We post a lot of stories during the week, and we know that most of you have jobs, families, lives, hobbies, nagging itches and other more important things to do than read every single thing we write. So for those who might be playing catch-up on the weekend, here are some of the things you might have missed… [More]
Quality & Safety
I Still Don’t Have My Gree Dehumidifier Recall Refund. What Should I Do?
By 4.25.14
For months now, a steady stream of readers who are new to Consumerist have found us by searching online for help with their refunds for Gree dehumidifier checks. It’s understandable: some customers have been waiting for months, longer than the company initially promised. What can they do now? [More]
GM Confirms It’s Being Probed On Multiple Fronts Over Ignition Recall
By 4.24.14
While there have been numerous reports of agencies poking their noses into General Motors’ long-delayed ignition-related recall tied to at least 13 deaths, today the car maker game some indication of just how many investigations it faces. [More]
Fitbit Sends Out Recall Notification That Resembles A Phishing Notice
By 4.24.14
When the Fitbit Force was recalled back in March, it looked like it should have been the easiest recall in history. Once a customer removes the Bluetooth-enabled fitness-tracking wristbands from the packaging and syncs the device to a computer or smartphone, the company has the customer’s contact information and can easily drop them an e-mail. Six weeks later, that’s what the company has done…but many customers didn’t get the notice, as we learned yesterday. Why? [More]
Proposed Regulations On E-Cigarettes Include Health Warning Label, Age Restrictions
By 4.24.14
It only took five years, but the Food and Drug Administration is ready to begin regulating electronic cigarettes. While the new rule covers a lot of ground with the never-before regulated devices, it doesn’t deal with some of critics’ more controversial concerns. [More]
There’s A Potentially Itchy Black Market For The Recalled Fitbit Force
By 4.23.14
After Consumerist played a large role in getting the Fitbit Force recalled, I set up a Google alert to let me know when news about the product hits the Interweb. Since the official recall almost six weeks ago, I sort of expected to see a decrease in mentions of the product. I didn’t expect to see sales listings from a small, disingenuous Fitbit Force black market. [More]
GM Shipping Kits To Finally Repair Ignition Defect Responsible For 13 Deaths
By 4.23.14
Amid probes from legislators, regulators, lawyers and criminal investigators into how General Motors managed to get away with allowing more than a million vehicles to hit the road with defective ignition switches tied to at least 13 deaths, the car maker has finally begun shipping out kits to its dealerships so they can start fixing the problem. [More]
GM Asks Bankruptcy Court To Block Ignition-Related Lawsuits
By 4.22.14
A few weeks back, new General Motors CEO Mary Barra hedged on whether her company would hide behind the shield of its 2009 bankruptcy in order to block lawsuits tied to the ongoing ignition-related recalls, telling lawmakers only that “we have civic responsibilities as well as legal responsibilities.” In the weeks since, GM has made it very clear that it will do everything it can to use its own financial incompetence and ineptitude to put up a wall against these lawsuits. [More]
Supreme Court Justices Grill Coca-Cola Over Scarcity Of Pomegranates In Pomegranate Juice
By 4.22.14
As the top judicial body in the land, the United States Supreme Court has asked some pretty tough questions in its day. But yesterday the justices had a question for Coca-Cola that doesn’t seem like it should be so tricky: Shouldn’t a juice labeled as “pomegranate and blueberry” actually include a fair amount of, um, pomegranates? And blueberries? [More]
Brewers Claim Proposed FDA Animal Feed Rules Would Raise Prices For Beer
By 4.21.14
One might not make the obvious connection between animal feed and beer brewing, but every year the nation’s brewers provide millions of tons of low- or no-cost animal feed to farmers in the form of spent grain left over from the brewing process. But a proposed rule update by the Food and Drug Administration may make it harder for brewers and farmers to continue this relationship. [More]
Why Every Driver Should Care About The GM Ignition Recall
By 4.21.14
The massive ongoing recall of General Motors vehicles with faulty ignition switches (and the dozen years the company spent not issuing a recall) has made headlines, launched lawsuits, angered legislators, but many consumers who don’t own a recalled car have shrugged and said, “Glad I don’t drive one of them.” [More]
Kraft Recalls 96K Pounds Of Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs Because You Shouldn’t Be Surprised By Cheese Filling
By 4.21.14
While I’ve been known to enjoy the occasional hot dog with cheese, I’ve never quite understood the appeal of those hot dogs that come pre-loaded with cheese inside the wieners. And while I’d be a bit annoyed to find out that someone at the factory had goofed and put cheese dogs in the packaging of regular ol’ hot dogs, it would be a much bigger problem for those who are allergic to dairy. [More]
Stories You Might Have Missed Because You Were Too Busy Being Awesome
April 19, 2014
We post a lot of stories during the week, and we know that most of you have jobs, families, lives, hobbies, nagging itches and other more important things to do than read every single thing we write. So for those who might be playing catch-up on the weekend, here are some of the things you might have missed… [More]
Court Denies Bid To Keep Recalled GM Cars Off Road
By 4.17.14
A U.S. District Court judge in Texas has put the brakes on an attempt to compel General Motors to tell owners of recalled vehicles to keep their cars parked pending repairs. [More]
GM Test Drivers Knew Of Ignition Problem In 2006
By 4.17.14
Another data point on the General Motors ignition recall timeline has been filled in with the latest revelation that test drivers for the car maker’s Cadillac division spotted the problem eight years ago, possibly leading to a hush-hush design tweak in the switch. [More]
Court Rules That Companies Can’t Litigate In Secret Just To Protect Reputation
By 4.16.14
Since 2012, we’ve been telling you about the mysterious case of Company Doe, a business that had sued the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission over the agency’s SaferProducts.gov database and had convinced a court to let it do so anonymously in order to protect the company’s reputation, setting a dangerous precedent that would allow manufacturers to file such lawsuits completely out of view of the public. But a federal appeals court has sided with consumer advocates and ordered that Company Doe’s identity be revealed. [More]
Health Advocates Say Joe’s Crab Shack Is Breaking Its “No Trans Fat” Promise
By 4.16.14
Seven years ago, the new owners of the 130-location Joe’s Crab Shack restaurant chain promised to completely stop using controversial artificial trans fats in the cooking of its menu items. But the folks at the Center for Science in the Public Interest say Joe’s is breaking this promise by serving up heaps of trans fat-heavy margarine on some dishes. [More]
Evenflo Also Recalls 1.4 Million Car Seats For Sticky Buckle Issues
By 4.11.14
Hey, remember when Graco recalled more than 4 million child safety seats because their buckles have a tendency to latch a little too well when gummed up with food or beverages? It seems that they weren’t the only manufacturer to use the extra-sticky buckles. Evenflo has recalled just under 1.4 million of their seats for the same problem. [More]
