A Boy Named Sued

                     
             I was wondering what to complain about this week and came across a little known thing called "arbitration." This ambiguous phrase is a very important factor when signing any type of contract. In this argument, I'm speaking of forced arbitration. Arbitration, in general, waives the rights of consumers or employees to settle a dispute in a civil court. On top of that, people are being stripped of their rights to sue as a class. What does this have to do with Texas? Any state that claims to be "business" friendly, will be using this practice one way or another.

             First off, one of my main concerns about arbitration is the ignorance that surrounds it. Why is that? The less you know the better for the business. You're thinking, "I've never seen any arbitration", and that's my point exactly. 64% of consumers don't have any recollection of seeing any arbitration. Even if they saw some sort of paper work, they were ill informed. If you have a credit card, bank account, cell phone, or even cable and Internet, you were more than likely subjected to an arbitration clause. Surveys show, 75% of most companies have some sort of arbitration. Now when I say ignorance, I mean that for the business as well. Most associates or representatives that work for these companies don't have the slightest idea of what an arbitration is. In some cases, employees aren't properly trained or informed. If you were to see the paper work, you could swear it was a separate contract itself. Pay close attention next time your signing a contract. Forced arbitration gives the consumer an ultimatum, give up your right or don't receive services.

             So what does this mean for consumers? The consumer is having his rights to sue a company  for any disputes in a traditional court and are unable to form a class action lawsuit. In a nutshell, the consumer must take action in a mediation that is payed for by the company whom you are suing. The consumer must face an arbitrator who is hired by the company. His job is to act as a judge in the case. The catch is, the arbitrator is paid by the company you are suing as well. So who do you think the arbitrator is going to side with? More than 90% of arbitrators side with the company. This leaves barely any room for accountability in the business. Also, arbitration can be backwards justice. In some cases, the company is allowed to sue you but not vise versa. 79% of consumers expect to sue a company is there's any disputes. That's going to be a rude awakening, especially for the every day Texan.

            In conclusion, the consumer is denied his rights to fix a situation, which in turns makes it difficult to regulate proper ethics. More education for employees and full disclaimer would level out the playing field. The company should offer an opt out at all times. I understand that arbitration was set up to be efficient and low costing, but it really just puts the consumer at the company's mercy with policies like these.