[zephen]

> exploiting a difference between expectations and reality is a common way to make money

Maybe? Or maybe expectations catch up with reality? I mean, does anybody really go into a car dealership thinking the dealer isn't going to do their best to rip them off? Or believe that "their" real estate agent is "on their side?"

I think most people just accept that the world is full of rip-off artists.

Which is kind of sad, really. If one person pushes back on bad billing, the company still makes money, even if it has to do a refund.

But if everybody were to always push back? It wouldn't be worth it to try to tack on extra fees for non-rendered services.

[inigyou]

Yes, lots of people who don't frequent HN think their real estate agent is on their side, and think car dealerships just sell cars for a fair price. They might even think politicians make laws to make society better.

That's why all these groups of people are able to make so much money. If everyone expected a car dealer to rip them off, car dealers wouldn't be able to rip anyone off and there wouldn't be so many of them.