Borrowers stuck with oppressive private student loan debts continue to get little mercy from lenders, which is bad for both consumers and the financial institutions, according to a report issued Thursday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. While distressed mortgage holders have several opportunities to appeal for lower monthly payments, and federal [Keep reading]
Consumers lured by M&T Bank’s free checking account marketing campaign were misled, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Thursday. Customers who thought their accounts were fee-free were switched into fee-based accounts without their permission, costing $5-$14 monthly, the bureau said. The CFPB ordered the bank to refund $2.9 million to [Keep reading]
It’s one of the more cynical gotchas consumers face, and finally, a big mobile phone company is paying the price. AT&T has agreed to pay $105 million to settle charges that it enabled, and profited from, massive phone bill cramming. In cramming, consumers unknowingly signed up for useless text-message [Keep reading]
Harassment is rampant in the restaurant industry, according to a report published today by a pro-worker non-profit group. Anyone who’s ever worked in the service industry knows this: If you want cooks to take care of your orders, you have kiss up to them. If you want better tables, you [Keep reading]
It sounds like science fiction. A lender sitting in an office who wants a payment clicks a button on a screen, and suddenly, the borrower’s car is disabled on the side of the road. “Pay now or you’ll never drive again,” is the clear message. It’s not a movie script. Car “ignition [Keep reading]
At-risk homeowners trying save their homes from foreclosure during the mortgage meltdown complained for years that banks were systematically stonewalling them. On Monday, federal regulators accused a financial institution of doing just that, alleging that Michigan-based Flagstar Bank intentionally frustrated homeowners and pushed some into foreclosure. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau [Keep reading]
Jennifer’s paystub is downright depressing. It’s bad enough that she earns less than $11 an hour as a single mom in Wisconsin. Her gross pay of roughly $800 every two weeks would challenge anyone trying to run a household, but that’s not the half of it. Jennifer is one of [Keep reading]
The Samaritan Center in Jefferson City, Missouri cares for the poor by providing groceries, free medical and dental care, Christmas gifts and Halloween costumes for kids….and lawyers to fight off debt collectors. It might seem strange that what started as a food bank for that state’s capital city has turned into a [Keep reading]
The phone calls just won’t stop. They begin 8:31 a.m. and end at 8:29 p.m. Alicia Figluizzi has been hounded by debt collectors for months. And every interruption, every menacing call, is a call for the wrong person. Those who call are looking for a woman named “Shaunda.” The calls [Keep reading]
I’m writing an ongoing series called the “Debt Collection Files” for Credit.com. Have you been hassled by a debt collector for a bill you didn’t owe? Tell me your story at Bob @ BobSullivan.net and I might feature it. Here’s a taste of the latest piece. You can read the [Keep reading]
Bob Sullivan