Here’s Why Costco And Whole Foods Made Consumer Reports’ 2015 Naughty List

Every year, Santa Claus makes a master list of which children have been naughty or nice in the preceding year, and rewards them accordingly. Our sibling publication, Consumer Reports, makes its own list of judgement, deciding whether companies, not individuals, have behaved themselves in the past year. It’s not an overall evaluation of the company’s products or practice, but calling out specific examples of admirable or deplorable behavior.

Here are a few examples from this year’s naughty list:

Costco: Wait, isn’t Costco a beloved company around here? Yes, but Costco also fought and lost in federal court against jeweler Tiffany for some shady behavior. They were accused of selling diamond engagement rings and using the name Tiffany, which Costco claimed at some length in court that they thought meant a type of diamond solitaire setting, and not a brand name.

FedEx and UPS: Both of these companies are still engaging in anti-consumer behavior by continuing to impose a fuel surcharge on all shipments, even though fuel prices have dropped significantly since they started the practice. FedEx even increased their surcharges earlier this year.

Whole Foods: The wholesome health food chain was found overcharging some customers for packaged food items. Some Mistakes, one of the company’s co-CEOs explained, “do happen, because it’s a hands-on approach to bringing you the fresh food.” In addition to errors, the company was also accused of including the weight of containers in the price of packaged food items for sale.

To see the rest of the naughty list and peruse the nice things that some companies have done this year, head over to Consumer Reports and check out their lists.