Complain about a product or service

Consumer News 2000

New Jersey Sues Cemetery Operator "Free" burial sites had strings attached.

MemberWorks Agrees to Reform Practices Agreement follows investigation by New York Attorney General.

Minnesota Sues Fleet Financial Mortgage unit accused of giving customer data to telemarketers, then letting telemarketers put charges on customer accounts.

Providian Settles Consumer Class Actions Agrees to pay $105 million. Says it will clean up its act ... again.

Large-Scale Studies Show No Link Between Cell Phones & Brain Cancer Long-term effects should be watched, researchers say.

EToys Headed for the Attic Sales slumping, cash low, company puts itself up for sale.

GE Reverses Decision on Dishwasher Repair Company originally offered consumers a rebate on a new GE machine.

BMW X5 Aces Crash Test, Isuzu Trooper Washes Out The Isuzu fuel lines ruptured two out of three times in frontal crash tests.

Farmers Insurance Subsidiary Fined Texas fines company for illegally demanding income-tax returns before paying certain claims.

More Firestone Tire Deaths Death toll hits 148 as investigators try to determine the cause of the problem.

Guilty Plea in Phony ID Web Site Scam Web sites offered phony driver's licenses, Social Security cards, even university degrees.

Class Action Suit Filed Against DeVry Suit charges DeVry Institute of Technology fails to prepare students for high-tech jobs.

Spam Artists Settle FTC Charges "Work-at-home opportunity" was really a pyramid scheme, FTC charges.

Weather Blamed in Firestone Tire Failures Retired Fireestone official testifies most tires from Decatur went to warm-weather states.

Goodyear May Be Next NHTSA is reportedly about to open a probe into potential defects on Goodyear truck tires.

Bridgestone/Firestone Agrees to Extend Recall State Attorneys General win agreement to replace 1.4 million more tires.

FDA Warns Against Using TRIAC. "Fat burner" implicated in heart attacks, strokes, other medical problems.

E-Death Watch Goes On Leading analyst puts eToys, Buy.com and Webvan on sick list. Pets.com, Furniture.com and MotherNature.com pulled the plug yesterday.

Medicare Fiasco: Nearly 1 Million Seniors to Lose Medicare HMO Coverage This Year

Three Imprisoned in Upfront Loan Scheme Defendants charged $99 fee for a "credit card" that didn't exist.

Former Electric Mobility Sales Head, Sentenced Judge condemns in-home sales practices.

Federal and State Probes Target Best Price USA $96 "discount buying service" memberships often bogus, Florida prosecutor says.

WebTV Settles Deceptive Ad Charges Will reimburse some customers for long-distance charges.

Paralegal Training Scheme Sidelined Work-at-home "opportunity" mostly a way to lose money, Federal Trade Commission charges.

Home-based Business Promoters Penalized Two firms that used high-pressure tactics to sell work-at-home schemes have been ordered to pay a penalty.

Florida Consumers Sue Allstate Potential class-action suit says Allstate overcharges motorists who've had accidents or moving violations.

Fleet Bank Accused of Deceptive Advertising Consumer suit says the bank improperly raised credit card rates for thousands of cardholders.

California Judge Orders Ford Recall Company concealed ignition problems for two decades, judge rules.

Study Finds Ford Explorer More Likely to Roll Over Regardless of Tires Washington Post story based on study of accident records.

$37.5 Million Judgment Against Porn Site Falsified credit card charges.

New Travel Site Hopes to Hotwire Priceline Hotwire offers similar pay-in-advance "secret" cheap tix

State Farm Employee Spotted Firestone Problem Two Years Ago Alerted NHTSA, which finally responded last May.

L.L. Bean Pays $750,000 Penalty for Delay in Reporting Safety Defects Bean knew of 39 incidents before reporting problem with child backpack carriers.

Debt Collector Hit With $2 Million Penalty Performance Capital Reported Incorrect Data to Credit Bureaus

Action Loan to Pay Penalty for Violations Subprime lender violated Truth In Lending Act

Playgirl.com Accused of Scamming Web Surfers "Free" sites not so free.

FTC Goes After More Travel Scams "Free" trips include undisclosed sales pitches.

Firestone Tires Had A Heavy Load Weight of Explorer combined with low inflation didn't help matters.

Congressional Hearings Likely on Firestone Tire Recall Ford in stronger position with GOP influentials.

Rep. Dingell Wants Other Firestone Tires Examined Honda "extremely worried" about consumer reaction to Firestone recall.

Rollover Fears Led to Lower Inflation of Firestones on Ford Ford feared Explorer would roll over at higher inflation rates.

CarOrder.com folds its Web site Car cartel successful in blocking Web dealers.

Natural Organics Ordered to Stop Making ADD Claims No scientific evidence to support claim, FTC says.

Heilig-Meyers Furniture Files for Bankruptcy Chain specialized in lower-income customers.

Class Action Against United Airlines United allegedly selling tickets on flights it knows will probably be canceled.

Value America Declares Bankruptcy Lavish funding, early start not enough.

