#consumer-advocacy

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EU data protection
fromBloomberglaw
5 days ago

California Privacy Agency Adopts Automated Tech, Cyber Rules (1)

New rules by the California Privacy Protection Agency require companies to conduct cybersecurity audits and privacy assessments.
fromwww.cbc.ca
6 days ago

CBC investigation finds some big grocers promoting imported food with Canadian branding | CBC News

A growing number of shoppers are dedicated to buying Canadian products, yet face misleading country-of-origin labeling.
fromEngadget
6 days ago

Microsoft backtracks on $80 The Outer Worlds 2 pricing

Microsoft reduced The Outer Worlds 2 price to $70 after backlash against the $80 increase.
fromThe Mercury News
1 week ago

Here's a look at the $43.5 million push to boost EV sales

Veloz launched a $43.5 million national media campaign to promote electric vehicle purchases among Americans.
E-Commerce
fromFortune
1 week ago

Delta moves toward eliminating set prices in favor of AI that determines how much you personally will pay for a ticket

Delta is adopting individualized pricing with AI to increase profitability and eventually eliminate static fares.
fromTruthout
2 weeks ago

Trump's FTC Let Lobbyists Kill Popular Click-To-Cancel Rule, Advocates Say

Consumer advocates criticized the appeals court decision to block the FTC's rule intended to make subscription cancellations easier for consumers, blaming the Trump administration's influence.
US politics
#customer-service
fromwww.mercurynews.com
3 weeks ago

Booking.com transferred my refund to someone else's credit card

Booking.com failed to assist with finding alternative accommodations after a cancellation, mishandled the refund process, and provided inadequate communication.
Right-wing politics
fromTheregister
4 weeks ago

Despite Right to Repair laws, some manufacturers fall short

Progress on Right to Repair laws reveals inconsistent compliance among manufacturers, with many failing to support consumer repair efforts effectively.
fromIrish Independent
1 month ago

'They are not a suitable long-term investment' - expert questions wisdom of buying Prize Bonds as sales drop sharply

Consumer advocate Brendan Burgess argues that Prize Bonds are not a suitable long-term investment, emphasizing their poor returns compared to other options, particularly under inflationary pressures.
E-Commerce
#california
fromKqed
1 month ago
East Bay (California)

One Bay Area City's Answer to Homeless RV Residents Shows Promise for State | KQED

LA real estate
fromFast Company
3 months ago

L.A. fires: Consumer group sues to block insurers from charging Californians $500 million

Consumer advocacy group sues to prevent insurers from passing on $500 million in wildfire response costs to California policyholders.
fromKqed
1 month ago
East Bay (California)

One Bay Area City's Answer to Homeless RV Residents Shows Promise for State | KQED

LA real estate
fromFast Company
3 months ago

L.A. fires: Consumer group sues to block insurers from charging Californians $500 million

Consumer advocacy group sues to prevent insurers from passing on $500 million in wildfire response costs to California policyholders.
fromFast Company
1 month ago

Texas passes food additive warning law, but the list has inaccuracies

"I don't know how the list of chemicals was constructed. Warnings have to be accurate in order to be legal," said Thomas Galligan, emphasizing the importance of truthful labeling in the new law.
SF food
UK politics
fromIrish Independent
1 month ago

The Irish Independent's View: Indifference over rise in food prices is hard for people to stomach

Food inflation is significantly impacting voters and requires government intervention.
The cost of staples is becoming unaffordable for low-income families.
fromABC7 San Francisco
2 months ago

'I want the truth out:' Bay Area insurance agent alleges Farmers issued questionable cancellations

Farmers Insurance faces allegations of wrongly cancelling policies based on false claims of consumer requests.
Jeffrey Carvalho, a concerned agent, highlights systemic issues affecting clients.
Consumers should be wary of unexpected policy cancellation letters they did not request.
Europe news
fromwww.dw.com
2 months ago

