Author Archives: Christine Hines

FTC, DOJ promote consumers’ right to repair

The Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice back changes to copyright rules that would give consumers’ more legal room to either repair products themselves or hire independent businesses to fix them. In a press release, the FTC announced that the agencies issued a joint comment in response to the U.S. Copyright Office’s rulemaking […]

State AGs release their top 10 consumer complaints

During this National Consumer Protection Week, many offices of state attorneys general released their annual list of top 10 consumer complaints received over the last year. The lists present broad categories for received complaints, such as automobile sales, Internet sales/scams, retail, professional or consumer services, banking and loans, health/medical, home improvement, and housing/real estate. Some […]

NY’s Legal Aid Society sues mayor to enforce new housing protections

Noteworthy news from this week: the Legal Aid Society in New York City sued the city and its mayor to force them to implement new laws that expand eviction protections for residents vulnerable to homelessness. The Legal Aid Society filed a class action on behalf of New Yorkers eligible for a new program that provides […]

Proposed junk fee rule gets state AG support

This week marked the end of an extended public comment period for the Federal Trade Commission’s proposed rule to rein in unfair and deceptive fees across the marketplace. Notably, 19 state attorneys general submitted a joint letter of support for the FTC’s proposal. The Commission proposes to address bait-and-switch pricing structures to prevent business from […]

FTC Announces Identity Theft Awareness Week

It’s Identity Theft Awareness Week, Jan. 29-Feb. 2. The Federal Trade Commission says this week it “will host free podcasts, webinars, Facebook Live interviews, and other events focused on avoiding and recovering from identity theft and spotting scams.” Join the FTC in spreading helpful information for consumers on social media.

CFPB’s 2023 enforcement actions in a nutshell

In a recent blog post, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau offered a quick overview of its 2023 enforcement work. The agency reported that it filed 29 enforcement actions against financial institutions and resolved six prior lawsuits. Lenders, banks, and other entities that broke the law were ordered to pay approximately $3.07 billion to  consumers and […]

Effective date of FTC auto rule delayed amid industry court challenge

The Federal Trade Commission issued an order delaying the effective date of the recently released rule that seeks to provide protections for car buyers against some of the more prevalent deceptive practices in car sales. The Combating Auto Retail Scams (CARS) rule, originally set to become final on July 30, is now pushed back pending […]

Auto dealer industry petitions Fifth Circuit for review of new FTC rule

The Federal Trade Commission on January 4 published in the Federal Register its final rule to rein in widespread unfair and deceptive auto dealer practices. The next day, Reuters reported that the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) and the Texas Automobile Dealers Association filed a petition before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals seeking review […]

FTC continues moves against deep-rooted robocall system

In its battle to rein the coordinated system facilitating illegal robocalls, the Federal Trade Commission announced a proposed order against a lead generator, which the agency charged with deceptively collecting consumers’ information and then selling their data to telemarketers…leading to harassing calls. The announced proposed order would ban California-based Response Tree LLC and its president […]

Two CFPB reports find more fee surprises

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau this week published two reports that show fees on financial products continue to shock consumers. Overdraft and non-sufficient funds fees still trouble vulnerable households. Excess charges from some college-marketed financial products still don’t appear to be in the best interest of students. In building on its continued research on overdraft […]