CA News & Special Reports Archive

2021

February

26

• Debt collection (Winter 2020-2021).
  In this issue, Consumer Action helps consumers learn how to exercise their debt collection rights: to demand information about a debt, stop a debt collector from contacting them, and avoid resurrecting debts that are too old to be sued over. The issue also discusses other key aspects of the laws and regulations designed to protect people being targeted by debt collectors, and includes a sample validation request and a communications preference letter you can customize and send to debt collectors.

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - February 2021.
  The February 2021 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER introduces the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's new debt collection rule and what it will mean for debtors; highlights our latest COVID-19 Educational Project webinar, on disaster preparedness and recovery; guides internet users on what they can do to delete their personal information from the web; details our recent coalition efforts; shares the latest happenings at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; and announces new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

January

04

• Consumer Action INSIDER - January 2021.
  The January 2021 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER highlights our new guide to the Earned Income Tax Credit, titled Get Credit for Your Hard Work; outlines our work with funding partners (including Wells Fargo) to teach people how to best handle coronavirus-related challenges, including children's and teens' mental health and privacy in the age of remote learning; addresses the issue of free versus paid COVID-19 testing (and how you can find out if your insurance should cover tests); details our recent coalition efforts; shares the latest happenings at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; and announces new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

2020

December

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - December 2020.
  The December 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER highlights our Consumer Action News report on the long-term impact of racism on the finances of people of color; outlines our work with funding partners (including Wells Fargo and FHLBank San Francisco) to teach low-income and underserved people how to use FinTech to save money and improve their financial situation; teaches readers how to access their "tenant history" reports to see what landlords are saying about them; details our recent coalition efforts; shares the latest happenings at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; and announces new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

November

03

• Consumer Action INSIDER - November 2020.
  The November 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER highlights our anniversary awards ceremony and "virtual convening" centering on the theme of Health is Wealth; our COVID Educational Project fact sheets and webinars; advice on what to do if you are having trouble contacting customer service during the pandemic; our recent coalition efforts; the latest happenings at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; and new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

October

28

• Impact of race on personal finances (Fall 2020).
  In the latest issue of Consumer Action News, on the "Impact of race on personal finances," we examine areas of personal finance affected by institutional racism, from car and student loans to mortgages and auto insurance, and we consider some proposals for dismantling the barriers to financial inclusion.

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - October 2020.
  The October 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER highlights our webinar on job loss in the pandemic (part of our COVID-19 Educational Project, sponsored by Wells Fargo, with additional support from AT&T, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, and Square); our use of the Financial Health Network’s FinHealth Score® Toolkit to gauge consumers' financial health using apps and other digital services to save money, etc.; advice on what to do if you bought a "lemon" (with or without a factory warranty); our recent coalition efforts; the latest CFPB happenings; and new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

August

31

• Consumer Action INSIDER - September 2020.
  The September 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER highlights our upcoming Health and Wealth virtual convening and annual awards ceremony (registration open now), and includes articles on “best practices” in issues-based online activism, Consumer Action's webinar on estate planning during the pandemic (part of our COVID-19 Educational Project, sponsored by Wells Fargo, with additional support from AT&T, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, and Square), the importance of registering your car with your state motor vehicle agency (rather than a third party), our recent coalition efforts, the latest CFPB happenings, and new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

03

• Consumer Action INSIDER - August 2020.
  The August 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER features articles on an annual Federal Trade Commission (FTC) PrivacyCon event, which brought together academics, policymakers and advocates to consider the lack privacy rules around consumer health data (particularly relating to health and wellness apps); the many problems that come with purchasing and maintaining a timeshare--especially now during the coronavirus pandemic; Consumer Action's recent (and well-attended) webinar on COVID-19 scams and healthcare fraud; coverage of our coalition efforts; the latest CFPB happenings; and new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

July

13

• Health and wealth: The connection (Summer 2020).
  From learning that you owe thousands of dollars in surprise medical bills, to being hit with a lawsuit for unpaid hospital bills, life can be hard for healthcare consumers who are burdened by medical debt. And debt tends to cause stress and despair that spills into all corners of individual and family life. In this issue, Consumer Action looks at some innovative ways to help relieve the heavy debt burden, and examines the prospect of efficient, effective virtual medical care.

June

30

• Consumer Action INSIDER - July 2020.
  The July 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER features articles on how to "inoculate" yourself against COVID-19 disinformation and scams through our free monthly e-newsletter, SCAM GRAM; determining if you're being sold a fraudulent product or sold on a bogus payment method on websites like Craiglist; protecting your social media privacy by reading our two new fact sheets on how to change your privacy settings (one dedicated to Facebook); coverage of our coalition efforts; the latest CFPB happenings; and new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - June 2020.
  The June 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER features articles about the Consumer Federation of America's 54th Consumer Assembly (held virtually this year); our new publication on managing the privacy risks that come with smart homes (i.e., "Internet of Things" devices); what to do about prepaid cards that keep you from accessing the funds you deposited onto them; coverage of our Coalition Efforts; the latest CFPB happenings; and new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

May

• Consumer Action INSIDER - May 2020.
  The May 2020 issue of Consumer Action INSIDER features articles about our COVID-19 consumer financial resources guide; a health and technology webinar our staff participated in; how to stop recurring payments; coverage of our Coalition Efforts; and new settlements posted in our Class Action Database.

