Consumer issues

WASHINGTON, March 17 – Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today called Senate legislation unveiled this week to rewrite rules governing financial institutions a step forward, but said “much more needs to be done to regulate Wall Street to prevent another severe financial crisis from happening again.”

Sanders said he would propose amendments to the financial overhaul legislation to limit credit card interest rates and discourage Fed secrecy. He also will work with colleagues to strengthen consumer protections, curb unbridled market speculation and break up “too big to fail” banks.    » read more »

Bill will give consumers essential pricing and performance information on available broadband service

March 15, 2010 -- Washington, D.C. – Today U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar introduced legislation that will require broadband providers to give clear information on the actual service speeds consumers will receive.

The Broadband Service Consumer Protection Act calls on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to develop uniform performance standards so consumers can more easily compare service offers before purchase and find out if they are receiving the high-speed service they are paying for each month.    » read more »

Calls for Improvements to Protect Consumers and Investors

March 15, 2010 -- Washington, DC -- The Consumer Federation of America today commended Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd for moving forward with a comprehensive financial reform package. CFA released the following statements on specific components of the proposal.

On Consumer Protection, Travis Plunkett, Legislative Director at CFA, stated: “CFA supports creating a Consumer Financial Protection Agency to protect Americans from deceptive and abusive financial practices. The CFPA would be truly independent in its decision-making, have the ability to oversee all lenders in the marketplace, and have broad enforcement and supervision powers.    » read more »

03/04/2010 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), Chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet, today weighed in on a current broadcasting dispute that could leave millions of consumers with blank television screens.

A contract disagreement over transmission fees between Walt Disney Company and Cablevision Systems could result in 3.1 million households losing their signal before the Academy Awards on Sunday night on ABC.    » read more »

February 22, 2010 -- "Today, the major reforms of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act that I signed into law last spring take effect, marking a significant turning point for American consumers. For too long, credit card companies have had free rein to employ deceptive, unfair tactics that hit responsible consumers with unreasonable costs.

"But today, we are shifting the balance of power back to the consumer and we are holding the credit card companies accountable.    » read more »

February 22, 2010 -- Washington, D.C. -- Today, U.S. Senator Mark Udall cheered sweeping new credit card reforms that take effect today as a result of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act, which he helped pass. The Credit CARD Act prevents arbitrary interest rate, fee and finance charge increases on a customer's existing balance, among other changes.    » read more »

Key Consumer Protections in CARD Act to Take Effect Feb. 22, Will Ban Retroactive Interest Rate Hikes, Due-Date Gimmicks, and Other Credit Card Tricks and Traps

February 22, 2010 -- NEW YORK – This afternoon, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) joined with representatives of Consumers Union, NYPIRG, and New Jersey Citizen Action and others to hail new credit card reforms taking effect today. The reforms are part of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act, which Maloney authored in the House and Menendez helped pass in the Senate.    » read more »

February 24, 2010 -- "I commend the House’s vote today to eliminate the health insurance industry’s exemption from federal antitrust laws. Ending this exemption will help ensure that health insurers compete rather than collude. Members in both chambers recognize that this repeal is needed.

"We cannot introduce competition to the health insurance market while allowing the insurance industry to hide behind a special-interest, anachronistic, statutory antitrust immunity. A study released by the American Medical Association today shows that competition in the health insurance industry is shrinking. Our laws should not preclude the Justice Department from investigating antitrust abuses that can result in higher prices for consumers.    » read more »

February 22, 2010 -- Washington, DC -- The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act goes into effect today, creating better safeguards to protect credit card users. Michael Bennet, U.S. Senator for Colorado, cast the deciding vote to move the bill out of committee before it was approved by the full Senate last year.

The legislation puts new, common sense rules in place that make it harder for credit card companies to take advantage of their customers.    » read more »

Toyota Owners Advised of Actions to Take Regarding Two Separate Recalls

February 1, 2010 -- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration today informed owners of certain Toyota, Lexus and Pontiac Vibe vehicles about the actions they should take if their accelerator gets stuck or is slow to return under certain conditions.

Today’s advisory is precipitated by continued reports of consumer concern and confusion about two separate safety recalls Toyota announced over the past week involving accelerator pedals. Each recall has a different root cause – pedal entrapment and sticky pedal.    » read more »

Toyota Announces Comprehensive Plan to Fix Accelerator Pedals on Recalled Vehicles and Ensure Customer Safety; Toyota Answers Customer Questions About the Solution for Sticking Accelerator Pedals

TORRANCE, Calif., February 1, 2010 – Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) U.S.A., Inc., today announced it will begin fixing accelerator pedals in recalled Toyota Division vehicles this week. Toyota’s engineers have developed and rigorously tested a solution that involves reinforcing the pedal assembly in a manner that eliminates the excess friction that has caused the pedals to stick in rare instances. In addition, Toyota has developed an effective solution for vehicles in production.    » read more »

2010-01-29 -- "Amid the media attention over the Toyota recalls for possible unintended acceleration that include the Pontiac Vibe, many customers are wondering whether it is safe to drive their 2009 and 2010 models of the Vibe.

Based on GM’s experience, the Vibe is safe to drive.

Prior to the Toyota accelerator pedal recall of Jan. 21 and the inclusion of the Vibe in the October 2009 recall for floor mat entrapment, GM had not received any relevant customer complaints in the 2009-2010 Pontiac Vibe. Nor were there any complaints found in a search of U.S. and Canadian databases.    » read more »

Washington, D.C., Jan. 27, 2010 - The Securities and Exchange Commission today adopted new rules designed to significantly strengthen the regulatory requirements governing money market funds and better protect investors.    » read more »

Schauer calls on administration to support food protection training efforts in 2011 budget to keep America's food safe

BATTLE CREEK, Jan 25 - Today Congressman Mark Schauer (D-MI) called on White House Budget Director Peter Orszag to invest in food protection training programs as part of the 2011 federal budget to modernize America’s food safety system and save lives.

Following a briefing with officials from the International Food Protection Training Institute (IFPTI) this morning, Schauer renewed his commitment to securing long-term federal support for the Institute’s important training efforts.    » read more »

Lender faulted for gross violations of FHA underwriting standards

January 25, 2010 -- WASHINGTON – The Federal Housing Administration’s Mortgagee Review Board (MRB) today immediately and permanently withdrew the FHA approval of Premium Capital Funding, LLC, a Jericho, New York-based lender doing business as TopDot Mortgage. Today’s action prevents TopDot from participating in FHA programs and seeks a monetary penalty of $674,000.    » read more »