Complain about a product or service

How to Fight Rising Food Costs

No doubt about it: food costs are rising nearly as fast as gas prices. But, just as there are ways to cut back on fuel expenses, there are steps you can take to keep a lid on your family's good budget.

The most important is planning ahead, our Lisa Wade McCormick reports. She has plenty of other tips that will keep your budget -- and waistline -- under control. Read more ...

Latest News & Safety Recalls

Featured stories

Gateway at Risk in BlueHippo Class Action

BlueHippo has something new to be blue about. A judge in a class action lawsuit against the computer layaway company has ruled that Gateway, which exclusively provided computers to the company for years, can be named as a defendant in the action.

A Gateway executive admitted in a magazine interview that the company was familiar with BlueHippo's practices but was "trying to make a profit" and thus was slow to distance itself from the layaway company, which is accused of failing to deliver computers to thousands of consumers. Read more ...

Lifelock Sales Surge Despite Critics

Almost 1 million consumers have signed up for LifeLock, which promises to protect their credit and identity. But in the midst of three lawsuits against the company, consumer advocates say LifeLock customers are wasting their money while the company's founder insists it is the best way for consumers to protect themselves.

LifeLock's co-founder and chief executive officer, Todd Davis, is so confident in the product that he shares his own Social Security number in the company's many TV, radio and print ads. Read more ...

Retailers Gloss Over Diversions of Professional Hair Care Products

Consumers who buy professional hair care products at major retailers -- or at grocery and drug stores -- are not getting the bargains they may think. They're also fueling a grey-market industry that deals in counterfeit, stolen, or outdated merchandise.

That's the warning issued by hair care giants like Paul Mitchell, Redken, and Matrix, who are trying to crack down on this industry-wide problem known as diversion. It's a problem that is not only costly to the image of hair care makers. Consumers also pay a hefty price. Read more ...

FCC Caves to Lobbyists, Loosens Digital TV Rules

A little-noticed order published by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last week could have long-range effects for the upcoming transition to digital television (DTV).

After heavy lobbying by the electronics and retail industries, the FCC agreed to limit the number of devices that would require stickers notifying customers that they would need converter set-top boxes to ensure that they could continue to receive television signals over the air. Read more ...

Safety Agency Waits 16 Months to Recall Lead-Laden Key Chains

An Ohio professor says it took the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), 16 months to recall "Hip Charm" key chains with an alarming level of lead, the Cleveland Plain-Dealer reported.

An untold number of children may have ingested lead, which can harm brain development and death, during that lag time. It's the latest black eye for the beleagured agency. The professor documented the problem with the key chains and supplied extensive supporting evidence to the CPSC, which did not act until the Illinois Attorney General discovered the problem and reported it. Read more ...

Graphics by Marisa Lisante. Photos, unless otherwise noted, by iStock.

Who We Are

ConsumerAffairs.com is a private, non-govermental entity that empowers consumers by providing a forum for their complaints and a means for them to be contacted by lawyers if their complaints have legal merit. Your complaints and comments may be published, shared with the news media and reviewed by attorneys at no cost to you. See the FAQ for more information.