All of those $1 drinks from McDonald’s continue to add up, boosting the fast food giant’s bottomline for a second quarter in a row. [More]
funds
Bank Of America, Delta Pull Funding From “Julius Caesar” Production Seen As Critique Of Trump
By 6.12.17
It’s been more than 2,000 years since Julius Caesar was assassinated by a group of Roman senators, and more than 400 years since William Shakespeare immortalized the dirty deed. The Bard’s Julius Caesar has been staged, adapted, and reinterpreted countless times since, and Caesar never manages to escape the blade. However, two major backers of New York’s Shakespeare in the Park have pulled their support for this year’s production of the play after complaints that this Caesar looks a little too similar to our current President. [More]
Soon-To-Be Proposed Sugary Drink Tax In Seattle Won’t Apply To Starbucks
By 2.23.17 — Updated: 6.7.17
Seattle could soon be joining the ranks of Philadelphia, Chicago, Boulder, CO, Albany and Berkeley, CA, and a handful of other cities in charging consumers a little extra when they purchase a sugary drink. But the home of Starbucks will reportedly provide some relief for java lovers, as coffee shops will be exempt from a proposed rule on sweet beverages.
[More]
Move Over Mattresses: $100,000 Found Stashed Inside Old TV
By 2.16.17
You wouldn’t expect to fit more than a few dollars in the back of today’s flat-screen televisions, but TVs of yesteryear with their bulky backs full of tubes and cords were apparently another option for consumers who have a tendency to stash away money. You know, if their box springs were already full: More than $100,000 was recently found hidden inside an old TV at a recycling plant. [More]
Legal Fund Accused Of Deceiving 9/11 First Responders & NFL Players Out Of Settlement Payments
By 2.7.17 — Updated: 2.8.17
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the state of New York have accused a New Jersey company of defrauding customers — including Sept. 11 first responders and former NFL players suffering from long-term brain injuries — into signing away millions of dollars in settlement payouts. [More]
Feds Order MasterCard, RushCard Owner To Pay $13M Over Oct. 2015 Outages
By 2.1.17
Nearly 15 months after tens of thousands of users of the prepaid RushCard were cut off from their funds because of an apparent technical glitch, the company behind the card, UniRush and its payment processor MasterCard have been ordered to pay $13 million in refunds and penalties. [More]
My Bank Overdrafted My Account By Putting Two Holds On One Deposit; Doesn’t Care
By 10.25.16 — Updated: 10.31.16
Imagine that you do everything you can to avoid overdrafting your bank account, only to find that your bank has gone ahead and pushed you into the red — and that it doesn’t really care. [More]
Student Loan Borrowers Face Needless Hurdles When Trying To Reduce Payments
By 8.18.16
It’s a fact of life: if you take out thousands of dollars in federal student loans to attend college, you have to pay them back. While the government offers borrowers some relief through free income-based relief, a new report shows that getting that assistance is often a test of patience for consumers, with servicers providing incorrect information or creating difficult hurdles. [More]
Does Venmo Hold Moochers Accountable, Or Let Cheapskates Show Their True Colors?
By 5.19.16
Between PayPal’s Venmo, Facebook’s Messenger, Chase’s Quickpay, Square’s Cash, and other money-sending services, there’s no shortage of ways for friends to quickly send each other a few dollars to split the check at dinner. But with the convenience of such apps, are we forgetting our manners or just finally holding our friends accountable? [More]
Debt Relief Company Must Pay $170M For Illegally Charging Customers
By 3.18.16
Back in 2013, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sued Morgan Drexen, accusing the debt relief company of deceiving customers with promises of reducing their debt and charging illegal upfront fees to do so. Today, the Bureau announced a federal district court approved a final judgement requiring the company to pay $132.8 million in restitution and a $40 million civil penalty. [More]
California Car Donation Charities Misrepresented Charitable Programs, Misdirected Donations
By 12.1.15
From time to time you may hear of a charity that accepts the donation of older, used vehicles that owners simply no longer have use for, promising to donate the profit of the future sale to a charitable program. While it might seem like a fairly straightforward operation, the state of California claims two such groups weren’t keeping their promises, instead using the funds to pay for their own expenses. [More]
Taco Bell Refunds Customer After App Billing Disaster Causes $210 of Overdraft Fees
By 11.19.15
Diners may choose to use the mobile app from their favorite fast food joint for a number of reasons: to easily customize their meal, to ensure they don’t have to wait in long lines to order, or to get in and out of the joint in a flash. One thing these customers likely don’t count on is having the charges for a month’s worth of app orders cleared on the same day, resulting in an overdrawn bank account through no fault of their own. [More]
Settlement Between New York, Tobacco Companies Provides $550M For Smoking-Related Health Costs
By 10.20.15
A decades-long dispute between the New York Attorney General’s Office and major tobacco firms over payments the companies were required to make for smoking-related public-health costs, but refused to dish out, has come to an end. A new settlement between the parties directs the tobacco companies to deliver $550 million to the state, New York City and other counties. [More]
SEC Reportedly Investigating Bank Of America Over Customer-Protection Rule Violations
By 4.28.15
Financial institutions are required under federal law to follow an array of rules that aim to protect consumers’ accounts. Bank of America may not have followed one of those rules over the course of several years, and now reportedly faces an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. [More]
Citibank Transfers Student Loan To Another Company, But Sits On $1000 Payment For 30 More Days
By 9.29.10
The last time I uncovered an obvious error with my Citibank checking account, I realized it was time to move on. Our tipster Roarke may have just reached that same conclusion, only in his case Citibank has already passed along the account for him–just not the thousand dollar electronic payment he made on it a few days prior, which Citibank says it plans to hang on to for another 30 days. [More]
Wachovia's "Way2Save" Account Triggers Over $5,000 In Penalty Fees
By 10.27.09
Wachovia has a new financial product called Way2Save that automatically moves $1 from your checking account into a high interest personal savings account every time you make an electronic bill payment. Susan tried to maximize her contributions by making a lot of little bill payments, but Wachovia cut off access to her funds without notice and triggered an avalanche of penalty fees. Now she owes over $5,000 to her credit card companies, far more than she would likely have ever earned through Wachovia’s complicated savings program, and of course Wachovia is denying any responsibility.
Obama Announces Plans To Make Food Safe For Human Consumption
By 3.15.09
President Obama this week declared war on the Chinese Poison Train, announcing that the FDA will receive $1 billion in new funds for modern testing labs and additional food safety inspectors. Inspecting less than 5% of our food processing plants is apparently a “hazard to public health, and “it is unacceptable.” So what’s really behind the new policy shift? No, it’s not those melamine murders or salmonella outbreaks. It’s seven-year-old first daughter Sasha Obama!
White House To Citi: Don't Even Think About Buying Luxury Jets With Taxpayer Money
By 1.27.09
Yesterday, we wrote that Citigroup had decided to spend $50 million of its bailout money on a French luxury jet to ferry execs around town. The White House was not pleased about this.
