Major national auto repair chains need to stop offering financing through EasyPay Finance and TAB Bank, which issue loans at rates up to 189 percent even in states where that rate is illegal. A coalition of consumer groups sent letters to the corporate offices for businesses such as JiffyLube about the loans.
A predatory debt collection operation is being shut down for harassing consumers. The operation was made up of several companies, including JPL Recovery Solutions, which used misleading and abusive tactics to collect millions of dollars from hundreds of thousands of customers.
College debts are one of the largest financial burdens for Americans. They make up the second highest type of household debt after mortgages, totaling $1.61 trillion. That’s about $37,000 per borrower. High balances with payoff times that lasts into middle age force graduates to delay other financial goals.
An analysis of real estate buyer agent commission rates on 17,805 home sales in several dozen cities throughout the U.S. found a high degree of uniformity among these rates. A new report – “Real Estate Commission Rates in 35 Cities: Uniformity and Variation” – released by the Consumer Federation of America offers details.
Intuit has agreed to a $141 million settlement to resolve allegations by 51 attorneys general that it deceptively advertised its “free” online TurboTax products. Although 70 percent of taxpayers qualify for the IRS Free File Program, operated by Intuit and others, less than 3 percent of taxpayers used it to file their returns in 2020.
MoneyGram, one of the largest money transfer companies in the U.S., held up funds and withheld refunds, the CFPB and New York Attorney General’s Office allege in a lawsuit. The company repeatedly violated consumer laws when it failed to deliver funds promptly to recipients abroad.
The Warrior Trading day trading investment scheme is being ordered by the FTC to stop making unrealistic claims of big gains to consumers. It alleges that the company and its CEO used those claims to convince consumers to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for a system that failed for most customers.
Some large banks have announced they’re eliminating non-sufficient fund or NSF fees on their checking accounts. It’s a positive development, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said. These changes mean consumers will pay about 50 percent less in fees each year, an annual savings of about $1 billion.
Intuit Inc., the maker of the TurboTax tax filing software, is being charged with deceiving consumers with bogus advertisements pitching “free” tax filing that millions of consumers can’t use. The FTC also filed a federal district court lawsuit asking a court to order Intuit to halt its deceptive advertising immediately.
