Posted on October - 28 - 2010
Verizon Wireless agreed to refund at least $52.8 million to customers and pay a record $25 million to the federal government, ending an investigation into “mystery fees” charged to consumers, federal regulators said Thursday.
The Federal Communications Commission said it was the largest settlement it’s ever reached.
About 15 million customers will get refunds and Verizon Wireless, the nation’s largest wireless carrier, will ensure the fees don’t recur, the FCC said.
“We accept responsibility for those errors, and apologize to our customers who received accidental data charges on their bills,” the company said.
Earlier this month, Verizon Wireless acknowledged it erroneously charged about 15 million customers for mobile Internet use.
Full Post…
Posted on August - 16 - 2010
Private transfer fees would practically be banned under a new rule proposed by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) that would prohibit Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from backing mortgages that feature them. Such covenants require the buyer and/or seller to pay a fee to the original developer, a home association or other party each time the property is resold. Since Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guarantee the vast majority of U.S. mortgages, such a ban would effectively eliminate such covenants from all but the highest end of the U.S. real estate market. The FHA recently indicated that transfer fee covenants are a violation of its own rules. Together with government-supported entities (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the three entities presently back about 95 percent of all U.S. mortgages.
Adverse effects cited
“The private transfer fee covenants appear to run counter to the important mission of the housing GSEs to increase liquidity, affordability and stability in the nation’s housing finance system,” said FHFA Acting Director Edward J. DeMarco. Full Post…
Posted on February - 18 - 2010
In a move that will likely be replicated by its competitors, Citibank has begun charging annual fees on some credit card users. The new annual fee, according to a source who has received notice, is $60 and can be credited back if enough money is spent on the card over the course of a year.
This new development is likely a beta-test in which a range of customers will be slapped with a range of fees and terms. Once Citi is able to guage customer reaction, they may initiate these fees on a broader scale or drop the endeavor altogether. Unfortunately, figuring out Citi’s moves is never an easy task.
Charging an annual fee to customers who use their cards infrequently may be a larger trend this year-and one with consequences. Consumers who do not wish to pay annual fees will likely opt to close their accounts which can, in many circumstances, adversely affect their credit scores. Thus, just as the interest rate increases of 2009 took many excellent credit scores down a few notches, the imposition of annual fees may inflict even more damage, as the CARD Act leads banks to take actions that are essentially making America a subprime country.
