Have you ever wondered if people on the other side of the country run into the same difficulties dealing with financial institutions as you do? Well, wonder no more, as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced today that it will provide a peek into the overall state of consumer complaints in the U.S. and how individuals in certain areas deal with companies providing financial products and services through a new monthly series. First up: Milwaukee, WI, and debt collection. [More]
Government Policy
CFPB Launches Monthly Reports To Showcase Financial Difficulties In Specific Areas Of The U.S.
By 7.16.15
Cribs Recalled After Reports That Brackets Can Break, Trapping Or Injuring Infants
By 7.16.15
All recalls are important to take note of, but those related to the safety of products used specifically for the youngest consumers – babies – are often of the utmost importance. And while a recent recall for Bexco is relatively small, because there’s a risk of entrapment of infants the issue falls into the “take note” category. [More]
2 Million More Stuffed Chicken Breasts Recalled For Possible Salmonella
By 7.16.15
Hey, remember that recall of 1.7 million frozen stuffed chicken breasts and other chicken products for potential Salmonella contamination earlier this week? Hope you’re ready to check your freezer again, chicken fans! Another company that sells similar products has recalled 1,978,680 (let’s round that up to 2 million) pounds of its prepared chicken products. That is not a total of 2 million including the last recall: this is a separate recall for similar products. [More]
Chicago Will Have The Highest Sales Tax In The U.S. At 10.25%
By 7.15.15
Sales taxes are variable from place to place and very visible, and they’re visible day-to-day as we dig in our pockets for change to pay a coffee tab of $3.14. Starting next year, Chicago will have the highest sales tax in the country, with state, county and city taxes adding up to 10.25%. [More]
GM’s Colorado, Canyon Trucks Reportedly At Risk For Same Fire Issues As Recalled Hummers
By 7.15.15
Following reports yesterday that General Motors knew that hundreds of thousands of Hummer vehicles were prone to fires because of potential electrical shorts before recalling the vehicles under the threat of an investigation by regulators, it now appears that two other models produced by the car maker may have the same issues, yet they remain on the road. [More]
Report: GM Threatened With Regulatory Investigation Before Issuing Recall For Fire-Prone Hummers
By 7.14.15
Last week, General Motors announced that it would recall nearly 196,000 Hummer vehicles because simply turning on the heating or cooling system could set the car ablaze. While we reported that federal regulators had received nearly two dozen consumer complaints about the issue over the past seven years, a new report finds that the real number of reported incidents is much higher, and that GM may have continued to put off issuing the recall had it not been for threats of an investigation. [More]
Texas Billionaire Makes “Significant” Investment To Help Bring Back Blue Bell Ice Cream
By 7.14.15
Fans of Blue Bell ice cream who have been living without the stuff after the company was forced to shut down production will surely be pleased to hear that dessert salvation could be nigh: Blue Bell Creameries says a Texas billionaire has made a “significant” investment in the company, something that could help it get its products back on freezer shelves. [More]
Honda Finance Unit Must Pay $24 Million For Charging Higher Interest To Non-White Borrowers
By 7.14.15
Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, creditors are prohibited from discriminating against loan applicants based on race or national origin. But that was a rule Honda’s financing unit allegedly violated, resulting in thousands of African-American, Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander borrowers paying higher interest rates than white borrowers for their auto loans. Now, as part of a settlement with federal regulators to resolve allegations that the company allowed discriminatory loan pricing, the company must provide $24 million in restitution to borrowers. [More]
Bank Of America, Wells Fargo Top List Of Most Complained About Mortgage Issuers
By 7.14.15
For the past four years, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Consumer Complaint Database has seen its fair share of consumer issues related to mortgages. In fact, complaints regarding loan modification, collection, foreclosure, loan servicing, payments and escrow accounts continue to be one of the biggest financial thorns in consumers’ sides. And the worst offender? Bank of America. [More]
Regulators Open Investigation Into Another Airbag Maker Over Possible Rupture Defect
By 7.14.15
As the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration continues to investigate why millions of Takata-produced airbag inflators have a tendency to spew pieces of shrapnel with enough force to injure or kill occupants, the agency has opened a second probe into another airbag manufacturer for similar rupture issues. [More]
Oscar-Winning Director Of Snowden Documentary Trying To Find Out Why She’s Been Detained At Airports So Much
By 7.13.15
Laura Poitras recently won the Academy Award for CITIZENFOUR, her documentary on NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, but the director claims that she’s long been hassled by U.S. federal authorities for years, resulting in multiple unmerited airport detentions. Now she’s suing the government to find out exactly why. [More]
Food Companies Could Face Federal Criminal Charges Over Tainted Products
By 7.13.15
Between ice cream, smoothies, hummus, more ice cream, spinach, spinach ravioli, spinach lasagna, and caramel apples, we’ve seen a lot of recalls in recent months for tainted food — and that’s just listeria, one of many pathogens that could make you ill after eating. Now the U.S. Dept. of Justice is letting food producers know that poisoning consumers could result in more than just having to issue a few recalls. [More]
Fiat Chrysler Recalls More Than 88,000 Challengers For Takata Airbag Defect
By 7.13.15
Nearly a month after regulators announced they had identified all 33.8 million vehicles equipped with potential shrapnel-shooting Takata airbags, one auto maker says it’s not quite done, recalling about 88,000 more cars to the massive recall. [More]
CFPB Releases Educational Guides To Help Non-English Speakers Avoid Scams, Understand Financial Issues
By 7.10.15
Understanding the world of finance can be difficult for just about anyone in this country, but especially so when the rules of the industry are written in a language that you might not be proficient in. For these consumers, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has created a new set of guides aimed at helping them avoid financial devastation. [More]
FCC Proposal: Phone Companies Need To Offer Backup Power, Actually Notify You If They Kill Off Your Copper-Wire Landline
By 7.10.15
FCC chairman Tom Wheeler is introducing a new proposal to the commission today that would attempt to protect consumers’ interests while advancing the transition away from plain old copper-wire service and onto IP data networks. [More]
FDA Requiring Stronger Heart Attack & Stroke Warnings For Many Common Painkillers
By 7.10.15
The Food and Drug Administration is looking to make consumers more aware of potential risks for heart attack and stroke associated with a popular class of painkillers that many of us use on a frequent basis for everyday aches and soreness. [More]
Takata Nixes Idea Of Airbag Victim Compensation Fund, For Now
By 7.10.15
Last month, in his first public address of the massive airbag defect linked to eight deaths and more than a hundred injuries, Takata CEO Shigehisa Takada announced the Japanese auto parts maker would consider the possibility of creating a victim compensation fund. Now, the company says such a fund is a no-go. [More]
Consumer Groups Urge CFPB To Provide Better Oversight, Rules Over Student Loan Servicing
Two months ago, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau took the first steps in tackling issues within the student loan servicing arena by asking consumers and organizations to share their thoughts on the state of an industry that is tasked with recouping the more than $1.2 trillion in outstanding student loan debt in the U.S. Now, as the deadline to submit comments has come and gone, we know a bit more about just how the industry is perceived by those tasked with sticking up for consumers. [More]