5 Brilliant Loopholes People Used To Cheat The System
Nobody likes to be told no. We have become used to getting what we want in life, and we are especially cranky when things don't work out in our favor. What we do from there is what defines us. Do we accept the situation and move on, or do we get sneaky and exploit every loophole so we can get what we want?
Some make do after not getting their way. But their stories are boring. You know what makes for a great story? When people refuse to give up, then get wise and exploit bureaucratic loopholes. Stories like ...
Gay Native-American Couple Circumvents Marriage Laws
If you can believe it, there was once a time in America where same-sex couples didn't have the right to get married. I know it sounds crazy in retrospect, but luckily for those who enjoy being on the right side of history, some rainbow-colored common sense finally prevailed.
But back in the dark ages of 2013, same-sex couples in states like Oklahoma would have to travel to legal states like Iowa or, shudder, Delaware to secure a marriage license. But when part of your name includes the words "Black Bear," you don't have a habit of bending to society's will. I'm talking, of course, about Darren Black Bear and his boyfriend, Jason Pickel.
I think it was fair to expect a real bear or at least a human-sized pickle,
but this is cool too, I guess.
The pair had been planning to marry for a long time, but due to the same-sex marriage ban at the time, it seemed like it was never going to happen in their home state. Just as they were about to make the trek to a more lenient state, they decided to call up Black Bear's tribe, the Oklahoma-based Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe. The state of Oklahoma had an outright ban on same-sex marriage, but the Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe, a state and federally recognized Native-American tribe, held the right to tell Oklahoma they could blow their laws out of their asses.
So when Pickel and Bear, which is not a children's cartoon, asked if they could have a legally recognized marriage within the tribe, the only stipulation was a $20 marriage license. The tribe does not specify gender in their marriage laws, just that one of the betrothed belong to the tribe. The two lovebirds were married in October of 2013, securing a rare win for the gay community, as well as a win for the old "When mom says no, ask dad" trick we've all utilized at one point or another.
Man Tricks Credit Card Company Into Agreeing To Made-Up Terms, Successfully Sues When They Refuse
If I've told you once, I've told you ... well, I guess just the one time, really: Always read what you're agreeing to! It could save you a lot of stress. Take, for instance, this guy named Dmitry Argarkov, and let his story reinforce my point.
Honestly surprised he isn't a giant pair of testicles filled with liquid bravery.
Argarkov received a credit card application in the mail from Tinkoff Credit Systems. Normally, this type of correspondence finds itself a quick home at the bottom of a garbage can. But Dmitry, whose Internet must not have been working that day, decided to sit down and read through the terms, the contents of which he did not agree with at all. Rather than toss the letter out, he instead scanned it into his computer and modified the fine print to include terms more favorable for him, before signing it and mailing it back to the company.
Section 3, Appendix B: No ATM fee and free Taco Bell, just, whenever.
Hidden among the usual clauses were Dmitry's modifications, which included zero percent interest rates, no credit limit, and no fees. His terms also specified a fine of $50,000 for any time Tinkoff failed to comply and a nearly $100,000 cancellation fee if they tried to terminate the contract. And Tinkoff Credit totally signed the deal. Of course, they immediately tried to go back on it after realizing they were bamboozled by the crafty Russian, citing overdue bank fees as the reason. But the judge decided to uphold Argarkov's fine print of " is not obliged to pay any fees and charges imposed by bank tariffs," as the contract was signed and legally binding. Dmitry secured the win and any remaining issues were resolved out of court for an undisclosed sum, which is really the bank's way of saying, "You win this round, Dmitry."
A $100 Gambling Promotion Pays Out
Canadian gambling website PlayNow.com had a really cool promotion going on back in 2010. If you deposited $100 of your own money before Oct. 5, then wagered $100 on any PlayNow.com casino game, you would get a free $100 casino token. Free money! If you think that sounds too good to be true, you would be right. It actually turned out to be a lot better when the recipients of free money found out how to swindle the fuck out of that casino.
File under: "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
What sounded like a really good publicity stunt ended up biting B.C. Lottery right in their well-meaning asses. If you had signed up for the site during that promotion and transferred your $100 into your account, you weren't able to collect the free money until your bets equaled $100. So if you could at least break even on $100 worth of bets, you'd basically double your money. But unless you're Rain Man, the odds of you securing a win aren't great, right? Except for when you're playing virtual baccarat, that is. Savvy visitors to the site were able to find and exploit a loophole in the free-money promotion.