Consumer groups urge EU to press airlines over baggage fees DW 05/22/2025

EU consumer groups demand action against airlines for misleading baggage fees.
#insurance
SF parents
fromSan Jose Inside
2 months ago

State Farm Wins First-ever Emergency Rate Hike in California

State Farm has received approval for emergency rate hikes in California due to financial distress from significant claims.
California
fromwww.mercurynews.com
3 months ago

Lawsuit seeks to halt California's homeowner-funded FAIR Plan insurance bailout

Consumer advocates are challenging a bailout plan for California's FAIR Plan insurance program, arguing it unfairly shifts costs to homeowners.
SF parents
fromSan Jose Inside
2 months ago

State Farm Wins First-ever Emergency Rate Hike in California

State Farm has received approval for emergency rate hikes in California due to financial distress from significant claims.
California
fromwww.mercurynews.com
3 months ago

Lawsuit seeks to halt California's homeowner-funded FAIR Plan insurance bailout

Consumer advocates are challenging a bailout plan for California's FAIR Plan insurance program, arguing it unfairly shifts costs to homeowners.
Healthcare
fromFast Company
2 months ago

Health insurance is fundamentally broken. Here's how to fix it from the ground up

Health insurance remains overly complex, failing to address the real needs of consumers and contributing to escalating healthcare costs.
Over 50% of Americans struggle to understand their health insurance, indicating a need for simpler, more intuitive offerings.
fromFast Company
2 months ago

The case for cooperation

Companies can avoid product failures by partnering with public interest groups early in the development process.
San Francisco Giants
fromABC7 San Francisco
2 months ago

CA approves State Farm's emergency rate hike; increases as high as 38% start June 1

Californians face significant property insurance premium hikes from State Farm, effective June 1, with justification hearings delayed until October.
US politics
fromThe Verge
2 months ago

Trump administration announces 'illegal' rollback of energy and water efficiency standards

The US Energy Department is rolling back appliance efficiency standards, raising legal and consumer concerns.
fromBusiness Insider
2 months ago

A fight is brewing in Indiana over who should pay Big Tech's energy bills

Indiana leads the charge in deciding who pays for energy costs linked to AI technology, potentially affecting consumers and large corporations alike.
US politics
fromBusiness Insider
3 months ago

Amazon says it won't display tariff costs. It still exploded into a political issue.

Amazon denies plans to display tariff costs online, but it sparked political controversy.
Political leaders criticize Amazon for not displaying tariff impacts on prices.
fromwww.theguardian.com
3 months ago

You sold it now recycle it': the protesters mailing worn-out clothes to the shops they bought them from

"I don't want to put it into a textile recycling collection as the likelihood is that it will be shipped overseas or incinerated and not recycled."
Fashion & style
#real-estate
fromwww.mercurynews.com
3 months ago
SF real estate

Big Bay Area real estate brokerage dealt a rebuff in private listing campaign

The National Association of Realtors maintains the requirement for public listings, despite a push from Compass for private options.
fromBoston.com
4 months ago
US news

Home sellers and buyers accuse Realtors of blocking lower fees

Real estate commission rates remain high and unchanged one year after a settlement aimed to disrupt traditional agent payment models.
US news
fromBoston.com
4 months ago

Home sellers and buyers accuse Realtors of blocking lower fees

Real estate commission rates remain high and unchanged one year after a settlement aimed to disrupt traditional agent payment models.
fromwww.npr.org
3 months ago

How Much Will That Surgery Cost? Hospital Price Lists Remain Largely Unhelpful

New healthcare price transparency measures face challenges in consumer usefulness and information quality.
Previous attempts at price transparency have resulted in complicated data that confounds consumers.
fromFuturism
4 months ago

Hims Is Begging Customers to Lobby the FDA to Keep Its Ozempic Knockoffs Legal

I ask you to consider the real, life-changing impact of these treatments. Please ensure that patients continue to have access to compounded GLP-1s as a critical part of health management.
Growth hacking
fromKqed
4 months ago

