Posts Tagged With ‘ Companies ’

It’s irritating and it’s a trend. When you go to retailers and ask if you have any rewards money to apply to your purchase, you’re told you need to go their website to sign up for their rewards program again there. It happened at Office Depot and Rite Aid, companies where I’ve been in the rewards program for years. Since the new pricing at Office Depot showed quite a bit off when I went to buy some thumb drives Thursday, I asked the staff at the store to help me sign up for the new program. Now I’m a member and quality for rewards again. If you spend $500 a year at Office Depot, you... Continue Reading

Time is running out if you want to get in on a big Facebook settlement. If you were a Facebook user in the United States between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022, you may be eligible for a cash payment from a class action settlement of $725 million. Today, Aug. 25, is the deadline to file a claim. Go to https://facebookuserprivacysettlement.com/. It’s easy to fill out the form. You don’t need to give any personal information. And, watch out for scammers who may ask for money to fill out a claim form for the settlement. How much you get depends on how many people file claims. Facebook had... Continue Reading

Unfortunately, September marks the end of summer, which is so sad. Many people, like me, aren’t fans of winter. However, in relation to sales, September is a good time to shop for deals, the Labor Day sales being one reason. Here are recommendations on the September sales from DealNews.com: Summer clothing Deep discounts are expected at many retailers as they want to make room for new fall items. Look for sales up to 80 percent off. Major appliances Labor Day is one of the last sales times of the year when you can reliably expect savings on major appliances. The savings typically range from... Continue Reading

Most Americans don’t know how often they’re stripped of their rights through widely used forced arbitration clauses that are found in the fine print of everyday click-through agreements, terms and conditions, and other contracts, according to a new study. Arbitration clauses require consumers who have complaints to settle issues through arbitration rather than filing a lawsuit. “Consumers shouldn’t be silenced by big corporations that harm them,” said Shennan Kavanagh, senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center, an organization that specializes in consumer issues on behalf... Continue Reading

If someone tells you that you need to pay to sign up for government student loan debt relief program, run away as fast as you can. Scammers want to hook you and fill their pockets with your money, while their “advice” may make your student loan problems worse. The Federal Trade Commission offers the following tips for how to spot scam companies that charge illegal upfront fees for so-called help with your student loans: The first thing is to be informed. Be aware you don’t have to pay for help managing your student loans. If someone tries to charge you up front, before they’ve done anything,... Continue Reading

Here’s another recall for these dehumidifiers have seen other models recalled throughout the years. Gree Electric Appliances is recalling about 1.56 million dehumidifiers. The dehumidifiers can overheat, smoke, and catch fire, posing fire and burn risks to consumers. Gree has received reports of at least 23 fires, 688 incidents of overheating, and $168,000 in property damage with the recalled dehumidifiers. This recall involves 42 models of dehumidifiers with brand names Kenmore, GE, SoleusAir, Norpole, and Seabreeze that were manufactured between January 2011 and February 2014. For information... Continue Reading

Does it matter that there are too many residential real estate agents? Yes, says a consumer group. More than 1.5 million residential agents, including brokers, compete for home sales usually totaling 5 to 6 million annually. The plethora of real estate agents comes with costs, according to a study by the Consumer Federation of America, that include: Economic inefficiencies including an excessive amount of time spent by agents finding clients. Relatively low incomes of many full-time agents. Frustration by these agents and by many consumers who deal with inexperienced agents. Reinforcement of... Continue Reading

Photo: White House The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law a year ago, has many benefits for American consumers. It began making big corporations pay their fair share in taxes while investing more in items that help the middle class such as creating good-paying jobs, combating corporate price gouging, slashing the deficit, lowering prescription drug costs, and reducing carbon pollution. But while these efforts are helping everyday Americans, a new review from government watchdog Accountable.US shows several industries have never stopped trying to obstruct and weaken the Inflation Reduction... Continue Reading

It’s frustrating to receive dozens, even hundreds of emails every day. But what if there’s no “unsubscribe” link and the emails won’t stop? People who set up “Free Membership” accounts with Experian to manage access to their Experian credit report information online had that experience. The accounts let people “freeze” their credit to make it difficult for identity thieves to open new accounts in their name and “unfreeze” their credit to apply for a mortgage or other new credit. But, the Federal Trade Commission said, the free accounts came with an extra that many people... Continue Reading

The Food and Drug Administration has decided that food manufacturers can keep using phthalates, a class of toxic chemicals, in food packaging and food production equipment. It disregarded requests from health and environmental advocates to reconsider that decision based on evidence that phthalates in food are harmful to health. Safer substitutes for these chemicals are available, advocates argue. “There is overwhelming evidence that phthalates in our food cause life-altering damage to people’s health, including the health of babies and young children,” said Earthjustice Attorney Katherine... Continue Reading