Women’s apparel chain bebe is reportedly the latest retailer leaving the mall behind. But instead of completely closing shop like The Limited and WetSeal, the company plans to take its business online only. [More]
Search results for: zombie debt
The 50 Most-Read Consumerist Stories Of 2016
By 12.30.16
After what feels like a decade, 2016 is mercifully over, but before we can move forward into the brave new year it’s time to bring the recycling bin over toward our locker and purge the bulging Trapper Keeper we’ve been cramming stories into for the last 12 months. [More]
New Rules Would Require Debt Collectors Have Proof You Actually Owe Money
By 7.28.16
One of the most common complaints about debt collectors is that they harass people over debts that are either no longer owed, or weren’t owed in the first place. Federal regulators are now proposing rules that — among other protections — would cut down on these annoying, bogus collections actions by requiring that debt collectors have some sort of evidence that the person they are calling actually owes money. [More]
What Is Zombie Debt, And Why Won’t It Just Stay Dead?
By 6.7.16
John Oliver made a huge splash this week when, to prove a point on his show, he purchased $15 million worth of medical debt for $60,000… and then promptly forgave it all. A lot of that debt was “zombie debt,” which, like its namesake, keeps coming back from the dead to bother people who would much rather be left alone and unbitten. [More]
John Oliver Buys $15M In Medical Debt, Then Forgives It
By 6.6.16
We can tell you about the growing problem of medical debt and how hospitals are suing thousands of patients for having the gall to be both sick and poor, or how debt collectors screw-up and use illegal tactics to get paid for debts they often can’t even prove that anyone owes. But that’s nothing compared to the sight of a goofy English guy forgiving $15 million in medical debt he bought for pennies on the dollar. [More]
JPMorgan To Pay $100M To Settle Unlawful Debt-Collection Allegations In California
By 11.2.15
Four months after JPMorgan Chase agreed to pay at least $136 million to close the books on state and federal investigations into its credit card collections practices, the company reached a $100 million settlement putting an end to a similar investigation in California. [More]
Investors Want McDonald’s To Spin $20 Billion In Property Off Into Real Estate Investment Trust
By 8.25.15
While McDonald’s doesn’t own the majority of its restaurants, it does own tens of billions of dollars’ worth of the real estate where those restaurants operate, leasing them to franchisees. That’s a valuable asset, and the company is facing pressure from some investors to spin off its land and buildings into a separate, publicly traded McDonaldland. I mean, real estate investment trust. Which they should name McDonaldland. [More]
Bill Would Allow Consumers To Sue When Bankrupt Debt Isn’t Removed From Credit Reports
By 7.28.15
Under federal law, when someone erases a debt in bankruptcy, their bank is required to update their credit reports to indicate the debt is no longer owed. To ensure this happens, legislators have introduced a new bill that would give credit card borrowers with inaccurate credit reports the power to sue their bank or a third-party debt buyer for damages if they continue to send so-called zombie debt to credit reporting agencies. [More]
Chase Credit Card Settlement Halts Collections On 528,000 Accounts
By 7.8.15
Earlier today, we told you of reports that JPMorgan Chase had agreed to pay at least $125 million to close the books on state and federal investigations into its credit card collections practices. Now that the details of the deal have been made public, we know exactly how much the bank will pay and how many credit card accounts are affected. [More]
Is It Time For Regulators To Stab Zombie Debt Through The Brain?
By 1.29.15
What a lot of people don’t know — and what debt collectors rarely mention — is that most unpaid debt has an expiration date after which you can’t be sued for repayment. And even fewer consumers are aware that this dead debt can be sparked back to life by making a payment after it’s already passed on to the debt afterlife. A new report calls on federal regulators to make sure that debt doesn’t rise from the dead in zombie form. [More]
From Bread Crumbs To Worcestershire Sauce: How Long Will All That Stuff In Your Pantry Last?
By 7.20.14
Regular readers of Consumerist likely know there’s a big difference between the “use-by” date and the “sell-by” date on food labels. But while most people take note of this information on highly perishable items like meat, eggs, and dairy, we often ignore those dry goods stashed in our pantries. And these unrefrigerated items are often allowed to sit around until we go to use them and realize, “Oh no… that went bad back when Bush — the first one — was president.” [More]
How Long Should I Hold On To My Old Bills & Other Documents?
By 6.15.14 — Updated: 5.23.17
Thank goodness for electronic billing, bill-pay and account access. The digital world can help you save time, be more organized and cut down significantly on paper… Significantly — but not completely. [More]
Zombie Amazon Return Rises From Dead, Gets Charged To Credit Card
By 5.15.13
We’ve discussed zombie debt, zombie bills, and zombie accounts, and even zombie retail on this site before, but we had never heard of zombie returned merchandise…until now. Reader Michael reports that he returned something to Amazon in March 2013, received a refund, and that was the end of the story. Until it wasn’t the end of the story. [More]
Debt Collectors Keep Calling About Bogus Debt, Even After Being Threatened With Suit
By 2.19.13
From calling at all hours of the day and night to contacting you at work, we’ve told you before about the large number of banned practices for debt collectors. But one man says he’s the victim of a tenacious debt collector trying to collect a debt he doesn’t even owe. [More]
Why Hollywood Video Zombie Debts Just Won't Go Away
By 8.9.12
Movie Gallery/Hollywood Video went bankrupt with only one real asset: enough outstanding overdue notices to make a librarian weep. Americans owed the chains something like $125,000,000, which is not a typo. These debts were sold, and the new owners zombified them and really, really want to get their paws on that money. A year and a half after we first reported that customers and even employees were receiving invoices from collection agencies for zombie debts, they’re still at it. [More]
Debt Collectors Now Going After Former Hollywood Video Employees
By 6.19.12
Zeke once worked for now bankrupt and defunct Hollywood Video. Employees had special accounts allowing them to rent older movies (more than a few weeks old) for free and not have to pay late fees when they didn’t bring them back. Zeke is sure that he wouldn’t hallucinate free movie rentals, but the collection agency that sent him the letter insists that this policy never existed, and that it’s up to him to prove that he didn’t owe the company $28.95 in late fees at the time he quit. [More]
American Consumers Are Going To Keep Up Zombie-Like Behavior For The Foreseeable Future
By 1.2.12
No pressure, but it’s all up to consumers to heat up the U.S. economy which will then help the rest of the world out as well. Unfortunately, we’re all acting a bit sluggish still in our spending. [More]
Debt Collectors Out To Prove They Are Not All Zombie Bullies Who Want To Eat Your Face
By 6.13.11
For decades, U.S. debt collectors have plied their trade under the watchful but lazy eye of the Federal Trade Commission, which has the authority to go after the worst of the bunch but can’t create new rules governing these businesses. But later this summer, debt collectors will come under the supervision of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau… and that scares them, especially after complaints about debt collectors jumped 17% last year to 140,036. [More]