Average PG&E Utility Bills Have Gone Up Nearly 70% Since 2020 | KQED

PG&E seeks to raise electricity rates further amid a history of significant rate hikes, which many view as unfair to consumers.
#23andme
Marketing tech
fromNew York Post
4 months ago

DNA testing pioneer 23andMe files for bankruptcy as concerns mount over data privacy of 15M customers

23andMe's bankruptcy raises significant concerns about the security of customer genetic data.
Experts urge customers to delete their data amid potential ownership transfer.
Marketing tech
fromNew York Post
4 months ago

DNA testing pioneer 23andMe files for bankruptcy as concerns mount over data privacy of 15M customers

23andMe's bankruptcy raises significant concerns about the security of customer genetic data.
Experts urge customers to delete their data amid potential ownership transfer.
fromHackernoon
4 months ago

You Can Help Us Investigate Surveillance Marketing Using Facebook Data: Here's How | HackerNoon

Surveillance marketers are evolving their tracking methods, moving beyond detectable techniques like pixels to more covert methods like server-to-server tracking, raising new privacy concerns.
Privacy technologies
#fda
SF food
fromwww.scientificamerican.com
4 months ago

Scientist Whose Work Led FDA To Ban Food Dye Red No. 3 in January Says Agency Overstated Risk

The FDA's ban on red dye No. 3 in food and drugs is controversial, with conflicting views on its safety based largely on a 1987 study.
SF food
fromwww.scientificamerican.com
4 months ago

Scientist Whose Work Led FDA To Ban Food Dye Red No. 3 in January Says Agency Overstated Risk

The FDA's ban on red dye No. 3 in food and drugs is controversial, with conflicting views on its safety based largely on a 1987 study.
Marketing tech
fromMarTech
4 months ago

Is the way we build and measure brands changing? | MarTech

Marketers today face challenges in measuring the impact of brand marketing despite having more tools at their disposal.
Garbe suggests CMOs should coordinate all brand activities, reframing the concept of branding in organizations.
Europe politics
fromThe Local Germany
4 months ago

EU mulls tightening flight delay compensation rules for passengers

Poland's proposal to increase flight delay compensation threshold from three to five hours faces criticism from consumer protection groups.
EU data protection
fromTechCrunch
4 months ago

EU must 'fully' apply its market fairness rulebook on Google, search rivals urge | TechCrunch

The EU is urged to expand its investigation of Google under the Digital Markets Act for potentially unfair practices.
fromwww.housingwire.com
4 months ago

Texas orders cut to title insurance premiums

Sustaining the current levels of profits in the current real estate market with the current levels of inflation would not be reasonable as to the public.
SF real estate
NYC politics
fromArs Technica
5 months ago

Supreme Court rejects ISPs again in latest bid to kill NY's $15 broadband law

The deregulation of broadband ISPs has led to calls for more oversight in response to the consequences of deregulation.
Consumer advocates urge ISPs to collaborate for federal accountability in broadband offerings.
Canada news
fromwww.cbc.ca
5 months ago

Walmart slapped higher prices on 1L milk cartons than permitted by Manitoba law | CBC News

Walmart Canada sold milk above provincial price limits in Manitoba, prompting calls for customer compensation and accountability.
Miscellaneous
fromBuzzFeed
5 months ago

33 Frugal Habits People Swear By No Matter How Much Cash They Have In The Bank

Consumers should hold companies accountable for poor-quality products.
Returning subpar items is a matter of principle for conscientious consumers.
Left-wing politics
fromTruthout
5 months ago

Trump Fires Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Head Who Drew Wall Street's Ire

Rohit Chopra was removed as CFPB Director after being praised for returning over $6 billion to consumers and holding powerful companies accountable.
fromArs Technica
6 months ago

FCC chair nixes plan to boost broadband competition in apartment buildings

The new FCC chair's withdrawal of a proposal on bulk billing is praised by housing industry lobby groups for its consumer benefits.
fromwww.mercurynews.com
6 months ago

Problem Solved: Hey Sears, where's the refund for the Master Protection on my washer?

