Don’t Let Imposters Scare You

When a scammer calls a potential victim, only one person on the phone is a pro. For scammers, posing as someone else and weaving a believable story is business as usual. It’s only the victims who get caught off guard by a seeming crisis that only a fast payment can fix. People across the country … Continued

Things to Know Before You Switch Your Electric Supplier

If there are competitive electric suppliers in the area where you live, more than likely you’ve gotten calls or mail from companies claiming they can save you money on your electricity. Perhaps you received a knock on your door from a salesperson asking to see your electric bill and before you know it, you have … Continued

The Groundbreaking Impact of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act

When Americans buy toys or other kids’ products, most reasonably assume that what they’re buying isn’t going to hurt their loved ones in some way. It’s such a commonplace experience that it’s easy to take for granted. What people may not think about is that the perception — and reality — of safety is possible … Continued

CFAnews Update – August 27, 2018

Administration Rolls Back MPG Standards The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced last month that the agencies will abandon fuel economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks, freezing the gradually increasing fuel efficiency requirements intended to carry through to 2025 at the year 2020 level. They took … Continued

What to Know in Case You’re Towed

After a good night’s sleep, you wake up and take a quick shower as you snatch your car keys off the table. You’re on the way to grab a large coffee at Starbucks before heading off to an early morning meeting at work. Much to your surprise and shock your car is not parked outside … Continued

SaferProducts.gov Puts Power into the Hands of the Consumer

You’re probably familiar with websites like Yelp and Angie’s List, where users can review businesses, research the most popular services in their area, and avoid bad customer service experiences. Websites like these make our daily lives a bit easier, and increase the chances that we’ll have a good experience next time we go out to … Continued

Protect Yourself from Door-to-Door Sales Scams

While some door-to-door sales are legitimate, many are scams in which the salespeople use high-pressure sales tactics and false claims to coerce consumers into buying products or services that they do not need or that are never delivered. Common door-to-door sales scams are for magazine subscriptions, medical alert and security systems, hearing aids and home … Continued

Beyond the Lease: Things a Landlord May Exaggerate or Forget to Tell You

Do you know your rights when shopping for rental housing? In general, state laws set minimum standards for various aspects of the landlord-tenant relationship such as rental applications, security deposits, lease terms, habitability, early termination and evictions. In many states, landlords must also comply with consumer protection laws that prohibit misrepresentations and require information that … Continued

Crowdfunding 101

Online crowdfunding platforms help bring to life creative projects, get new ventures and businesses off the ground, and allow individuals and communities to come together to support charitable causes. They are an engaging avenue through which individuals can have an impact on the world around them, making it even more important for consumers to know … Continued

How to Safeguard Your Wallet on the Road

Though summer vacations are coming to an end, holiday travel will be ramping up before you know it. And while traveling can be an incredibly rewarding experience — it can leave you broke if you’re not careful! For this blog post, I’m going to assume you know how to budget, as that is the most … Continued

Duggan Insurance Proposal Ignores Bad Practices

What would happen to your car insurance premium if the insurance company could only look at your accident, ticket and claim history? Are you a model of safe driving who has never cost the company a dime, or do you re-enact “The Fast and the Furious” any time you can get out of first gear? Either … Continued

Choosing the Right Contractor

Choosing the right contractor to make repairs to your home is an important decision.  A flashy website or nice work truck doesn’t necessarily mean a contractor does quality work or has the experience to do the job.  Take the proper steps to protect yourself and think through your decisions.  Avoid becoming a victim of home … Continued

CFAnews Update – July 18, 2018

Federal Judge Rules CFPB Unconstitutional Contrary to precedent established by the D.C. Circuit and other jurisdictions, a senior status federal district court judge in New York City struck down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) as unconstitutional last month. Noting that “every other jurisdiction in the country has held that the structure of the CFPB … Continued

Ride Safe This Summer: Follow These ATV Safety Tips

Summers are a time for family fun, but for some activities, summer is a time when the most tragedies occur. Being aware of the risks of summertime activities and practicing safety is a way to protect the ones we love. Riding all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), also known as 4-wheelers, is a popular summertime activity for amateurs … Continued

Trump GSE Reform Plan — More Guarantors, No Affordable Housing Requirements

Tucked inside the 135-page Delivering Government Solutions in the 21st Century:  Reform Plan and Reorganization Recommendations released by the Trump Administration on June 21, 2018 are three pages of recommendations for reforming the mortgage finance system.  The good news is that they support a federal role in supporting US mortgage markets through a full guarantee of qualified mortgage backed securities, access to … Continued

CFAnews Update – June 20, 2018

FCC Targets Unlawful Robocalls Consumer groups submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last month to offer strong support for the creation of a reassigned number database. When a consumer no longer uses a phone number, it is assigned to someone else who requests a number. The reassigned number database would enable robocallers to … Continued

CFAnews Update – June 1, 2018

Congress Rolls Back Post-Crisis Bank Regulations Last week, Congress passed and President Trump signed into law the “Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act,” a bill that repeals or weakens a number of provisions in the Dodd-Frank Act and other critical laws designed to ensure consumers, investors, and honest market participants are appropriately protected … Continued

Let’s Meet at Consumer Assembly Next Year

My agency is a longtime member of Consumer Federation of America (CFA), but for the first time I attended its annual conference, Consumer Assembly, on May 10th and 11th this year in Washington, DC. It sure made an impression on me and I’d like to share my takeaways. If you’re not familiar with CFA, it’s … Continued

Let’s Celebrate EU Privacy Protections by Adopting Them Here

People who live in the countries that are members of the European Union (EU) are celebrating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) that takes effect today. It clarifies and strengthens European’s privacy rights – rights that for the most part we lack in the United States (US). The Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) has created … Continued

A Credit Reporting Agency You Probably Never Heard Of

If you have placed freezes on your credit files at Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, no one can fraudulently open a new account pretending to be you, right? Not exactly. Freezing your files at the “big three” credit reporting agencies goes a long way to protecting you from identity fraud, since most major retailers and lenders … Continued

We Need Sound Policy to Quell the Data Arms Race, Protect Users

What do the Equifax breach, Cambridge Analytica’s use of Facebook users’ data for political campaign purposes and Grindr’s sharing of users’ HIV status have in common? All three incidents illustrate why Americans need to have meaningful control of their personal information and why the companies that hold it should be strictly accountable for its use … Continued

CFAnews Update – April 23, 2018

EPA Rolls Back Money-Saving MPG Standards The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed its intention earlier this month to roll back highly-popular, cost-saving vehicle emissions and fuel economy standards. The EPA’s decision came just a few days after a coalition of national and state-based consumer groups from across the country delivered a letter to EPA leadership … Continued