Home / consumerist.com rss archive / September-22-2007


Chinese Poison Train: Cancer Foundation Recalls 200,000 Bracelets Contaminated With Lead
The Friends of Mel Foundation recalled 200,000 beaded bracelets contaminated with lead on news that a 9-year-old fell ill after putting the lead-ridden bracelet in his mouth. Proceeds from the bracelets generated over $1 million that went towards cancer research. From the Boston Globe:Independent lab tests conducted on various bracelets by Massachusetts Materials Research Inc. showed that the multicolored beads in the Friends of Mel's bracelets contain no lead but that the small silver-toned rings connecting the beads have a high lead content. The beads are from China and Turkey and the small rings are from China, Herskovitz said.Friends of Mel said the foundation was misled by a Chinese supplier, Ningbo Metal Manufacturing, which had promised in writing before signing a contract that the silver-toned rings did not contain lead. Ningbo could not be reached for comment late yesterday evening.The circumstances surrounding the recall cast a dour light on a proposal from Consumer...

Above And Beyond: BOSE: Customer Service Never Sounded So Sweet
I wanted to acknowledge something I thought was very cool. I purchased a pair of BOSE TriPort IE headphones about ($99) a year ago. The Silicone earbuds are interchangeable for different sized ear canals. After some use the earbuds fall off quite easily, and rip. I chalked it up to my frequent use and was planning on buying replacements.In my mailbox last week BOSE sent me a package. Inside was a set of 3 replacement silicone earbuds, they sent these to me unsolicited. They explained that consumer feedback had prompted them to do this, and since I purchased them at the BOSE store they had my info.They also mentioned they were sending an accessory kit later this year to deal with the exercise market, making it a better experience to use the earphones while exercising. I wanted to give they a big THANK YOU, this is rare and I wanted to let them know I will be a repeat customer.Why don't other companies get this?Why not indeed. BOSE did everything right. Not only did they respond...

News From The Swamp: Senate Commerce Committee To Decide Fate Of Internet Tax Moratorium
The Senate Commerce Committee is poised to extend the internet tax moratorium by the end of next week. The moratorium prevents states and localities from taxing internet access, but will expire on November 1 unless Congress acts. There are two competing proposals that pit state legislatures and the National Governors Association against Google and Verizon.State legislatures and Governors have spent the past decade salivating over the potential revenues that could come with taxing internet access, estimated to be worth approximately $120 million. Two former Governors, Senators Carper (D-DE) and Alexander (R-TN), introduced a proposal in May, S. 1453, that would extend the ban for four years, but would permit states to collect taxes on internet access levied before the imposition of the moratorium in 1998.Competing against the Carper-Alexander proposal is S. 156, introduced by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR). The Wyden proposal would extend the tax moratorium indefinitely, and has attracted...

News From The Swamp: Senate Commerce Committee To Decided Fate Of Internet Tax Moratorium
The Senate Commerce Committee is poised to extend the internet tax moratorium by the end of next week. The moratorium prevents states and localities from taxing internet access, but will expire on November 1 unless Congress acts. There are two competing proposals that pit state legislatures and the National Governors Association against Google and Verizon.State legislatures and Governors have spent the past decade salivating over the potential revenues that could come with taxing internet access, estimated to be worth approximately $120 million. Two former Governors, Senators Carper (D-DE) and Alexander (R-TN), introduced a proposal in May, S. 1453, that would extend the ban for four years, but would permit states to collect taxes on internet access levied before the imposition of the moratorium in 1998.Competing against the Carper-Alexander proposal is S. 156, introduced by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR). The Wyden proposal would extend the tax moratorium indefinitely, and has attracted...

Recalls: 1 Million Cribs Recalled After 2 Deaths
About 1 million Simplicity cribs were recalled yesterday due to several deaths related to a defect which can cause children to become trapped and suffocate. Apparently, the drop-side can detach from the crib, which can create a dangerous gap and lead to entrapment and suffocation. The Simplicity models included in the recall are: Aspen 3 in 1, Aspen 4 in 1, Nursery-in-a-Box, Crib N Changer Combo, Chelsea and Pooh 4 in 1. The recall also involves the following Simplicity cribs that used the Graco logo: Aspen 3 in 1, Ultra 3 in 1, Ultra 4 in1, Ultra 5 in 1, Whitney and the Trio.The cribs were sold from 1998 to May 2007. According to the New York Times, some of the older recalled cribs feature Winne-the-Pooh, but Disney no longer licenses its characters with Simplicity. The cribs were made in China and sold at Target and Walmart among other retailers. This isn't the first recall for Simplicity, they've been subject to 4 recalls since 2005, according to the NYT. "Simplicity builds...

