful!

Apparently some brands are 'okay'.
greatbodyskin.com/orangutang-safe-rspo-certified-red-palm-oil-brands/

I've become a label reader and won't buy anything that obviously contains it, although I am sure I unknowingly consume it sometimes.

I'm loving the boycotting of places so near to where we live:

Dartington Hall .......never actually been there but I now boycott the Cider Press at Dartington because they suddenly introduced parking charges and I drove all the way there (an hours drive) and couldn't park because I didn't have any change.

Wadebridge........never been but definitely won't next time I'm in Cornwall!

Burgh Island.........never been on the island, only to Bantham and Bigbury beaches. It's bloody expensive anyway so unless I win the lottery....

I now boycott Brittany Ferries as we booked a holiday in France with them. The whole idea of the holiday was minimal driving with 3 children to our destination. Hours drive to Plymouth....great. Overnight travel on boat to France.....great. 33 miles from Roscoff to our holiday cottage......fantastic.
The night before we were due to leave we get a text to say that their workers were on strike and we would have to make our way to Calais to get a ferry home. Cue a massive 9 hour drive, screaming 2 year old who was bored of sitting in her car seat, loads of money spent on fuel, toll roads and food. Got back to Dover in the evening and couldn't for the life of us find anywhere to stay for hours as everywhere was booked up due to freshers week.

Brittany Ferries refused to give us suitable compensation to cover the costs of what we had spent trying to get home and what they did give us which didn't even cover half of our costs was a bloody insult.
Just to add insult to injury they gave us a £75 voucher off our next booking with them........whoopy fucking do

I boycott Giraffe on the grounds of three strikes and you're out because on the three occasions I ordered coffee there it was served luke warm.

I also boycott my former very satisfactory independent optician because when I said no I didn't want fancy frames but just plain gold he told me the fancy ones were all right 'because you're a girl'. Well, I may have been once, but it was a few decades ago. Also the new woman who examined my eyes whacked in that nasty yellow ointment without telling me and a few hours later I developed bacterial conjunctivitis in both eyes.

I now go to an equally satisfactory independent optician a few hundred yards away. So far my only complaint is that she has appalling halitosis

my local hypermarket. Its smells bad and they don't have enough cashiers so you wait for ages to pay for their overpriced products.

If we're doing local ones...
I boycott the major school uniform shop in my nearest town because they sell everything at the most expensive price possible and the staff ignore you for ages if you're looking at any state school uniform. I go instead to what looks like a little tatty shop at the other end of the town to get the same good uniform at a much cheaper price and friendly service.
This is in Rochdale. I leave any Rochdalians to guess which shop is which

I boycott any store/ cafe where I overhear managers treating staff badly. I was once sat in a cafe and overheard manager telling staff that one of colleagues was off sick, he had been off 3 days now...she cannot cope with staff being off etc etc. I never used cafe again even though they do nicest cakes ever and are very handy for me.

I've also boycotted a few places if I think the staff are being belittled. Yesterday I went in a cafe, staff was taking a while to give me my change...manager came along, gave staff member an irritated look and took over form her...gave me change. I didn't say anything, instead I will stage a one man protest. They will never know. It will have no impact on their business (I only went in occasionally anyway) but I'll feel better for it.

At this rate, there will be no cafes left in my area left that I can use!!