We recently reported that Samsung had contracted with Dish Network to do in-home repairs on the millions of Samsung top-loading washers recalled in 2016. We also heard from a number of people who said that the Dish techs tried to upsell them on satellite TV service while they were doing these washing machine repairs. Dish downplayed this sort of in-home marketing, but the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says repair techs should be focused on their work. The CPSC also says it investigating at least one incident that appears to have occurred after a washer was repaired. [More]
Quality & Safety
U.S. Safety Regulator: Dish Network Techs Shouldn’t Upsell TV Service While Fixing Samsung Washers
By 3.6.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Mercedes Recalls 354K Vehicles Over Fire Risk
By 3.3.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a million times: You don’t want your vehicle to catch on fire. For that reason, Mercedes-Benz is recalling more than 354,000 vehicles. [More]
Evanger’s Expands Recall Of Dog Food That Could Contain Euthanasia Drugs
By 3.3.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Earlier this year, products from high-end dog food brands Evanger’s and Against the Grain were recalled earlier this year for a surprising reason: Cans from that batch were found to be contaminated with pentobarbital, a drug used for euthanasia mostly of dogs, cats, and horses. The source of the drug still hasn’t been discovered, and now Evanger’s has quietly added another variety of dog food to the recall. [More]
680,000 Baby Rattles Recalled Over Choking Hazard Concerns
By 3.3.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Baby rattles come in all shapes, sizes, and designs, but they all have one purpose: To entertain children, not hurt them. For that reason, 680,000 rattles have recently been recalled because they pose a choking hazard. [More]
Nintendo Switch Cartridges Taste Awful So Kids Won’t Eat Them
By 3.2.17
While it’s baffling to imagine any rational adult intentionally deciding to lick a video game cartridge, a few gamers doing just that with Nintendo Switch cartridges were surprised to find the things taste absolutely awful. Turns out, that’s for a very good reason. [More]
Ford Recalls 32,000 Vehicles Over Airbags That Won’t Inflate
By 3.2.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
So far, more than 42 million vehicles equipped with shrapnel-shooting Takata airbags have been recalled in the U.S. But it’s another issue with the autoparts maker that has Ford recalling nearly 32,000 vehicles: airbags that won’t inflate. [More]
Facebook Uses Artificial Intelligence To Update Suicide Prevention Tools
By 3.1.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Two years after Facebook rolled out updated tools for suicide prevention, the social media network is revising those resources once again, this time to include artificial intelligence assistance and expanding the features to its other platforms Messenger and Facebook Live. [More]
Lipari Foods And Yoke’s Fresh Market Recall Cheeses For Listeria
By 3.1.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
There’s nothing quite like a far-reaching food recall to remind us how interconnected the food system is, and how many of the products we buy are mass-manufactured elsewhere and have a local or regional retailer’s label slapped on them. Two more brands have joined the massive Listeria recall, because they were repackaged cheese blocks from Deutsch Kase Haus in Wisconsin. [More]
Samsung Washing Machine Owners Complain Of New Problem After Recall Repair
By 3.1.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
In addition to the Samsung washing machine owners who say they have been unable to get their recalled appliance repaired, Consumerist has heard from owners who’ve successfully had their washers fixed, but now claim to face a new problem: The clothes are now soaking wet when they come out of the wash. [More]
Vanishing Rebate Checks, Canceled Appointments: Stories Of Samsung’s Turbulent Washer Recall
By 3.1.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Last November, Samsung recalled nearly 3 million top-loading washing machines amid complaints about violent vibrations, “explosions”, and one broken jaw. The company offered the choice of an in-home repair, a rebate on a new machine, or a complete refund for recently purchased machines. That was nearly four months ago, but a number of Samsung washer owners tells us they’ve been frustrated with whichever option they selected. [More]
Why Is Samsung Sending A Dish Network Tech To Fix My Washing Machine?
By 3.1.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
The mechanic at your local garage might also be savvy enough to fix your furnace, but you probably wouldn’t expect the furnace company to send her out to your house to do a recall-related repair. So why is Samsung sending out Dish Network techs to fix defective Samsung washing machines? And why is Dish okay with techs using this opportunity to upsell satellite TV service? [More]
This Pharmacy Ad Suggests “Very, Very Strong Antibiotics” Even When They Won’t Do Any Good
By 2.28.17
When you’re sick, it makes sense that you want a pill to just make all the symptoms go away, which is probably why some doctors continue to prescribe antibiotics even when they aren’t necessary and may, in fact, cause harm. It probably doesn’t help when a pharmacy perpetuates the myth that we should just take antibiotics whenever we might be sick. [More]
No, It’s Not Just You: Lots Of The Internet Is Down, Thanks To A Problem At Amazon
By 2.28.17
UPDATE: Shortly after 5 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Amazon said that the affected services were fully recovered and operational. [More]
Lawsuit Claims Five Automakers Knew Of Dangerous Takata Airbags, Used Them Anyway
By 2.27.17
Takata recently agreed to pay $1 billion to close the books on a federal criminal investigation into its shrapnel-shooting airbags linked to 11 deaths, but the auto parts company — and several automakers — must still answer allegations that these airbags were a known problem long before the massive recall. [More]
Groups Ask FDA To Ban Lead Compound From Hair Dye Products
By 2.27.17
While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently recommended further limiting the amount of lead found in common cosmetics, that guidance didn’t extend to hair dyes that contain lead acetate. Now, a coalition of consumer advocates says the agency should reconsider its approval of the ingredient in hair dyes. [More]
Wegmans Changes Price-Comparison Signs After Costco Complaint
By 2.27.17
Price-comparison ads at Wegmans will soon be getting a bit of a makeover following an ad watchdog’s suggestion that the grocer modify in-store displays in response to a Costco complaint that the low-cost price comparisons were misleading and false. [More]
Trader Joe’s Applesauce Recalled Because Apples Don’t Contain Glass
By 2.27.17
There are number of things you can put in applesauce to give it a bit of a kick: cinnamon, brown sugar, but definitely not glass. Yet, Trader Joe’s is recalling its applesauce over concerns it might contain that dangerous, unwanted ingredient.
[More]
Trump White House Directs Agencies To Start Lining Up Regulations For Chopping Block
By 2.24.17
In January, President Trump signed an executive order dictating that for every new federal regulation put in place, at least two existing regulations would need to be removed. Today, the President took things even further, directing these agencies to start thinking now about which rules should be eliminated. [More]
