by Jeff Sovern Auto insurance rates vary depending on a multitude of factors. Many consumers probably expect and would not be troubled by the notion that those with a history of accidents or speeding tickets pay more than those with better driving records. But what about paying different rates because of your education or occupation? […]
That's the name of this article by Virginia Reno, Jasmine Tucker, and Elisa Walker of the National Academy of Social Insurance. That group has also produced the video Social Security: It Pays to Wait, which you can view here or by clicking on the emedded video below. The abstract for the Reno-Tucker-Walker piece appears below […]
Jeff told you on Friday about General Mills's audacious attempt to force its customers into arbitration by downloading its coupons (among other things). After intense backlash, General Mills has reversed itself, as explained in this article by Stephanie Strom. For other articles on the switcheroo, go here and here.
Yesterday's and today's Times have a pair of articles on General Mills's new arbitration policy (HT: Eric Levine). According to the articles, yesterday's When ‘Liking’ a Brand Online Voids the Right to Sue and today's General Mills Amends New Legal Policies, if you sign up for General Mills email alerts, download a coupon from General […]
by Jeff Sovern A few weeks ago, I posted a list of schools offering consumer law courses this year, prepared by my research assistant, Preston Postlethwaite. Because the list was drawn from law school web sites, it omitted some such courses as some web sites were not up-to-date or were inaccessible. A number of people […]
In a resounding victory for both the First Amendment right of access to court records and for consumers, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit held today in Company Doe v. Public Citizen that a district court erred in sealing records and allowing the use of a pseudonym in a challenge to the […]
As this article by Jason Millman explains, a new Gallup report finds, among other things, that "states which fully embraced the [Affordable Care Act] by setting up their own exchanges and expanding their Medicaid programs saw their uninsured rate drop this year three times faster than the states that didn’t."
Over the years, people have filed a number of suits challenging the Senate filibuster rule — the rule that effectively means that much key legislation needs 60 votes to pass the Senate (not just a bare majority). The courts have not reached the merits in those cases, instead bumping them on various non-merits grounds such […]
As the Post explains, The Social Security Administration announced Monday that it will immediately cease efforts to collect on taxpayers’ debts to the government that are more than 10 years old. The action comes after The Washington Post reported that the government was seizing state and federal tax refunds that were on their way to […]
Read the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's 2013 Consumer Reponse Annual Report, which is the agency's name for its comprehensive report on consumer complaints to the agency. Among other things, it explains how the CFPB handles complaints and then reviews complaints by type, including, for instance, debt collection, mortgages, credit cards, and payday loans. CFPB director […]