Don’t fall for fake check scams – National Consumers League

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If someone you don’t know wants to pay you by check but wants you to wire some of the money back, beware! It’s a scam that could cost you thousands of dollars.

  • There are many variations of the fake check scam. It could start with someone offering to buy something you advertised, pay you to do work at home, give you an “advance” on a sweepstakes you’ve supposedly won, or pay the first installment on the millions that you’ll receive for agreeing to have money in a foreign country transferred to your bank account for safekeeping. Whatever the pitch, the person may sound quite believable.
  • Fake check scammers hunt for victims. They scan newspaper and online advertisements for people listing items for sale, and check postings on online job sites from people seeking employment. They place their own ads with phone numbers or email addresses for people to contact them. And they call or send emails or faxes to people randomly, knowing that some will take the bait.
  • They often claim to be in another country. The scammers say it’s too difficult and complicated to send you the money directly from their country, so they’ll arrange for someone in the U.S. to send you a check.
  • They tell you to wire money to them after you’ve deposited the check. If you’re selling something, they say they’ll pay you by having someone in the U.S. who owes them money send you a check. It will be for more than the sale price; you deposit the check, keep what you’re owed, and wire the rest to them. If it’s part of a work-at-home scheme, they may claim that you’ll be processing checks from their “clients.” You deposit the checks and then wire them the money minus your “pay.” Or they may send you a check for more than your pay “by mistake” and ask you to wire them the excess. In the sweepstakes and foreign money offer variations of the scam, they tell you to wire them money for taxes, customs, bonding, processing, legal fees, or other expenses that must be paid before you can get the rest of the money.
  • The checks are fake but they look real. In fact, they look so real that even bank tellers may be fooled. Some are phony cashiers checks, others look like they’re from legitimate business accounts. The companies whose names appear may be real, but someone has dummied up the checks without their knowledge.
  • You don’t have to wait long to use the money, but that doesn’t mean the check is good. Under federal law, banks have to make the funds you deposit available quickly – usually within one to five days, depending on the type of check. But just because you can withdraw the money doesn’t mean the check is good, even if it’s a cashier’s check. It can take weeks for the forgery to be discovered and the check to bounce.
  • You are responsible for the checks you deposit. That’s because you’re in the best position to determine the risk – you’re the one dealing directly with the person who is arranging for the check to be sent to you. When a check bounces, the bank deducts the amount that was originally credited to your account. If there isn’t enough to cover it, the bank may be able to take money from other accounts you have at that institution, or sue you to recover the funds. In some cases, law enforcement authorities could bring charges against the victims because it may look like they were involved in the scam and knew the check was counterfeit.
  • There is no legitimate reason for someone who is giving you money to ask you to wire money back. If a stranger wants to pay you for something, insist on a cashiers check for the exact amount, preferably from a local bank or a bank that has a branch in your area.
  • Don’t deposit it – report it! Report fake check scams to NCL’s Fraud Center, at www.fraud.org. That information will be transmitted to the appropriate law enforcement agencies.

Check out NCL’s new brochure.

Consumer group sues General Mills for deceptive claims on Cheerios – National Consumers League

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September 10, 2009

Contact: 202-835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC, September 10, 2009—The nation’s pioneering consumer organization, the National Consumers League (NCL), is taking cereal giant General Mills to court for claiming that eating its cereal, Cheerios®, would reduce total and “bad” cholesterol. The NCL filed its case in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on August 20, 2009.

NCL is suing under the DC “private Attorney General” statute, alleging that General Mills falsely represented that Cheerios possessed drug-like anti-cholesterol properties without being approved as a drug by the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”).  On the packaging, the cereal company claimed “Cheerios is … clinically proven to lower cholesterol.  A clinical study showed that eating two 11/2 cup servings daily of Cheerios cereal reduced bad cholesterol when eaten as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol.”

Earlier this year, in response to a letter sent by NCL, the FDA notified General Mills that at least some of Defendant’s health benefit claims violated the Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act.  The FDA issued a cease-and-desist letter stating that the health claims “exceed those permitted for products that have not obtained FDA approval for marketing as a drug.”

“Putting a stop to false and deceptive advertising is a cornerstone of consumer protection,” said the NCL’s Executive Director Sally Greenberg. “In this case, General Mills has really gone overboard with these claims about Cheerios’ drug-like anti-cholesterol properties. They should know better, and we hope the action we’ve taken will deter such exaggerated claims in the future.”

Headquartered in the District of Columbia, the NCL filed its case under the District of Columbia Consumer Protection Procedures Act, DC Code Section 28-3901 et seq. which makes it an “unlawful trade practice …whether or not any consumer is in fact misled, deceived or damaged thereby,” to “represent that goods or services have a source, sponsorship, approval, certification, accessories, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits or quantities that they do not have.”

The NCL is represented by Finkelstein Thompson LLP, a firm with extensive experience in the field of consumer protection law.  The National Consumers League has represented the interests of consumers and workers since 1899, and throughout its history has worked to combat false and deceptive advertising, particularly in foods products.

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

The Great Unfinished Business of our Society – National Consumers League

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Last night, the President *addressed Congress and the American people to discuss the issue of health reform, address the misinformation that has circulated this summer, and remind us what this fight is all about … the people.

As the President spoke last night, he walked us through the “history of our progress,” which includes battles to enact Social Security and Medicare.  President Obama reminded us that the “concern and regard for the plight of others … is part of the American character.”  Quoting from a letter from the late Senator Kennedy, President Obama said that health reform is the “great unfinished business of our society,” which “concerns more than material things.”

According to the President, the consequences of doing nothing will include a growing deficit, a rise in bankruptcy and an increase in the loss of coverage among American families, more Americans will see their health deteriorate, and many businesses will be forced to close.