Sort of like a "lame Ocean's Eleven" or a "regular Ocean's Twelve."
The game essentially boils down to this: Either your cards add up highest or the dealer's do. So if you placed a $50 dollar bet on yourself and used the other $50 in your account to bet on the banker, you win your money back. Repeat those steps again and you're still at $100, only now you qualify for the $100 bonus voucher. After subtracting the $2.50 processing fee, you could cash out with $197 and walk out like the badass casino scoundrel you are.
A lot of people were able to cash out on this promotion before the B.C. Lottery put the kibosh on the whole operation, hoodwinked and embarrassed.
Man Uses First-Class Ticket To Eat Like A King For A Year
A first-class ticket opens you up to a world of different luxuries. You get the roomier seats, access to the first-class VIP lounge at the airport, and I hear some places even give you chairs that turn into beds. Class-sy!
Some offer cubicles so you can feel the crushing weight of your office's tedium in the sky.
Another great thing about first-class tickets is that they're usually fully refundable up until you get on the plane. That means you can't take advantage of the on-board perks, but you still have your golden ticket to the VIP lounge at the airport. If you find yourself saying "Big whoop" to that, you need to take a look at what's included in a VIP lounge and also update your '90s slang catalog.
Your first-class ticket gets you access to free WiFi, free drinks and snacks, entertainment facilities, showers, beds, and probably a magic show and an orgy. One man wanted all of that and more. So he found a way to spin a first-class ticket into a free meal again and again and again, nearly every day, for a year.
"Are these throw-pillows complimentary too?"
There's a tale out of China that speaks of a frugal hero who was able to use a single first-class ticket more than 300 times. Back in 2014, the Xi'an Xianyang International Airport noticed a strange thing about a particular first-class ticket: It had been canceled and rebooked over 300 times. After looking into the matter, they found that this guy never intended to use the ticket to fly anywhere; he just wanted to take advantage of all the free food being offered to the fat-cats in the airport lounge.
The investigation was dropped when the guy canceled his ticket for a full refund. Which means that the airline just sort of held onto his money for him while he ate like a king for a year.
Damn. The Chinese are even better freeloaders than we are.
Boy-Band Member Wears All His Clothes To Avoid Airline Fees
Speaking of shitty airport policies, can we talk about bag check? From the time you walk in the front doors all the way up through TSA, airlines are amazingly proficient at making the check-in process a complete mess. Not to mention that extra fees that airlines charge, which includes checked-bag fees, have risen somewhere around 1,400 fucking percent in the past eight years, which makes me wonder: Is airplane bag space a depleting natural resource? Did we over-mine it?
Oh, so we're just pulling random prices out of our asses, then?
We regular schlubs expect to put up with that kind of bullshit at the airport. Celebrities, however, know no such way of life. That was certainly the case for 19-year-old James McElvar from the boy-band Rewind. Now, I'll admit I don't know anything about the band itself, but if their stick-to-itiveness is indicative of their music, they most likely still suck but are probably cool guys nonetheless.
Well, on second thought ...
When McElvar and his bandmates were attempting to board a flight back home to Scotland, he was told he would need to check his suitcase before boarding the plane. Apparently, something about the $45 bag-check fee just didn't sit right with McElvar, which is why he refused to comply and, instead, proceeded to dress in every piece of clothing residing in his suitcase.
And was unafraid to look homeless.
Can't argue with results, though; the ploy worked like a charm. He was able to board the plane and those nine $5 bills remained safely in his bank account. The final tally of clothing was six shirts, five sweaters, some jeans and sweatpants, topped off with some jackets and hats. But what he saved in bag-check fees was more than offset by hospital fees, as McElvar collapsed from heat exhaustion halfway through the flight.
I wasn't kidding.
Erik Germ just loves it when you follow him on Twitter.
The only thing better than breaking the rules is working around them. See how Michael Larson legally beat the system of a popular game show in The 6 Most Creative Abuses Of Loopholes and read about how both Sonny Liston and Muhammed Ali played outside of the rules in The 7 Ballsiest Sports Cheats Ever.
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