Last week I got an oil change at Take 5. It was a terrible experience, as they managed to fuck up my oil pan, requiring an expensive replacement as well as a second oil change the following day.

I submitted a claim request, which was quickly rejected after they completed “a thorough investigation of the situation and also reviewed all of the documents and/or evidence,” which somehow did not include asking me what I was even complaining about, let alone reviewing any related evidence (which I was explicitly told I could not submit until I was contacted by the claims department for more information).

Needless to say, it’s a shitty company that I’ll never visit again. I recommend you steer clear of them, too.

One thing that stuck out to me during the oil change was the dark pattern the company uses for its “oil change reminder” windshield sticker. Traditionally, these were placed by mechanics to remind you when you should get another oil change—you know, usually 6,000 or 10,000 miles after your last one, depending on your vehicle specifications.

But Take 5 wants to trick you. So they give you this reminder sticker, saying that you can get a free oil “top off” (huh? that hasn’t really been a thing for decades now, right?) until the date or mileage listed below.

The date and mileage is HALF of the promised lifespan of the oil change they just sold you, but it’s clearly designed to trick you into believing that it’s when you need another complete oil change. It’s a scam to make you pay for another oil change long before you need it.

This is aggressively anti-customer and deceptive behavior, intentionally designed to extract unnecessary purchases from you. So I’m filing a consumer complaint with the Arizona Attorney General to rectify this scam, which sure seems like obvious consumer fraud to me:

Consumer fraud, as defined by Arizona law, is any deception, unfair act or practice, false statement, false pretense, false promise or misrepresentation made by a seller or advertiser of merchandise.

It may also be fraud if a material fact is concealed, suppressed or undisclosed with intent.