Press Release Archive

2018

February

27

• Data insecurity and data protection (Consumer Action examines whether U.S. consumers stand to benefit from new EU data protection laws).

  As consumers do and store more and more online, the threat of data breaches and privacy lapses is ever-present. Americans’ privacy rights are dictated by…

06

• Consumer advocates argue for a strong, independent CFPB (Agency’s independence is necessary to its mission, groups tell Appellate court).

  For Immediate Release: Feb. 6, 2018

  WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) independence from external political influence is crucial to the…

01

• Transfer of CFPB consumer complaints unit offers no clear benefit.

  The following statement can be attributed jointly to Americans for Financial Reform, Consumer Action and U.S. PIRG:

  This week, Office of Management and Budget (OMB)…

January

31

• Consumers win appeal for CFPB independence.

  Consumers scored a big win today when an appeals court ruled that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) structure as an independent agency is constitutional.

  …

2017

December

08

• Consumer advocates file in support of acting CFPB director (Agency’s independence is necessary to its mission).

  The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) independence from external political influence is crucial to the agency’s mission of protecting consumers, 10 groups told a…

July

25

• Consumer Action condemns the House's vote to repeal class actions.

  The U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution (H.J. Res. 111) today to repeal the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rule to restore…

20

• Consumer Action opposes Congress's attack on class actions.

  Members of both the U.S. House and Senate took a hatchet to consumer protection today by introducing Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions to repeal the Consumer…

March

08

• Consumer protections at risk (Consumer Action highlights recent consumer gains now in the cross hairs). Consumer Action News reviews many of the gains made in recent months to protect consumers’ personal safety, online privacy, dispute resolution rights and more. However, many of these critical consumer protections are in danger of disappearing under a new administration and GOP-controlled Congress.

February

03

• New regime plans to 'trump' consumer protections.

  Statement by Linda Sherry, Director, National Priorities, Consumer Action

  President Trump’s announcement today to dismantle the Dodd-Frank financial protection law and cripple the Consumer Financial…

January

10

• Filling the financial information gap in limited English communities.

  January 10, 2017—When you don’t speak or understand English well, applying for a car loan or mortgage can be hazardous to your financial health. For…

2016

September

30

• One million reasons why consumers need the CFPB.

  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) hit the one million mark this week. The Bureau has received more than one million individual consumer complaints about…

28

• Consumer Action joins White House campaign to 'Lock Down Your Login' (Advice to help consumers enable the strongest authentication tools for online accounts). Consumer Action joins a new campaign, “Lock Down Your Login,” to urge Americans to limit their personal cybercrime risk and better protect their key social media, email and bank accounts by enabling strong authentication.

August

30

• Consumer Action takes a closer look at a most valuable consumer tool (Report examines CFPB complaints, public data and company responses). Consumer Action releases a study of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's complaint database and offers tips and advice on how to find information in, and make the best use of, the public complaints submitted by consumers.

23

• Consumer Action joins 280 groups in supporting rule that would restore your right to sue.

  WASHINGTON, DC—Consumer Action joined together with 280 consumer, civil rights, labor, community and non-profit organizations to emphasize strong and broad-based support for the Consumer Financial…

July

29

• Consumers get the last word on complaints (Consumer Action applauds CFPB’s latest move to improve its complaint system).

  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is adding a five star system ratings scale to its complaint process to give consumers an efficient way to…

21

• DOJ sues to block Anthem-Cigna, Aetna-Humana health insurance mergers. Consumer Action applauds the Department of Justice's decision to sue to block the Anthem-Cigna and Aetna-Humana health insurance mergers, which it believes are anticompetitive and would greatly harm consumers.

• CFPB celebrates its fifth anniversary. Consumer Action's statement on the CFPB after five years

June

03

• Payday, car title loan rule could save U.S. consumers millions (Rule proposes regulating predatory lending that traps consumers in a cycle of debt ). The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) unveils new proposed rule to rein in payday and car title lending.

May

26

• Fair treatment for homeowners with limited English proficiency.

  Consumer Action, Americans for Financial Reform and coalition partners urge regulators, in a newly released paper, to make it easier for limited English proficiency…

18

• Congress debates consumers' right to a fair trial (Congress asks: Should consumers be able to hold corporations accountable when they break the law?).

  WASHINGTON, DC—Today, the U.S. House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit will hold a hearing to consider whether the Consumer Financial Protection…

05

• Financial firms can’t stop you from joining class action lawsuits (Consumers will be able to join together to hold corporations accountable when they break the law). The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's rule would limit the financial industry’s use of forced arbitration—an abusive practice in which corporations bury “ripoff clauses” in the fine print of take- it-or-leave-it contracts to block consumers from challenging predatory practices such as hidden fees, fraud and other illegal behavior.

April

06

• DOL fiduciary rule will protect retirement investors from 'conflicted advice' (Statement by Consumer Action on final fiduciary rule released today). Consumer Action applauds the Department of Labor for issuing a final conflict of interest rule, requiring retirement advisers to abide by a “fiduciary” standard, i.e. putting their clients’ best interests first.

January

20

• Poll shows strong support for regulation of paid tax preparers. A coalition of consumer and community organizations and advocates draws attention to the findings of a national poll that demonstrates broad public support for new consumer protections to prevent errors and fraud during the tax preparation process.

• Groups call for safe data practices, enforcement by FCC.

  WASHINGTON, DC—Today, 59 U.S. consumer advocacy, privacy and digital rights organizations submitted a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler calling for strong…

07

• Consumer Action and CreditBridge Collaboration: Credit Scores in the U.S. (A guide for students, immigrants and savvy consumers). Consumer Action has partnered with CreditBridge, a New York-based financial technology company, to release a fact sheet about credit in the U.S. for the benefit of newcomers, visitors and students.