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Consumer News & Alerts

October 29, 2007

By Martin H. Bosworth
ConsumerAffairs.com

PARENTS BASH BUMBO RECALL
Last week's "recall" of about 1 million South African-made Bumbo "baby sitter" seats has parents fuming. That's because -- like so many safety recalls -- it isn't a recall at all. It's just an offer to send parents a little warning label they can put on the baby seat. The sticker cautions parents not to leave their child unattended and to use the seat only at ground level -- which in itself is good advice, since at least three skull fractures have been reported so far. But some parents say the seats are not safe even when used on the floor.

Then there's the who question of just how effective these supposed "recalls" really are. In just a few minutes of Web surfing, we found the Bumbo for sale on eBay -- where you can find just about any recalled product -- and all kinds of sites catering to babies and their parents.

More recall news...

• New Jersey Finds Recalled Burgers Still Being Sold Florida firm recalls beef bound for prisons.

• Mattel Recalls More Chinese Made Toys 'Go Diego Go' toy contains too much lead paint.

Complete list of the week's recalls:

• Fisher-Price 'Go Diego Go' Boat Toys
• Bumbo Baby Sitter Seats
• Dollar Tree Children's Jewelry
• WeGlow Shrek, Spiderman Metal Jewelry
• Family Dollar Stores Halloween Pails
• Football Bobble Head Cake Decorations
• Jo-Ann Stores 'Robbie Ducky' Toy Garden Tools
• Britax Child Safety Seats
• Disney 'Cars' Backpacks Sold at Target
• Reynolds UL Bicycle Forks
• Cybex Treadmills Recalled Again
• Line Ski Boards
• Home Automation Security Receivers
• Kawasaki Power Tool Kit Battery Chargers

MONEY MARKET FUNDS: SAFE INVESTMENT OR A SUCKER BET?
In a turbulent economy, it's tough to figure out the safest place to store your bucks so that they can grow and provide you a good return. Until recently, money market funds were as "plain vanilla" an investment as you could imagine--conservative, predictable, and guaranteed. But not any more. As attorney and consumer expert Joan Lisante reports, the subprime mortgage meltdown is causing shaken fund investors to pull back, leading certain kinds of money market funds to greater loss exposure. Joan explains the differences between mutual fund categories, and what you can do to make sure your money stays safe.

More financial and real estate news...

• Existing Home Sales Crater In September Sales plunged 8 percent as subprime meltdown worsened.

• Congress Takes Aim at Lenders Barney Frank's bill would allow embattled homeowners to sue their mortgage lenders.

• Countrywide Tries to Stem Foreclosures Lender throws lifeline to homeowners facing rate boosts.

JUMPIN' JEEPS!
Despite continuing complaints from Jeep owners that the Grand Cherokee and Commander models accelerate unexpectedly and without reason, the National Highway Safety Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says it finds no evidence of a manufacturing defect. But as Joe Benton reports, angry Jeep owners are still finding themselves crashing into people, places and things, all with no explanation or help from Chrysler or the feds.

More automotive news...

• GM Hangs on as World's No. 1 Automaker Toyota tussles with environmentalists, loses key Consumer Reports endorsement.

VERIZON LIMITS ITS "UNLIMITED" CLAIMS
ConsumerAffairs.com reported in 2006 that our test of Verizon Wireless "unlimited" broadband service was more limited than expected. Verizon canceled our account, saying we'd used too much of the "unlimited" service, which is a little hard to figure out. But now, in a court settlement, the company has agreed to pay $1 million to customers who were wrongfully terminated and to stop making baseless claims.

More technology and Internet news...

• Sprint Will Unlock California Phones A miracle! Customers will be able to use their phones with other carriers.

• AT&T Charging Fire Victims For Toasted Satellite Dish San Diego couple didn't grab their dish as they evacuated. Hey, don't laugh, AT&T's serious.

• Ditto DirecTV AT&T's not the only telecom company that turns a blind eye to its subscribers' misfortune. Debra of Hickory Hills, Illinois, had a similar experience with DirecTV after her house was destroyed by fire.

• FTC Vows Not To Purge Numbers from Do Not Call List Agency backtracks, says consumers won't need to reregister.

• Study Draws New Conclusions About Identity Thieves Strangers are most common victims; women often the offenders.

NEW YORK WOMEN SUE "IT'S JUST LUNCH"
We hear a lot about "It's Just Lunch," the dating service that our readers say charges big bucks but often functions as a mismatchmaker. Now a group of angry New York women have sued, claiming they forked over as much as $1500, just to meet guys they'd prefer to never see again.

TJX VICTIM LIST REACHES 94 MILLION
The biggest data breach of all time just got a lot bigger. New court filings in a lawsuit against the TJX company revealed that as many as 94 million Visa and MasterCard account holders were exposed when hackers broke into the company's database. Visa officials estimated fraud losses from the breach at anywhere from $65 to $83 million, and the numbers will continue to increase as the stolen accounts make their way through the black market.

More scams and outrages...

• California Wildfires Aftermath Requires Vigilance Price-gouging, crooked contractors, insurance chiseling often follow disasters

• ‘Cramming’ Defendant Settles Federal Charges Case involves millions in bogus collect call charges.

• HR Firm Administaff Loses Laptop Data on 159,000 employees missing.

• Court Upholds Gift Card Rules Mall operator challenged Connecticut's ban on gift card dormancy fees.

• New Hampshire Charges Ameriprise with Fraud Company faces penalties, restitution of $10 million.

• Missouri Scalping Crackdown Gets Results Online scalpers buy out entire concerts in some cases.

• Travel Scam Hits Southern Arizona Scammers sell card that supposedly reaps big travel benefits.

MENU FOODS WILL TEST CAT FOOD
After our Lisa Wade McCormick reported that an investigation into a reader's sick cats led to traces of acetaminophen being found in their food, Menu Foods has agreed to test its Special Kitty meal for traces of the painkiller. Pet owner Carol, whose own investigation led her to get her cats' food tested, is happy with the news but wants more answers--and assurances that the food is off the market and won't harm any other pets.

NUTRISYSTEM DAY 28: TIME FOR DESSERT
28 days, 13 pounds, and $460 later, Joseph Enoch is at the end of his month-long test of the NutriSystem diet plan. While he's healthy, happy, and largely satisfied, he also found the diet plan came with its own set of problems. In Joe's wrap-up report, he looks back on the experience and vows he'll try to keep the weight off using what he's learned about nutrition.

More health and safety news...

• Fall’s Shorter Days Can Trigger Seasonal Affective Disorder Is it the 'winter blues' or something more serious?

• Daylight Savings Time Disrupts Circadian Rhythm Study finds humans don't adjust well to the annual time change.

• Kids Spending More Time Playing Video Games Boys spend more time, gravitate towards console-based games.

• World Not Ready For Bird Flu Not if but when, United Nations official warns.

• Americans Too Stressed Out, Poll Finds Money, work, housing crisis taking their toll.

• Kroger Agrees to Curb Tobacco Sales to Minors Retailer folds to multi-state enforcement effort.

• Viral Infections May Promote Obesity Researchers identify viruses linked to obesity in humans, animals.

• Home Lead Test Kits Unreliable, Feds Warn CPSC finds high incidence of false negatives and positives.

• Kids' Cough & Cold Remedies Under Fire FDA panel finds 'no reason' to give toddlers over-the-counter cold meds.

• Thinking Positive Does Little To Help Cancer Survival Study found no link between depression and mortality.

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