Five months after federal regulators opened a probe into airbag mats that fail to detect when a child is present in the front seat of certain Kia sedans, the agency announced it would close the investigation without seeking a recall of the affected vehicles. [More]
investigation
Regulators Close Probe Into Kia Airbag System That Fails To Detect Children In The Front Seat
By 2.15.16
MoneyGram To Pay $13M, Revamp Policies To Protect Against Wire Transfer Fraud
By 2.11.16
While advances in technology now allow us to zap money from our bank accounts to our friends and family members with the touch of a button, some people continue to rely on money transfer services. But as we’ve reported several times in the past, these companies are often the service of choice for scammers looking to get their hands on your hard-earned money. One such outfit, MoneyGram, today agreed to revamp its policies and provide $13 million in restitution to consumers who were harmed by fraudsters using the service. [More]
More Than 100 Crashes Caused By Confusing Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge Gear Shifters
By 2.8.16
For most vehicles, shifting into “Park” seems to be a simple task. But for thousands of people who own Fiat Chrysler cars, that’s not the case. Federal regulators expanded their investigation into these vehicles after receiving more complaints about crashes and injuries because drivers say they have inadvertently left their vehicles in gear with the engine running because the electronic gear shifter is confusing. [More]
Health Officials Investigating After At Least 10 Buffalo Wild Wings Customers Become Ill
By 2.3.16
There are few things better than digging into a basket of wings on Super Bowl Sunday. But recent reports of Buffalo Wild Wings customers becoming ill after dining at a restaurant in Kansas might be enough to cause some wing-lovers to step away from the saucy drumsticks, or at least cause the stock for the chain eatery to tumble. [More]
New York City Bans Hoverboards On Buses, Trains
By 1.27.16
If you live in New York City and plan to ride the subway or hop on a city bus, you better leave your “hoverboard” at home. The state’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced Wednesday that it is banning the self-balancing scooters from public transportation over fire safety concerns. [More]
Whistleblower Lawsuit Accuses ITT Tech Of Defrauding Government, Using Deceptive Recruitment Practices
By 1.21.16
A recently unsealed whistleblower lawsuit against for-profit college chain ITT Technical Institute accuses the school of operating a “systematic scheme” to defraud the government by using a litany of abusive, deceptive practices to enroll students. [More]
Regulators Investigating 13 Hoverboard Companies, Amazon Announces Refunds For Scooter Owners
By 1.21.16
For nearly two months now, federal regulators have been working to get to the bottom of exploding hoverboards. This week, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced just which brands of self-balancing scooters they are investigating, while also offering a few safety tips for consumers who might already have one of the devices at home. [More]
Ford Under Investigation For Door Latch Issues, Again
By 1.20.16
Just two months after federal regulators shut the book on a probe into why the door latches on certain Ford vehicles refused to stay shut, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a similar investigation into another set of sedans from the carmaker. [More]
Judge Orders University Of Phoenix Parent Company To Turn Over Documents To Feds
By 1.19.16
Just because the University of Phoenix may be able to once again recruit on military bases and enroll new students using the military tuition assistance program doesn’t mean the for-profit college behemoth’s problems are behind it. Instead, a court ruled last week that the school’s parent company, Apollo Education Group, must provide records requested by federal investigators nearly six months ago. [More]
University Of Phoenix May Be Up For Sale
By 1.11.16
Increased government scrutiny and falling enrollment at the University of Phoenix may be too much for Apollo Education Group, the parent company of the for-profit college mega chain. The company is reportedly exploring its options on what to do with the school, including a sale. [More]
States Say Volkswagen Won’t Turn Over Documents In Emissions Investigation
By 1.8.16
A group of state attorneys general called out Volkswagen on Friday for allegedly withholding documents related to its use of “defeat devices” to skirt emissions standards in 500,000 vehicles in the U.S. [More]
We May Never Know What Caused Chipotle’s E. Coli Outbreak
By 1.7.16
A month after an E. coli outbreak was linked to Chipotle restaurants in the Northwest, health officials believed the culprit was a vegetable of some kind. Now, nearly three months later, an exact cause still hasn’t been uncovered, and some analysts say it might never be. [More]
Grand Jury Subpoenas Chipotle Over California Norovirus Outbreak
By 1.6.16
A grand jury is investigating the circumstances surrounding a norovirus outbreak at Chipotle. Not the recent one in Boston that sickened more than 150 people, but the August outbreak in California that left more than 100 employees and customers ill. [More]
Ford Recalls 313K Sedans Because Lights Are Necessary While Driving In The Dark
By 12.23.15
Six years after federal regulators originally closed an investigation into Ford sedans that contained headlights that could fail and four months after a new probe into the issue was opened, the automaker has issued a recall for 313,000 of the vehicles. [More]
BMW To Pay $40M For Failing To Recall Mini Coopers In A Timely Manner
By 12.21.15
Three months after federal regulators opened a probe into whether BMW failed to recall more than 30,000 Mini Cooper cars in a timely fashion after certain models did not meet side impact crash standards, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration fined the car manufacturer $40 million after finding a series of violations. [More]
CEO Who Hiked Price Of Drug By Over 5400% Arrested In Unrelated Securities-Fraud Investigation
By 12.17.15
Three months after Turing Pharmaceuticals entered the spotlight by buying the rights to a generic drug used to save lives and dramatically increased the price from $13.50 to $750, the company’s CEO has been arrested in a securities-fraud investigation. However, the charges are related to another company the man once led. [More]
Scammy Used Car Dealer Also Employed By IRS
By 12.16.15
The owner of a former used car dealership in Arizona that admitted to defrauding dozens of customers just so happens to also be a long-time employee of the federal government, helping consumers with financial issues through an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center. [More]
VW Emissions Scandal The Result Of “Chain Of Mistakes” That Started In 2005
By 12.10.15
The emissions scandal affecting more than 11 million Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche vehicles around the world likely started in 2005 when engineers initiated a “chain of mistakes” while trying to meet nitrogen-oxide emissions standards in their new line of diesel vehicles, executives for the company said on Thursday. [More]