Firestone Recalls ATX Tires Nearly 50 deaths blamed on defects.

Firestone Tires Investigated Implicated in 28 traffic deaths, most involving SUVs.

Report Finds Legitimate Questions About Cell Phone Safety Researchers concerned about risks to children.

Neurologist Sues Motorola, Bell Atlantic Claims Cell Phones Caused His Brain Tumor

Seven Dwarves Busted for Holding Up Santa E-tailers didn't deliver Christmas loot on time, pay $1.5 million penalty.

Bogus Billing Scheme Brings FTC Penalty Quality Mainitenance Supplies Settles FTC Charges.

Adult Web Sites Billed For "Free" Content FTC settlement requires paybacks.

Consumers Learning PayPal Offers Few Protections Against Fraud Online payment system lacks protections of checks, credit cards.

Robin Leach Settles Lawsuits Over Florida Travel Network, Ramada Plaza Endorsements Consumers still fuming over their "dream vacations."

Consumer Lawsuits Putting Pressure on Ephedra Courts doing what Congress hasn't.

Nu West Inc. Settles FTC Charges Sub-prime lending violations alleged.

Rascal Scooters Sales Head Awaiting Sentencing Mark Ostrov pleads guilty to wire fraud.

Fraudulent prize promoters nabbed "It's your lucky day!"

Online pharmacies charged False advertising, credit and privacy abuses alleged.

North American Capital To Pay $250,000 Violated Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

Living Dead Infest Ecommerce It's a good time for consumers to practice old-fashioned cash-and-carry.

Have the Bells Fumbled? The Bell companies have had a decade to get their markets sewn up before competition hits, with less than sterling results.

Providian's Aria Aims to be Net Diva Aria is the underlying, though anonymous, provider at a growing number of Web sites.

Nader Wants Better Access To Voting Records All votes, including committee, should be in searchable database, Green Party candidate says.

Nader Wants Credit Consumer Bill of Rights Settlement with Providian just a start, Green Party candidate contends.

$300 Million Providian Settlement Bank agrees to make restitution to 3 million customers.

Airlines launching Hotwire to compete with Priceline New site will not require bidding.

Cell Phone Safety: An Editorial Use headset to get antenna away from head.

HUD Wants Crackdown on Abusive Lending Practices Subprime market targeted.

Con Artists Using Living Trusts to Scam Elders Only those with estates of $1.3+ million need them.

CPSC Issues Standards for Window Guards The guards protect children from falls.

Study Finds Tomatoes Lower Cancere Risk Effect most pronounced in prostate cancer.

Pharmacy Errors Cause 7,000 Deaths Per Year Number expected to rise because of shortage of pharmacists.

Huge Rise In Consumer Complaints About Telephone Service FCC chairman dismayed.

Worldcom Fined $3.5 Million for Slamming Largest fine ever levied for slamming, FCC says.

Foxes Want to Guard Henhouse Big companies propose voluntary guidelines to settle online disputes.

AOL Rats on NY Paramedics Turns over chat room info to criminal investigators

U.S. Car Sales Slip While Imports Gain Nissan, Honda, Toyota, Kia in winner's circle.

Kia pays big fine in New Jersey Firm was late with Lemon Law payments.

Record Companies Agree to Stop Restraining Competition Consumers paid $480 million more than necessary, FTC charges.

Phony Auction Scam Shut Down Companies sold "information packs" about government auctions, supposed job opportunities.

Federal Drive to Reduce Small Business Scams Office supplies, telemarketers, "cramming" top the list.

Court Settlement Halts Toner Scam B2B scam runs afoul of FTC.

Progress Seen in Providian Talks Bank has been meeting with D.A., federal banking regulators.

LoanGiant targets subprime market with free PCs, Internet deals Critics say it preys on inner-city poor.

Class action raises questions about credit card banks Are they banks or aren't they?

Friedman Jewelers Named in Class-Action Suit Allegedly sold insurance without bothering to tell consumers.

Sprint Launching Fixed Wireless System Offers high-speed Internet access and local telephone service.

Quality Haunts Detroit Once More American carmakers take their lumps in major quality surveys.

Modern Credit Services Nailed in Advance Fee Loan Case Consumers paid $89 for cards that often never arrived.

Federal Crackdown on Day Trading Advisors What they don't tell you: most day traders lose money.

Vitamin O Promoters Fined, Agree to Stop Supplement supposedly enriched oxygen in bloodstream.

Photo Agency Violated Cooling-Off RuleOrdered to make restitution, clean up act in future.

Ford Extends Warranty on More 94-95 Models Rear-wheel drive Mustangs, Thunderbirds, Cougars covered for head gasket failure.

Quadriplegic Put in Street by Burke Rehabilitation CenterNearly 20 years of self-reliance not enough.

Major Illness Frequent Cause of Bankruptcy Under-insurance, job loss, consumer debt all factors.

Online Credit May Harm Credit Ratings Applying too often can mean trouble.

Alpine and EcoQuest Face Contempt Charges FTC says health claims for air cleaners are unproven.

