Consumer protection
Inspection, enforcement of Pennsylvania amusement parks fall short
Pennsylvania has more amusement park rides than any other state, and its governer has stated its rides are unmatched in safety because of the state’s rigorous inspection program. But an investigation by PublicSource shows that the state agency that oversees amusement parks does not track the safety inspection reports that parks are required to file…
Read MoreSponges, tools and more left inside Washington hospital patients
KUOW in Seattle reports that about 30 times per year, a sponge or surgical instrument is left inside a patient at a hospital in Washington state. Foreign ojects left behind are among the state’s most common medical mistakes. Medical experts told KUOW such an event should never happen, at that the system in place to…
Read MoreUSA Today examines players in the risky supplement game
USA Today launched the first part of its investigation titled Supplement Shell Game: The People behind risky pills. The first article examines Matt Cahill, who has spent time in federal prison and now faces another federal charge after creating a series of products over the past 12 years — one of which contained a pesticide…
Read MoreExtra Extra Monday: NSA leaks, secret fracking settlements, predatory tire rentals
Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind the NSA surveillance revelations | The GuardianThe 29-year-old source behind the biggest intelligence leak in the NSA’s history explains his motives, his uncertain future and why he never intended on hiding in the shadows. See more coverage of the NSA surveillance. High prices are driving more motorists to rent tires |…
Read MoreHigh prices are driving more motorists to rent tires
Chains such as Rent-a-Wheel and Rimco are seeing business boom, according to a Los Angeles Times report. Many consumers pay double or triple the cost of buying tires and face aggressive repossession policies.
Read MoreSecurity lapse exposes some subsidized phone service customers to ID theft risk
“Tens of thousands of applicants to a federal program subsidizing phone service for the poor have been placed at heightened risk for identity theft. Through a simple Google search, Scripps News uncovered more than 170,000 Lifeline applications and supporting records — many containing full Social Security numbers, birth dates, drivers licenses numbers and food stamp…
Read MoreDespite mortgage schemes, real estate agents keep license
“Despite Minnesota’s crackdown on ‘deceptive and dishonest’ loan modification schemes, the state Commerce Department has allowed many of those involved to retain their real estate licenses a Star Tribune report has found.” “Since 2010, the department has taken enforcement action against 36 individuals for violating mortgage modification laws. Ten of them held some kind of…
Read MoreAfter More Than a Decade and Thousands of Disfiguring Injuries, Power Tool Industry Still Resisting Safety Fix
“But as court records and testimony have shown, the companies rejected the safety advance for another reason, too: They worried that if a way to prevent severe injuries got traction in the market, they would face liability for accidents with conventional saws.”
Read MoreBeyond Payday Loans
“Sutton ended up with a series of installment loans from World — renewed one after the other — that dragged her ever-deeper into debt, and made getting her bills paid and getting back on her feet a whole lot harder. It is a repeated pattern for low-income borrowers with low or no credit, which an investigation by…
Read MoreGlass companies pushing unnecessary windshield replacements
10 News (WTSP), Tampa Bay’s CBS affiliate, exposes cracks in Florida’s zero-deductable windshield-replacement law. While the law is designed to help consumers, 10 News shows the lack of policing over fraud has lead to a proliferation of glass companies pushing unnecessary replacements. The effect has been rising rates for all policyholders, and now, state legislators are…
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