Here. Excerpt: An analysis of more than 2,000 current card agreements shows they’re written, on average, at the 11th grade reading level – better than five years ago, but still too hard for at least half the population to readily understand. * * * When consumers come up against the dense legalese of card […]
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We posted recently about Uber's plans to put driverless cars on the road in Pittsburgh very soon. Auto safety advocates say it's too soon and the public's safety is at risk. Today's Washington Post has this article on the topic by Elizabeth Dwoskin and Brian Fung. Here's an excerpt: Uber’s decision to bring self-driving taxis to the streets of […]
From the New York Times: Buyout firms are at the forefront of Capitol Hill. They have successfully promoted legislation to roll back regulatory disclosures required under the postcrisis Dodd-Frank legislation, even as they settle cases over misleading investors. If the bill is enacted, however, there is a risk of repercussions. The House passed the plan […]
In the Washington Post this weekend, a journalist describes his experience correcting information that Trans Union provided about him to a prospective landlord. Trans Union erroneously reported that the journalist had several criminal offenses, including felony firearm convictions. It turns out the credit reporting agency was relying on court records for a different person by […]
Interesting article from Brad Plumer here.
That's the topic of Taxing Sugar Sweetened Beverages to Lower Childhood Obesity by Sarah Wetter and James Hodge. Here is the abstract: Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) contributes to multiple health problems including obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay, especially among children. Excise taxation has been proven efficacious in changing purchasing behaviors related to tobacco use with resulting […]
The Federal Trade Commission announced this week three settlements with debt relief and debt collection businesses. First, the FTC announced yesterday a settlement with the owners of a debt relief operation that targeted consumers with outstanding payday loans.The settlement bans the owners from the debt relief business. In February 2015, the FTC filed a complaint […]
CNN Money reports: On Thursday, federal regulators said Wells Fargo employees secretly created millions of unauthorized bank and credit card accounts — without their customers knowing it — since 2011. … Wells Fargo confirmed to CNNMoney that it had fired 5,300 employees over the last few years related to the shady behavior. Employees went so […]
As the unemployment rate has dropped considerably to below 5% from double that during the Great Recession, another, seemingly paradoxical, trend has continued: a drop in adult male workforce participation, which was nearly 100% in the 1960s and is below 90% today. Read this NPR story on the topic or listen to it by clicking on the […]
by Paul Alan Levy This blog has carried a number of articles recently about the bizarre story of “Patel v. Chan” a case in which a pro se lawsuit, seeking relief for defamation based on comments posted on several interactive consumer review sites, was filed in Baltimore without the signatures of any real people. The […]