In the midst of a recall scandal involving ignition problems that have resulted in the deaths of at least a dozen people, General Motors has another publicity mess on its hand. The carmaker has told its dealers to stop selling certain Chevy Cruze models but isn’t publicly stating a reason for the halt. [More]
Government Policy
Driver-Licenses.org Is Not Where You Renew Your Driver License
By 3.28.14
Here’s the thing with modern Web browsers: they cater to our innate laziness by making the address bar dual-use. You can type a URL in, or you can type a search term. If you do that while trying to renew your driver’s license online, you may run into trouble. [More]
Fandango, Credit Karma Apps Allegedly Put Consumers’ Personal Information At Risk
By 3.28.14
Pop quiz time! What do Fandango and Credit Karma have in common? Yes, they both have really catchy (or annoying) advertisements. But that’s not the answer we were looking for. Give up? Okay, here it is: both companies allegedly deceived millions of consumers and put their personal information at risk. We never said it was a good thing to have in common. [More]
Despite Regulations, Survivors Face Foreclosures After Reverse Mortgage Borrower’s Death
By 3.27.14
There are a number of reasons someone might take out a reverse mortgage: to pay for prescriptions or medial care, to subsidize their daily living expenses or even to settle their fear of becoming a burden to their family. But the product that was designed to keep elderly consumers in their homes is now wreaking havoc on their surviving loved ones. [More]
Verizon: Everything Is Great, Let’s Not Mess It Up By Fixing Net Neutrality
By 3.27.14
Ah, Verizon, those well-known lovers of net neutrality. They love it so much that they sued the FCC to get net neutrality tossed out — a move that succeeded earlier this year. And now, Verizon’s showing their deep and abiding fondness for internet openness by telling the FCC just how much we don’t need to protect it at all. [More]
Court To Decide If Recalled GM Cars Should Remain Parked Pending Repairs
By 3.27.14
Earlier this week, plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed against General Motors over the ongoing ignition-related recall of more than a million cars asked the court to issue an injunction that would compel GM to urge drivers to stop driving these vehicles until the repairs. Today it was announced that both sides will get to argue their position before the court on April 4. [More]
Sen. Franken Calls Comcast/Time Warner Cable Merger A “Terrible Deal For Consumers”
By 3.27.14
While Comcast has financial ties to numerous important members of the House and Senate, there are a few folks on Capitol Hill who have no problem speaking out against the cable company’s plan to expand its domination of the pay-TV and Internet business by acquiring Time Warner Cable and its millions of customers. Sen. Al Franken has already expressed concern about the merger, but yesterday he made his position on the matter very clear. [More]
TSA Wants Armed Police Stationed At Airport Checkpoints As Part Of New Security Measures
By 3.27.14
After a gunman opened fire at one of Los Angeles International Airport’s security checkpoints last November, the Transportation Security Administration has been weighing its security measures to find where the system can be improved. A new report from the agency recommends beefing up police presence with armed officers at airport checkpoints, as well as increased training across the board. [More]
Weight-Loss Drug Alli Recalled Over Tampering Concerns
By 3.27.14
Big pharma biggie GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has issued a recall all on all of its alli weight loss products in the U.S., including Puerto Rico, over concerns that packages may have been tampered with, resulting in some bottles containing something other than actual alli capsules. [More]
Lawmakers Call On FCC To Make Complaint Database Accessible To Public
By 3.26.14
Every year, the FCC receives hundreds of thousands of complaints from consumers, but those gripes are rarely made public. That’s why a pair of Senators are urging the Commission to follow the lead of other federal agencies that offer public, searchable databases of complaints. [More]
Drug Companies Say They Won’t Sell Antibiotics For Non-Medical Use In Animals, But Are They Telling The Truth?
By 3.26.14
The FDA had “Look at effect of medically unnecessary antibiotics in farm animals and maybe do something about it” on its to-do list for three decades, and then last December it finally issued a pretty-please to the pharmaceuticals industry, asking drug companies to voluntarily stop selling antibiotics for non-therapeutic use on farm animals. Almost all of them have since agreed in writing to follow the FDA’s guidance, but are those promises worth the paper they’re written on? [More]
TV Writers Come Out Against Comcast/Time Warner Cable Deal
By 3.26.14
Given that Comcast is already the nation’s largest cable and Internet provider and the owner of a broadcast TV network, multiple cable channels, numerous local TV stations, a major movie studio, some theme parks, and a partridge in a pear tree, you might assume that people who make their living selling scripts to Comcast-owned companies would be reluctant to bite the hand that feeds them. But last week, the Writer’s Guild of America asked the FCC to block Comcast’s pending $45 billion deal to buy Time Warner Cable. [More]
Walmart Recalls 174,000 My Sweet Love/My Sweet Baby Dolls Because Burnt Flesh Isn’t So Sweet
By 3.25.14
Though a handful of kids’ dolls have been known to become possessed by the souls of deceased serial killers — not to mention the occasional murderous, self-aware ventriloquist dummy — it’s generally accepted that dolls are not supposed to hurt the children who play with them. That’s why Walmart has issued a recall on 174,000 dolls that can overheat and cause burns or blisters. [More]
IRS Decision To Tax Bitcoin As Property May Slow Efforts To Widen Its Use In Retail
By 3.25.14
It’s a good-news/bad-news day for folks who have heavily invested in the Bitcoin virtual currency, after the IRS declared that will tax Bitcoins as property. On the one hand, that means that people who are profiting from their investment in Bitcoin will pay the lower taxes associated with capital gains, rather than the much higher taxes levied on foreign currency gains. On the other hand, it could mean an awful lot of record-keeping that may make it a hassle to use Bitcoins for everyday transactions like one would use a debit card. [More]
CFPB In “Late Stages” Of Working On Rules To Stop Predatory Payday Lending
By 3.25.14
Lisa took out a payday loan to help pay her rent. When she couldn’t repay the loan after 14 days she rolled it over, bringing her total debt to $800. After repaying more than $1,400, she remains stuck in the revolving door of debt associated with payday lending. It’s stories like these that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau aims to stop with new rules to regulate the payday loan industry. But those in the payday industry say Lisa should have simply known better. [More]
Parker Farms And Store Brand Cheese Snacks, Salsa, And Peanut Butter Recalled For Possible Listeria
By 3.25.14
Whenever we forget how massively inter-connected our food supply is, a huge national recall of prepared foods comes along and reminds us. This time, the reminder comes from Minnesota-based manufacturer Parkers Farm Acquisition, LLC, which packages salsa, cold pack cheeses, peanut butter, and pepper spreads under its own name and also store brands. Some of their products were contaminated with the very nasty foodborne pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes.
4 Out Of 5 Payday Loans Are Made To Consumers Caught In Debt Trap
By 3.25.14
The revolving door that is the payday lending debt trap is real. The high-interest, short-term loans may even be more damaging to consumers that previously thought. Four out of five payday loans are rolled over or renewed every 14 days by borrowers who end up paying more in fees than the amount of their original loan, a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau report finds. [More]
GM Knew Chevy Cobalt Ignition Could Turn Itself Off, Released Car Anyway
By 3.25.14
If you’re a carmaker and you find out the vehicle you’re about to release had an ignition-switch issue that could not only stop the car’s engine but render the power steering, air bags, and power brakes useless, you probably wouldn’t release that car. It’s a shame you weren’t a General Motors executive 10 years ago. [More]
