Rhoda Karpatkin, who served for 30 years as president of Consumers Union, died on August 4 at age 93. The Washington Post has this article. Consumer Reports’ current president Marta Tellado has this remembrance.
Author Archives: Allison Zieve
In a complaint filed by the department of Justice on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission, the FTC says that California-based Experian Consumer Services, also known as ConsumerInfo.com, Inc., spammed consumers with marketing offers after they signed up for an account with the company in order to manage their Experian credit report information. In the […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has released a new Supervisory Highlights report describing unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts or practices across many consumer financial products. For example, auto lenders have originated loan balances above the real value of the car being purchased and engaged in illegal collection practices while servicing these loans. The latest edition […]
The Federal Trade Commission has announced a claims process by which consumers who purchased a DreamCloud mattress and were influenced by the company’s claims that the product was made with U.S. materials can apply for a refund. Details are here.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau published today “a report highlighting the risks employer-driven debt poses to workers. After a review of responses to the CFPB’s public inquiry, the analysis describes the growing prevalence of employer-driven debt and challenges workers and consumers face when they become indebted to an employer or an employer’s affiliate as a […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau joined with 10 state attorneys general and a California regulator to take action against Prehired for deceptive marketing and debt collection practices. The CFPB explains: “Prehired operated a 12-week online training program claiming to prepare consumers for entry-level positions as software sales development representatives with “six-figure salaries” and a “job […]
The Federal Trade Commission is seeking public comments and suggestions on ways it can work more effectively with state attorneys general nationwide to help educate consumers about, and protect them from, potential fraud. The request for public information (RFI) announced today comes at the direction of the FTC Collaboration Act of 2021, which President Biden signed […]
The DC Attorney General’s Office today announced that “EasyPay Finance (EasyPay), a rent-a-bank lender that had operated in the District, will pay more than $215,000 to resolve allegations that it used predatory practices to deceive hundreds of District residents into paying interest rates significantly above DC’s legally allowed maximum rate. In addition to financial terms, […]
CNN reports: “Federal regulators said Tuesday they found that Bank of America harmed customers by double-dipping on fees, withholding credit card rewards and opening fake accounts, all of which are violations of various consumer financial protection laws. As a result, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered Bank of America to pay more than $100 million […]
Good Jobs First reports that “[o]ver the past two decades, major companies have paid out over $25 billion in damages and settlements in class action and multi-district consumer protection lawsuits filed throughout the United States” concerning overcharging customers for goods and services or engaging in false advertising. Read the details here.