Jul 28, 2026
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Add us on GoogleOn June 15 around 10:30 a.m. in Clermont, Florida, Tiffany McGhee believes a FedEx truck backed into her car, which was parked at her apartment complex. The FedEx driver had been making a delivery and left the vehicle. Moments after the impact, he went running after the truck to assess the damage, local Orlando station WFTV 9 reported. Someone else’s parked car was hit too. They got paid for the damages. McGhee, however, did not.
McGhee obtained security footage of the incident from her apartment complex and shared it on social media. She wrote: “A police report was filed following the incident. However, the driver stated that he had only backed into one vehicle. The FedEx claims adjuster also informed me that the truck’s onboard cameras showed the driver backing into only one vehicle. Based solely on the driver’s statement and their camera review, my claim was denied.”
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McGhee was frustrated. When she posted the video on social media, FedEx reached back out and asked her for the video. She says a week went by with no response, so she contacted local news show Action 9.
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The results of McGhee’s case
McGhee told Action 9 Consumer Investigator Jeff Deal that at first FedEx only took responsibility for the damage to one car, but not hers.
WFTV 9 shared that less than two hours after Action 9 went to FedEx for answers, McGhee received an email, informing her that the damage — estimated at just over $1,100 — would be covered.
FedEx sent Action 9 this statement: “Safety is our highest priority, and we are grateful no one was injured. We worked directly with the affected individual to resolve this matter.” Moneywise reached out to FedEx for comment and received the same statement.
While McGhee was happy to be paid for the damages, she was disappointed to have even needed to reach out to journalists for help.
“I hate that I even had to go this far,” she told them.
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Your local news station could help you
At the end of the day, McGhee’s story was a success — she got back the money she was owed for the incident. She was lucky to have access to surveillance footage from her building. Another way to get that would have been to go file a police report and request relevant CCTV footage they may be able to obtain, the WFTV 9 story says. But video wasn’t what moved McGhee’s case along. She did that by making a stink on social media, then reaching out to Action 9.
Many local news stations have journalists dedicated to consumer investigation whose entire purpose is to cast light on consumer issues and even add some pressure onto the companies in question through media attention.
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Because these companies don’t want bad press, the chances of someone’s probably being solved quickly when they’re dealing with a media professional are higher.
Not every complaint about a company will rise to the level of being worthy of a news story. Journalists look for issues that are in the public interest: they expose crime or rule-breaking, they are matters of public health and safety, they reveal the public being misled, or they expose misuse of public funds or misconduct on the part of public officials. The National Union of Journalists also lists “exposing corporate greed” as a matter of public interest.
Stories are even more newsworthy if they show a pattern of behaviour that could affect multiple consumers. Finally, news stories are often short and very focused on one topic, so your communication to a journalist should be, too.
Additionally, media inquiries from an outlet with a large audience may be handled by higher level staff, rather than more junior staffers those who may be directly involved in a consumer’s issue.
If you’re in a tough situation as a consumer and struggling to get the help you need, consider looking up your local news station’s contact info — some may even have a direct contact for consumer investigations — and reach out to explain your story.
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Em Norton is a Content Specialist at moneywise.com. They have been with the company since 2022.