A New Hope: Old Navy Hires Todd Oldham As Creative Director
Todd Oldham has a new job: Fixing Old Navy. According to the New York Times, Todd has been hired to attract shoppers in their 20's, a group Old Navy has identified as their target market after years of "trying to be all things to all people."Old Navy is bigger than Gap or Banana Republic, but is struggling just the same. The NYT says: Mr. Oldham, a former couture designer, has largely left the fashion industry, instead favoring home dcor and furniture.Now, Ms. Roberston said, he wants to return to clothing, but ensure his designs reach a broad audience. Old Navy, with sales of nearly $7 billion, is bigger than its corporate siblings, Gap and Banana Republic.Ms. Robertson said Mr. Oldham's clothing for Old Navy would be "modern and relevant," adding that "it will be an important part of our turnaround." So, can Todd Oldham fix Old Navy? Todd Oldham's New Assignment: Old Navy [NYT](Photo:cmorran123)

Lawsuits: TJ Maxx Settles Class Action Lawsuits
TJ Maxx has announced that it has settled class action lawsuits stemming from the notorious data breach that affected 45 million credit and debit cards. The exact numbers are not known, but the AP has a few details:The announcement did not specify the settlement cost, but noted that its estimated costs were included in a $107 million reserve included in its second-quarter report for fiscal 2008 and its estimate of $21 million in costs expected in fiscal 2009. The $107 million figure includes costs from other lawsuits not included in the customer class actions, the Framingham-based company said.The settlement also includes Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bancorp, which processed some payment card transactions for TJX and was named in some of the customer lawsuits.TJX said it denied the allegations in the customer lawsuits. It concluded that more legal action would be time-consuming and expensive."We deeply regret any inconvenience our customers may have experienced as a result of...

Complaints: Cellphone Battery Designed To Fail At First Drop Of Water?
Does one of the LG cellphone batteries have a sensor on it to cause cellphone failure after the first touch of water? Even though no significant amount of water has penetrated the actual battery or cellphone itself. That's what Tim wonders after conducting a little experiment and paper hack following dropping his cell phone into a tiny bit of coffee.I recently dropped my cell phone into the last sip of coffee I had in my cup, so I know the liquid didn't penetrate to any meaningful hardware, especially considering I plucked it out immediately. Stickers, on both the inside of the battery casing (on the phone) and the battery itself, were pink/red when I opened the battery cover, however, very little moisture was present. 5 minutes later my phone turned itself off and I wasn't able to turn it back on until I plugged it into my charger at the end of the day. The phone blinked the 'Charge Complete' signal to me almost immediately, but when I unplugged it from the charger it immediatel...

Arms: The Optimal Mortgage For The Rational Borrower
Two professors have released a paper branding adjustable rate mortgages, which are responsible for the subprime meltdown, as the optimal mortgage type for rational borrowers. As we know all too well, few borrowers are rational, in the economic sense. According to Columbia professor Tomasz Piskorski and NYU professor Alexei Tchistyi, ARMs hold several unrivaled advantages:•The option to pay less than the minimum monthly interest owed on the loan is valuable for people with good self-control whose income fluctuates a lot. They can pay just a little in lean months and catch up in fat months. It's good for lenders, too, because they don't have to foreclose on people who fall behind, which is an expensive process. People with steady incomes don't need this feature, but having it doesn't hurt them.•The fact that the loan is an ARM--namely, its rate fluctuates with market interest rates--is especially valuable to lenders. This is a subtler notion, but the idea is...

Subprime Meltdown: Credit Card Companies Slashing Credit Limits
The continuing subprime meltdown is leading jittery creditors to reduce cardholder credit limits at the first sign of trouble. According to a recent survey, up to 75% of banks are cutting credit limits to minimize their exposure to risk. The move can adversely affect credit scores, which are determined by considering the percentage of available credit used. From the Chicago Tribune:A change can stem from late payments of any kind, a drop in your credit score or the addition of new lines of credit. Bryan found out limits on three cards were actually cut after he took out a home equity loan to pay off some debt."Taking out the home equity loan may have possibly been the factor that lowered the credit line," Bryan said.Consumer advocates say lowering limits is a better way to manage risk than hiking interest rates, but these cuts can lead to trouble if you are not aware and prepared."If you don't know your credit line has been dropped, you could go over the limit. And, with most...

News From The Swamp: As promised, the powerful Chairman of the ...
As promised, the powerful Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee has introduced H.R 3610, the Food and Drug Import Safety Act of 2007. The bill substantively resembles the draft circulated in August, but still needs a better title - we suggest: "The Poison-Free Food Act." Chairman Dingell is wasting no time, and has scheduled a hearing on the bill for next Wednesday.

Flowers: FTD.com: Sorry, We're All Out Of Roses
Online florist FTD.com, "the world's oldest floral services organization," told reader Sean that they were out of roses. Sean had ordered a flower arrangement for his wife to celebrate their sixth anniversary. When he presciently called on the day of the anniversary to verify that his order had been received and processed, Sean was told that his flowers were not available, but not to worry, since FTD still had five minutes to deliver his arrangement. Puzzled, Sean instead tried to order a simple bouquet of roses. He writes:Don't buy from FTD Flowers aka FTD.Com. Sept 19th was my 6th anniversary and decided to surprise my wife at work with a beautiful arrangement of roses. I order flowers online before their cutoff time. I pay the near $100 and go my merry way. I was on my way to work several hours later when I decided maybe I should call the FTD toll free line and verify everything is correct. So I call FTD Customer Service and give them my order number and was advised by the...