Last year, I signed up for Zipcar -- the cool company that lets you rent cars by the hour in major cities without needing to wait in line anywhere.  You make your reservations online, pick one of many cars parked all over town, and get into the vehicle with your membership card.

This year, I got an email from Zipcar indicating that my credit card wouldn't work anymore.  Of course, I knew that because I'd had to change it when The Boston Globe accidentally released thousands of customer card numbers (a topic for a separate article).  I got a second email like the first and ignored it as I had the first.  I'm no longer in a city where I need a temporary car.

The third email said they were sending my account to collections.  COLLECTIONS? 

Dear Zipcar, neither of the first two messages indicated that I had an outstanding bill or an obligation to pay you.  That really should come first, before you threaten your customers...