Office Supply Scam Shut Down Businesses were billed for unordered supplies.

FTC Shuts Down 2Xtreme Get-rich-quick scheme was pyramid, agency claims.

Senate Hears of Funeral Abuses More oversight needed, state and fed officials agree.

Most Midsize Sedans Flunk Crash Tests Subaru Legacy gets only "Good" rating.

Phone Scam Hits Adult Site Viewers X-site surfers get massive long-distance bills.

Hasbro Delayed Reporting Hazard Infant seats dumped kids out on their heads.

Woodlawn Cemetery Closed California officials said graves may have been disturbed to make room for new burials.

Insider's View of Proteva A former technician chronicles the decline in Proteva Computer's service and quality.

FBI Raids Generalogistics Offices Seizes files and computers.

Auction Recall Alerts Recall notices will be added to eBay, Amazon.com auction sites.

Dura Lube, Motor Up Settle Charges Agree to stop deceptive ads.

Credit Cards Get Cold Shoulder Consumers shunning direct-mail come-ons.

Class Action Against CompuServe Case seeks interest for delays in rebate payments.

Tooth Decay Risks in Bottled Water Study finds fluoride lacking, threatening kids' teeth.

Travel Fantasy Promoters Settle FTC Charges "Free vacations" turned out to be very expensive for many consumers.

Honda Will Build Engines for GM First order is for 100,000 V-6 engines. Consumers can only hope for more.

Ford Warranty Extension Leaves Many Questions Unanswered Other models with same engine not covered.

"New Credit Rating" Scammers Nabbed FTC reaches settlement with West Coast Publications LLC.

ID Theft on the Rise Hundreds of thousands of consumers face theft of identity.

Nine West Settles Price-Fixing Charges Upscale shoemaker pays $34 million.

Business Scams on the Rise Feds and states team up to nab 68 scam artists.

Resort World Settles Charges Pays $75,000 penalty for travel schemes.

Trans Union Ordered to Stop Selling Consumer Data FTC says company violates the law, company says it doesn't.

Wells Fargo, eBay Team Up They'll offer transaction services to Internet users.

Publishers Clearing House In Court Again More than 30 states are suing PCH, claiming it misleads consumers.

FCC Fines MCI for Misleading Ads Says "dial-around" ads did not fully disclose terms.

New Guidelines for Dial-Around Ads Federal agencies crack down on "dial-around" ads.

Lawyers Respond to Ford's Press Release Statement says all questions not yet answered.

Ford Extends Warranty on Troubled Engine Company acts after class action suits and mounting tide of bad press.

E-Tax Wars Heat Up State and local governments are fighting efforts to keep the Internet tax-free.

Hotel Chains Snub Child Safety Drive Only Bass, owner of Holiday Inn and other major chains, responds.

All Around Travel Settles with FTC "Club" had worked in collusion with BestBank, which has since failed.

Microworkz Out of Business After stiffing untold customers, Microworkz slinks off into the night.

Multiple Suits Against GE New York State and Florida consumers contest terms of GE dishwasher recall program.

Big Beanie Baby Penalty Late deliveries cost Beanie manufacturer.

Big E-firms Take Aim Lobbyists for big software firms are pushing hard for a bill that neutralizes consumer protections.

Privacy Bills Loom FTC Chairman Robert Pitofsky and others warn industry.

Bank Card Accused of Misleading Poor & Elderly DBC Financial to pay $250,000 settlement.

Medical Sites Flaunt Privacy Study finds most sites ignore their own privacy policies.

AOL Class Action Filed A suit charges Version 5.0 illegally blocks access to other providers.

Scholarship Sites Rapped Federal investigators have warned Web sites to avoid fraud in "guaranteeing" college scholarships.

Heartburn Drug Can Be Fatal The FDA warns that consumers taking Cisapride should check with their doctors.

Airlines Sneak in Surcharge The $20 fee covers higher fuel costs but isn't disclosed.

Privacy Tops Consumer Concerns Congress and the Presidential candidates are getting an earful from voters.

FTC Names Privacy Committee Will study online privacy issues.

Bond Scheme Targets Elderly FTC shuts down alleged Canadian scam.

Alpine Gets Day in Court, Loses A federal judge has ordered Alpine to stop making unsupported claims about its air purifiers.

Credit Agencies Charged The big three credit agaencies agree to pay big settlements and open their phone lines to consumers.

"Do Not Call" Rule Studied The Federal Trade Commission is studying consumer complaints about invasives telemarketers.

Bayer Gets FTC Headache Agrees to clean up aspirin ads' health claims.

UMAX, Memorex Agree to Pay Rebates On Time FTC charges companies with unlawful payment delays.

Sport Ute, Pickup Rollovers Continue to Kill NHTSA delays action while thousands die.

Y2K Glitch in CyberCash Software Duplicate charges being recorded by some online merchants.

FDA Targets Illegal Muscle Relaxant, Sleep Enhancer "GBL" implicated in six deaths, many medical emergencies.

ReverseAuction.Com Hit
FTC Charges deceit and violation of consumers' privacy.

Back to the top |