Sears should have processed both of your refunds at the same time. I don't think the bank is slow is a valid excuse when an employee handled the refunds at the same time.
East Bay (California)
Canada news
fromwww.cbc.ca
6 months ago

Kraft Heinz hits back at what it called Trudeau's 'misleading' comment about its Canadian ketchup | CBC News

Kraft Heinz Canada rebuts Trudeau's comments on ketchup's production history, emphasizing its commitment to Canadian jobs and local sourcing.
fromwww.npr.org
6 months ago

Ralph Nader, Consumer Crusader (Throwback)

Ralph Nader's activism emerged during a time of widely felt consumer frustration, highlighting how a single voice could mobilize public sentiment into a powerful consumer movement.
Miscellaneous
fromtime.com
6 months ago

FDA Bans Red Dye No. 3 From Foods

U.S. regulators banned Red 3 from food due to potential cancer risk, following its prior ban in cosmetics.
Miscellaneous
fromtime.com
7 months ago

What to Know About MrBeast's Controversial Sweepstakes Partner MoneyLion

MrBeast's reality show raises ethical concerns due to its partnership with MoneyLion, potentially exposing young fans to predatory loan practices.
fromMedCity News
7 months ago

More Than 70 Orgs Urge Congress to Extend Enhanced Premium Tax Credits - MedCity News

Over 70 organizations urge Congress to extend enhanced premium tax credits to avoid increased healthcare costs for millions by 2026.
#mehmet-oz
Miscellaneous
fromSpokesman.com
7 months ago

Mehmet Oz endorsed products without noting financial ties, watchdog says

Dr. Mehmet Oz's undisclosed endorsements of herbal supplements raise ethical and regulatory compliance concerns regarding his position overseeing Medicare.
Marketing
fromWashington Post
7 months ago

Watchdog group asks FTC to investigate Dr. Oz's influencer marketing

Mehmet Oz faces investigation for failing to disclose financial ties to a supplement company while promoting it extensively on social media.
Miscellaneous
fromSpokesman.com
7 months ago

Mehmet Oz endorsed products without noting financial ties, watchdog says

Dr. Mehmet Oz's undisclosed endorsements of herbal supplements raise ethical and regulatory compliance concerns regarding his position overseeing Medicare.
Marketing
fromWashington Post
7 months ago

Watchdog group asks FTC to investigate Dr. Oz's influencer marketing

Mehmet Oz faces investigation for failing to disclose financial ties to a supplement company while promoting it extensively on social media.
Miscellaneous
fromFuturism
8 months ago

Online Bank Users Horrified as Their Savings Accounts Vanish Into Thin Air

Banking startup failures have left customers' savings in jeopardy, leading to financial ruin for individuals trusting these platforms.
fromwww.independent.co.uk
8 months ago

Warning issued to Black Friday shoppers over sneaky pricing tactics'

Many Black Friday deals may not offer real savings, as research shows most prices are comparable to previous periods.
Consumers should exercise caution and verify sale prices during Black Friday sales to avoid misleading promotions.
Miscellaneous
fromArs Technica
8 months ago

Cable companies and Trump's FCC chair agree: Data caps are good for you

Data caps are seen as profit-driven tools by ISPs, affecting consumers adversely, particularly low-income households.
fromwww.standard.co.uk
9 months ago

Disabled woman banned from Asda in south east London 'for not showing ID for her service dog'

Banned from all Asda stores, a disabled woman advocates for her rights after being wrongly denied access with her service dog.
Law
fromAbove the Law
9 months ago

Trump's Likely FCC Boss, Brendan Carr, Tries To Undermine Popular Infrastructure Bill Broadband Improvements

The BEAD program is essential for enhancing broadband access and competition, especially among low-income communities.
Medicine
fromCbsnews
9 months ago

Harris backs slashing medical debt. Trump's "concepts" worry advocates.

Advocates urge Kamala Harris to advance measures tackling medical debt and ensuring health insurance access.
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