The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 that has now been signed into law took a swipe at our rights not to receive robocalls and texts to our cell phones without our explicit consent. Section 301 exempts callers who are trying to collect debts that are owed to or guaranteed by the federal government. This giant … Continued
U.S. PIRG recently released a new report that explains how placing security freezes on one’s credit reports is the only way to prevent new account identity theft. It’s a proactive step that’s easy and inexpensive to take. Why bother? Based on identity theft complaints to the Federal Trade Commission last year, consumers’ stolen personal information … Continued
House Prepares to Vote on Anti-Investor ‘Retail Investor Protection Act’ As the House of Representatives prepares to vote this week on legislation that would impede the ability of regulators to strengthen protections for investors and retirement savers who turn to financial professionals for investment advice, CFA wrote to members urging them to vote no on … Continued
CFPB Considers Limiting Class Action Bans in Consumer Contracts The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced last week that it is considering proposing rules that would prohibit consumer financial companies from including arbitration clauses in customer contracts that prevent consumers from participating in class action lawsuits. Although the proposal falls short of the total ban … Continued
It’s hard to imagine life without our telephones. They’re a vital link to our friends and relatives, doctors and other service providers, government agencies and emergency personnel, shops and restaurants. Mobile phones have become ubiquitous; last year it was reported that 90 percent of American adults owned a cell phone and 64 percent had smartphones. … Continued
Today’s decision by the European Court of Justice invalidating the “Safe Harbor” agreement between the US and EU should have come as no surprise. Privacy advocates on both sides of the Atlantic have long argued that this self-regulatory program, which enables US companies to transfer Europeans’ personal information to servers in the US, does not … Continued
Another day, another disheartening news story about a data breach, this time compromising T-Mobile customers’ personal information, including Social Security numbers, addresses, and birthdates. Apparently hackers stole the information from Experian, the credit bureau that T-Mobile uses to check consumers’ credit records when they apply for phone plans or financing to buy phones. It’s a … Continued
When the Federal Trade Commission recently sued Roca Labs, Inc., it wasn’t only because the company allegedly made bogus claims for its weight-loss products. The FTC also asserted that it was unfair for Roca to include “gag clauses” in its terms of service that forbade customers from saying anything bad about the company or its … Continued
FIO Urged to Adopt Strong Auto Insurance Affordability Standard Responding to a request for information from the Federal Insurance Office (FIO), more than 50 consumer, civil rights, and community groups, including CFA, joined in urging the FIO to establish a strong affordability standard for low- and moderate-income Americans. “In more than one out of every … Continued
Fannie Mae last week announced a significant new product, HomeReadyTM, designed to expand the company’s ability to provide financing for low and moderate income borrowers. HomeReady builds on the company’s historical family of low-down payment mortgage products with flexible underwriting features, starting with Community Home BuyersTM in 1993 and continuing through the My Community Mortgage® product. … Continued
Bill to Protect Children from E-Cigarettes Advances in House Legislation to protect children from e-cigarettes was approved by the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade last month. H.R. 3242, the Child Nicotine Poisoning Prevention Act of 2015, directs the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to promulgate a rule requiring liquid nicotine containers to be … Continued
CFA and Consumer Reports Issue Studies Calling Auto Insurer Pricing Practices Unfair Last week, both CFA and Consumer Reports issued separate studies on how auto insurers price their insurance policies. Both reports criticized these insurers for relying more heavily on socio-economic factors than on driving ability in this pricing. Both organizations then jointly submitted the … Continued
Proposed Rule Issued for Big Truck Fuel Economy and Emissions The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced new draft rules earlier this month for heavy-duty vehicle fuel economy and emissions. The program would significantly reduce carbon emissions and improve fuel efficiency of heavy-duty vehicles. … Continued
House Votes to Repeal COOL, Senate Urged to Wait The House of Representatives passed legislation that would repeal country-of-origin labeling (COOL) for beef, pork, and chicken. The Country of Origin Labeling Amendments Act of 2015 was adopted on a vote of 300-131. “The House voted to deny American consumers basic information about where their food … Continued
Auto Insurers Fail to Reward Low Mileage Drivers Large auto insurers frequently fail to reward drivers with low mileage despite a strong relationship between low mileage and insurance claims, according to CFA research released last week. In fact, three of the five largest insurers often give low-mileage drivers no break at all. “The failure of … Continued
House Committee Votes to Preserve Protections for Military Borrowers In an important victory for servicemembers, Military Lending Act supporters succeeded in beating back an attempt to delay new rules to protect military service members from 400 percent payday loans and other forms of high-cost credit. The new rules are expected to be released by the … Continued
DOL Proposes Sweeping New Protections for Retirement Savers Much needed new protections for retirement savers moved one step closer to reality last week, when the Department of Labor (DOL) released for public comment a proposal to require all financial professionals to put the interests of their customers first when providing retirement investment advice. CFA hailed … Continued
CFPB Finds Pre-dispute, Forced Arbitration Harms Consumers A new report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finds that pre-dispute forced arbitration clauses are extremely prevalent in virtually all consumer finance markets and are detrimental to consumers’ ability to seek legal relief when they are wronged. Moreover, the vast majority of consumers are not aware that … Continued
FCC Proposes to Expand Consumer Choice and Competition in Video Markets The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is proposing a pro-consumer rule to modernize the definition of multi-channel programming distribution (MVPD) that includes providers of linear video programming. “The Commission has the opportunity to remove a major barrier to competition in the video programming space,” stated … Continued
FCC Adopts Strong Net Neutrality Rules The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted 3-2 yesterday to adopt new net neutrality rules to replace, strengthen and supplement FCC rules struck down by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit more than one year ago. “The FCC has taken vigorous, but careful, steps to … Continued
Groups Call for State Regulation of Tax Preparers As millions of consumers turn to paid tax preparers to help complete what for many taxpayers is their largest financial transaction of the year, a coalition of consumer and community organizations is urging state and federal policymakers to ensure taxpayers are protected from fraud and incorrectly prepared … Continued
House Passes Bill to Weaken Health, Safety and Financial Protections The House of Representatives voted 250-175 earlier this month to adopt H.R. 185, the Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA) of 2015, which would cripple the ability of federal regulators to adopt critically important health, safety, and financial protections. “This bill handcuffs federal agencies and poses a … Continued
Congress Approves Budget Bill with Mixed Results on Anti-consumer Riders Working into the night Saturday, Congress finalized a budget to fund the federal government in the coming year. Narrow approval of the bill in the House and Senate came after a contentious debate focused largely on two of the bill’s most controversial riders, one to … Continued
Insurance Commissioner Says “Price Optimization” Violates State Laws In a victory for consumers, Maryland Insurance Commissioner Therese Goldsmith announced last month that “price optimization” – a practice that varies insurance rates based on factors other than the risk of loss, such as the likelihood consumers will shop around or tolerate price increases – is in … Continued
Administration Urged to Appeal WTO Decision on COOL Despite modifications in response to an earlier ruling, the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled last week that U.S. country-of-origin labeling (COOL) regulations still constitute a technical barrier to trade. The U.S. Department of Agriculture had revised its COOL regulations to provide consumers with more precise information in … Continued