Your Auto Insurer May be Playing Price Games with Your Premium
by Jean Chatzky, CNN Money
The Consumer Federation of America ruffled the feathers of auto insurers this week when it made a fuss about something called “price optimization.” It’s a relatively new practice put in place by many large insurers to price policies on factors other than risk — specifically, how much consumers are willing to pay before they walk away. Read More ›
Proposed bill aims to protect consumers’ private information
by Jana Katsuyama, KTVU
AB 1710 would ban the long-term storage of a customer’s data, including personal identification number, social security number, and the drivers license number. It also would require that retailers reimburse victims for the cost of data breaches, instead of banks. Read More ›
Carrier IQ Loses Bid To Send Privacy Case To Arbitration
by Wendy Davis, MediaPost News
In a blow to software developer Carrier IQ, a federal judge has rejected the company’s bid to send a class-action privacy lawsuit to arbitration. The decision, issued late last week, means that consumers who are suing the company for allegedly violating privacy laws will be able to proceed with their claims in federal court. Read More ›
How To Buy A Politician: What Wednesday’s Supreme Court Ruling Means For Consumers
by Kate Cox, Consumerist
It is both cynical and accurate for the Court to have acknowledged that money is the single most important part of our political system. The very wealthiest, most determined donors have long since become experts at finding ways to see money funneled to their candidates of choice. As the 2014 campaign season grows more heated heading into November’s midterm elections, though, we will probably see the ripple effects of Wednesday’s ruling start to spread out. Read More ›
State senator wants consumers to know what fire retardants they are taking home
by Samantha Weigel, San Mateo Daily Journal
Scrutiny over the widespread use of flame retardant chemicals led California to update its flammability standards last year, and now Senator Mark Leno wants to provide consumers with the ability to make well-informed decisions over what they bring into their homes. Read More ›
Consumers Save $2.5 Billion A Year If A ‘Kill Switch’ Stops Phone Thefts, Study Finds
by Gerry Smith, Huffington Post
If phone thefts were no longer a concern, more than half of smartphone owners say they would buy less expensive phone insurance coverage from third parties like Apple or SquareTrade that doesn’t cover theft or loss, according to a small survey of 1,200 smartphone owners Duckworth conducted along with his analysis. Read More ›
Pitfalls of Reverse Mortgages May Pass to Borrower’s Heirs
by Jessica Silver-Greenberg, New York Times
Some lenders are moving to foreclose just weeks after the borrower dies, many families say. The complaints are echoed by borrowers across the country, according to a review of federal and state court lawsuits against reverse mortgage lenders. Read More ›
Most payday loan borrowers get stuck in ‘revolving door of debt’
by Jim Puzzanghera, Los Angeles Times
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finds that 4 in 5 people who take out a short-term payday loan either roll it over or quickly take out another loan, incurring heavy interest costs. Read More ›
California college agency fails to protect public, audit says
by Jim Miller, Sacramento Bee
The California state office charged with regulating more than 1,000 vocational schools and other private postsecondary institutions has “placed the public at risk” through inadequate oversight, according to a new audit. Read More ›
Verizon accused of forcing Internet phones on land-line users
by Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times
Two years ago, California’s two giant telecom companies and their Silicon Valley allies won passage of a law freeing phone-over-the-Internet calls from government regulation. But this deregulation was never supposed to affect phone customers who didn’t want to give up their traditional copper-wire land lines. It also expressly banned phone providers from forcing people to give up their copper-line phones. Now, complaints are mounting that at least one telecom, Verizon Communications Inc., is doing just that. Read More ›
California DMV reports possible breach of credit card data
by David R. Baker, San Francisco Chronicle
The DMV, which lets Californians pay many fees online, first learned of the potential problem from law enforcement authorities, according to a statement the department posted Saturday on its website. Read More ›
Consumers Not Powerless in the Face of Credit Card Fraud
by Ron Lieber, New York Times
Whether you’re using a debit or credit card, there are all sorts of ways to limit the damage a thief might do, or at least get a quick warning that one is on the loose. Read More ›
Control of car data at stake in Bill Monning bill
by Jeremy B. White, Sacramento Bee
Framed by a computer-equipped car parked on the steps of the State Capitol, Monning said his Senate Bill 994 would allow consumers to see what data their car generates and decide with whom they want to share the information. The measure is sponsored by AAA Northern California and its south state counterpart, the Auto Club of Southern California. Read More ›