That was a ridiculous statement.
Nobody puts a gun to anyones head forcing them to rent from Blockbuster and if you don't want late fees DONT BE LATE returning the rental.
I hate blockbuster ... period... glad to see the bastards go.
Yeah, I agree. I worked at a small family-run video store back in the 90s and saw firsthand how they tried to keep their heads above water running that business. Back then, rental videos were purchased at about $80 a copy and at $2 a rental, well you can do the math. A customer who held on to a new release for weeks would kill the ability of that particular $80 copy to generate any revenue. We had so many copies just disappear never to return or they'd finally reappear after interest in the film waned and trying to collect even partial late fees was like pulling teeth. Most of the time it was chalked up as a loss. Eventually, with the advent of priced-to-buy DVDs released the same day as the rental VHS tapes, the family that ran the store threw in the towel and decided to close up shop. Yet Blockbuster were "bad guys" at the time for sending late fees to collection agencies.
I have been charged late fees several times when I am certain I wasn’t late.
I made a policy a few years ago of always going in and hearing my return get beeped in. I don’t use the drop box any more.