August 2019 | Issue Two, Volume Ten |
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In This Issue:
- What people are saying
- Did you know?
- San Francisco senior ball is a big draw
- Concertgoers, event attendees burned by online 'ticket bots'
- Hotline Chronicles: The real price of an airline ticket
- Who’s tracking your location (and collecting the data)?
- Coalition Efforts: From sham schools to scam calls
- CFPB Watch: Freedom Debt Relief pays for its deceitful deeds, says CFPB
- Class Action Database: Forced set-top box rental arrangement costs Comcast
- About Consumer Action
What people are saying
Thank you very much for getting back to me [about my retirement adviser]. I feel much better since their information and phone number have been confirmed. Your services are greatly appreciated. — Carolyn Thompson, investor
Did you know?
Most people don’t consider what they want to have happen to their body after they die. But without your guidance, your family and loved ones will have to tackle what can be a series of bewildering and costly decisions at a difficult time. You can make things easier for the people you leave behind by formalizing your wishes for your remains. Your three main choices include: burial, cremation or donation of your body for medical research. The Funeral Consumers Alliance (FCA) offers free, unbiased advice on its website to educate the not-yet-departed on creating financially sound plans. It also lists a helpful directory of affiliated, local cremation providers.
San Francisco senior ball is a big draw
Last month, Consumer Action promoted our educational materials at the Yerba Buena Senior Ball in San Francisco, where more than 1,000 seniors—mainly Chinese-Americans—learned how to avoid scams, file consumer complaints, sign up for California’s discounted LifeLine phone program and more. READ MORE....
Concertgoers, event attendees burned by online 'ticket bots'
Consumer Action’s Joe Ridout took part in a Federal Trade Commission workshop on the harms that bots (robotic software programs) pose to consumers buying tickets to events and concerts online. READ MORE....
Hotline Chronicles: The real price of an airline ticket
One woman voices a complaint undoubtedly shared by many who fly infrequently and are looking for the best fares—that the ticket price you see (and pay) is often not the bottom line. We encourage flyers to speak up! READ MORE....
Who’s tracking your location (and collecting the data)?
Consumer Action’s recent report and survey on location data tracking reveal disturbing details on how consumers are being followed by a variety of industries as they move through life—through the use of apps, while driving in their automobiles, via the technology they wear, and more—and how they feel about the tracking and use of the data that’s collected about them. READ MORE....
Coalition Efforts: From sham schools to scam calls
Consumer Action often joins its allies in letters, comments and complaints calling for change, standing up for consumer rights, supporting or opposing proposed laws and objecting to corporate misbehavior, among other activities. We collect these in the Coalition Efforts section of our website. Each month in the INSIDER we highlight some recent activities. READ MORE....
CFPB Watch: Freedom Debt Relief pays for its deceitful deeds, says CFPB
In this regular feature, we detail recent actions taken by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). This month, we examine the Bureau’s settlement of a lawsuit against a misleading debt relief firm, its financial empowerment training, and its work to shatter common financial myths impacting servicemembers. READ MORE....
Class Action Database: Forced set-top box rental arrangement costs Comcast
Consumer Action maintains a database of class actions so that interested consumers can learn more, join a pending action or make a claim. Class action lawsuits are an important element of consumer protection and can force changes to anti-consumer business practices and make bad actors return ill-gotten gains to consumers. READ MORE....
Consumer Action has been a champion of underrepresented consumers nationwide since 1971. A non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, Consumer Action focuses on consumer education that empowers low- and moderate-income and limited-English-speaking consumers to financially prosper. It also advocates for consumers in the media and before lawmakers to advance consumer rights and promote industry-wide change.
By providing consumer education materials in multiple languages, a free national hotline, a comprehensive website (www.consumer-action.org) and annual surveys of financial and consumer services, Consumer Action helps consumers assert their rights in the marketplace and make financially savvy choices. Nearly 7,000 community and grassroots organizations benefit annually from its extensive outreach programs, training materials and support.