April

• Consumer Action INSIDER - April 2020.
  The April 2020 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER instructs older people on how they can report scams, especially as new ones are arising daily due to the coronavirus crisis; gives readers an overview of former CFPB director Richard Cordray's new book, “Watchdog: How Protecting Consumers Can Save Our Families, Our Economy, and Our Democracy”; exposes how the devil's in the details when it comes to "free filing" tax prep services offered by companies such as TurboTax and Tax Act; updates readers on our coalition efforts, including those to ensure that any COVID-19 vaccines developed are affordable for all consumers; and more.

March

16

• Saving for retirement (Spring 2020).
  In this issue of Consumer Action News we address the issue of retirement savings, and feature the results of an online survey we conducted about how people are saving for, and poised for, retirement.

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - March 2020.
  The March 2020 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER explains how taxpayers can avoid falling victim to tax-related identity theft; details how market-rigging by Big Pharma is making medications (including generics) less accessible and affordable for consumers; describes how users can avoid getting hit with cancellation fees when they schedule services through apps; updates readers on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's partnership with the U.S. Department of Education (to help student borrowers by resolving lending complaints); and more.

February

03

• Consumer Action INSIDER - February 2020.
  The February 2020 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER outlines our new "Get Covered" health insurance education and training module; invites readers to participate in our upcoming webinars on how FinTech can help consumers save money, budget, and more; explains how "spreading the word" can stop the spread of common scams; updates readers on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's work and asks the question: "Why isn't it providing financial relief to wronged consumers?"; and more.

January

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - January 2020.
  The January 2020 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER describes our updated Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) guide, Get Credit for Your Hard Work, which details how low-income workers are eligible for up to $6,557 with the EITC; advises readers of what to do if they're receiving loads of spam emails; describes the various coalition efforts we've recently joined (including one calling on Amtrak to end forced arbitration for passengers); updates readers on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; and more.

2019

December

19

• The benefits of class actions (Winter 2019-2020).
  Class action cases are an important consumer protection tool. While they don’t often provide full compensation to harmed consumers, they play a vital role in promoting fair corporate behavior. In this issue of Consumer Action News we explore how class actions benefit consumers.

02

• Consumer Action INSIDER - December 2019.
  The December 2019 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER announces Wells Fargo's funding of Consumer Action's innovative new FinTech initiative to help underserved consumers reach their financial goals; gives an overview of our latest Consumer Action News edition on the prescription drug affordability crisis; informs readers of what action to take if their college has been closed and they still owe student loan debt (particularly if it was a predatory for-profit school); updates readers on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's work; and more.

November

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - November 2019.
  The November 2019 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER announces JPMorgan Chase's funding of Consumer Action's innovative new fintech initiative to help underserved consumers reach their financial goals; gives an overview of our National Consumer Empowerment Conference, held in September outside of Chicago (featuring a presentation from CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger); informs readers of what action to take when they believe they're being scammed by a contractor operating on "behalf of" the federal/state Weatherization Assistance Program; updates readers on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's work; and more.

September

30

• Consumer Action INSIDER - October 2019.
  The October 2019 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER details a partnership between Verizon and Consumer Action to combat the onslaught of robocalls; outlines our involvement in the Insurance Consumer Protection Advisory Council (to identify new ways to reduce insurance fraud); informs readers of what action to take when a landlord will not return their security deposit; lists the newest class action settlements; updates readers on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's work; and more.

01

• Consumer Action INSIDER - September 2019.
  The September 2019 issue of the Consumer Action INSIDER details a FinTech pilot grant program that Consumer Action helped lead, which resulted in participants saving a combined $22,000; reveals what consumers can do when they face TV blackouts due to disputes between pay-TV and programmer companies; lists the newest class action settlements; updates readers on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's work; and more.

June

03

• Consumer Action INSIDER - June 2019.
  The June 2019 edition of the INSIDER updates readers on the Currency Conversions campaign to expand economic inclusion for black women; a Facebook privacy roundtable for advocates; an elderly woman's disturbing encounter with TSA at the airport (and what you can do if you experience bad TSA customer service); and 2019 Consumer Lobby Day in Washington, D.C.

May

28

• The Robocall Scourge (Spring 2019).
  Robocalling is a huge and growing problem. In this issue of Consumer Action News, we report on why the problem is so pervasive and explain new ways companies, regulators and Congress are trying to address the problem. We also name some services and apps that might help you control the calls.