Six months after IKEA and the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the recall of more than 29 million topple-prone Malm dressers now linked to four deaths, the furniture maker has agreed to pay $50 million to three of the affected families. [More]
making it right
Feds Fine TitleMax, TitleBucks Parent Company $9M Over Alleged Illegal Loan Practices
By 9.27.16
The terms and conditions for short-term, high-cost loans can often be confusing, making it difficult to decipher just how much a borrower will spend to repay an initial loan. That was apparently the case for TMX Finance, the company behind TitleMax, as federal regulators fined the company $9 million for allegedly luring consumers into costly loan renewals by presenting them with misleading information about monthly plans. [More]
Chipotle Settles 100 Customer Complaints Over Food-Borne Illness Outbreaks
By 9.9.16
More than 100 customers who fell ill after dining at Chipotle restaurants last year will receive an undisclosed financial settlement as the fast-casual restaurant continues to put a series of E. coli and listeria outbreaks behind it. [More]
Even Fixed VW Diesels Might Emit More Pollutants Than Law Allows
By 7.19.16
As part of its $15 billion settlement package to begin resolving its use of so-called “defeat devices” in 500,000 diesel-engine vehicles in the U.S. to skirt emission standards, Volkswagen has agreed to pay $2.7 million to establish a fund to reduce nitrogen oxide in any area of the U.S. were VW’s emissions-cheating vehicles were located. But it turns out those funds aren’t just for past emissions, they’re also for future ones. [More]
Lawmakers Call For VW To Buy Back Emission-Cheating Cars At Pre-Scandal Value
By 11.19.15
Despite nearly a quarter of the 482,000 owners of Volkswagen vehicles equipped with “defeat devices” accepting a “goodwill package” of $1,000 in cash and credits for their troubles, lawmakers said on Thursday that the carmaker needs to do more – namely buy back the automobiles that violate federal air pollution emission standards. [More]
Pizza Shop Customer Sends Owner Letter Apologizing For Writing Bad Check In 2002, Encloses Money Order
By 2.5.15
While there are many bad consumers in the world, there are also those out there who recognize they haven’t done the right thing, and seek to make amends, even if it’s years later. That’s how it went down for a pizza shop owner who was surprised to find a letter in the mail from a customer who’d written a bad check in 2002 — and enclosed a money order to make up for it. [More]
Dealership Publicly Shamed Into Replacing $55K Camaro Wrecked By Joyriding Employee
By 1.16.14
Yesterday many of us were bummed out by hearing that it’s perfectly legal for a repair shop employee to take a customer’s car for a joyride. And if the car gets wrecked in the process, well, there’s not much police can do. Which is why it’s heartening to hear that a man whose $55,000 Camaro was wrecked during a dealership worker’s joyride is getting his car replaced… after the dealership had a good dose of public shaming. [More]
Jawbone Offering Full Refunds For Defective UP Wristbands
By 12.9.11
In a move to placate dissatisfied customers, Jawbone is offering refunds on their highly hyped UP wristbands, with no questions asked. The devices are supposed to monitor sleep and exercise patterns of the wearer, but many users reported problems with battery life and its ability to sync with phones and computers. [More]