The President called for a health reform plan that:

  • gives coverage to those who do not have it
  • gives Americans the benefits they are promised
  • promotes choice and competition
  • holds insurance companies accountable
  • improves efficiency and quality
  • prohibits discrimination
  • prohibits caps on benefits
  • limits the amount of out-of-pockets expenses American families face
  • requires preventive services be provided at no extra cost

The President also said, “if you misrepresent what’s in this plan, we will call you out.”  This is great news for the American people, who will benefit from a truthful and meaningful debate.

As the President said, again quoting from the late Senator Kennedy, “at stake are not just the details of policy, but fundamental principles of social justice and the character of our country.”   We are hopeful that we can keep this debate centered on you, the American people.

 

*Links are no longer active as the original sources have removed the content, sometimes due to federal website changes or restructurings.

National Consumers League launching 2009-2010 LifeSmarts year – National Consumers League

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September 9, 2009

National teen consumer initiative kicks off for new academic year with new resources and supporters for biggest year yet

Contact: 202-835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, D.C.—The National Consumers League announced the start of the 2009-2010 LifeSmarts season, with a new competition year beginning Sept. 14 at the program’s online home, www.lifesmarts.org, along with a variety of new resources for state coordinators, educators, and youth. LifeSmarts is an educational competition that tests middle school and high school students nationwide on real-life consumer issues through online quizzes and live contests. While the competition formally begins Sept. 14, students and coaches may register online and begin taking practice quizzes and downloading resources today.

“We’re thrilled to be launching the 16th year of LifeSmarts,” said Program Director Lisa Hertzberg. “This program delivers real-world knowledge to students and then allows them to shine in competitions where they demonstrate all that they have learned,” said Hertzberg. In its first 15 years, LifeSmarts has steadily grown in numbers of student and adult participants, state partnerships, and corporate sponsorships. “Most importantly, the breadth and depth of the program’s content has continued to evolve, too” said Hertzberg. “We’re proud to be preparing our teens and tweens to become the next generation of smart consumers and workers” she added.

Each year, thousands of students answer millions of questions on consumer issues ranging from personal finance and health and safety to the environment, technology, and consumer rights and responsibilities. Starting online each fall, the competition progresses to live state play-offs, and then builds to a high-spirited National Championship, which will be held in 2010 in Miami Beach, FL. At last year’s national competition held in St. Louis, MO, students on the state champion team from Oconto High School in Wisconsin were crowned the 2009 national champs.

NCL partners with coordinators in 30 states, including Better Business Bureaus, credit unions, state attorneys general and consumer protection agencies, State FCCLA organizations, Jump$tart Coalitions, and others, to staff and promote the program. Interested students and adults can visit the LifeSmarts Web site to connect with the program in their state.

“The National Consumers League’s mission is to inspire confidence and safety in the marketplace,” said Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director. “The LifeSmarts program, our consumer education initiative for youth, gives students the tools to make smart decisions and feel confident about their place in today’s fast-paced marketplace.”

New this fall at www.lifesmarts.org are dozens of up-to-the-minute teaching resources for coaches, including innovative personal finance lessons made possible by an unrestricted educational grant from Visa. Other major LifeSmarts contributors include Experian, American Century Investments, American Express, Bridgestone/Firestone, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, Monsanto, NextGen Web, Procter & Gamble, Toyota Financial Services, Toys“R”Us, Vreizon, and Western Union.  To see a full list of current LifeSmarts contributors, visit www.lifesmarts.org. To test your LifeSmarts abilities, take a sample quiz at https://start.lifesmarts.org/. From there, click on “Daily Quiz” to get started.

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About the National Consumers League and LifeSmarts

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

LifeSmarts is a program of the National Consumers League. State coordinators run the programs on a volunteer basis. For more information, visit: www.lifesmarts.org, email lifesmarts@nclnet.org, or call the National Consumers League’s communications department at 202-835-3323.

Landscaping and Lawn Care Dangers for Teen Workers – National Consumers League

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By Lauren Perez, NCL Intern

The last in our five-part series about the 2009 Five Worst Job for Teens

As summer is winding to a close, we’ll take a look at the last job on NCL’s *2009 Five Worst Jobs for Teens: landscaping or lawn care, which can include many hazards, ranging from driving to using heavy equipment, exposure to heat and working dangerously unsupervised. Working outside increases a worker’s risk of heat stress, which occurs when *the body is unable to cool itself by sweating. Heat stress can lead to heat exhaustion or heat stroke and can eventually lead even to death. Warning signs includes headaches, dizziness, lightheadedness, weakness and moist skin, confusion, vomiting, dry, hot skin with no sweating, and seizures or convulsions. Heat stress can be prevented by monitoring oneself and others for symptoms, using cooling fans/air-conditioning; rest regularly, drinking lots of water and wearing lightweight, light colored, loose-fitting clothes.

Youth workers in landscaping and grounds keeping also face many of the same hazards of working with machinery as youth in agriculture. A 16-year-old landscape laborer was killed when he was pinned underneath *the front-end loader he was driving. The worker and his supervisor had been trimming and removing trees from a residential property and were returning their equipment into storage. The worker lost control of the front-end loader, causing it to rollover. The equipment did not have a rollover protection system and the worker had not been trained in using the equipment. According to The Fair Labor Standards Act, employed youths under the age of 16 may not operate *“power driving hoisting apparatuses” in nonagricultural jobs.

Young workers in the landscaping and lawn care industry need to be aware of how to protect themselves from heat, pesticides, electrical hazards, noise, cuts, and operating or driving heavy equipment. *Youth over the age of 16 may operate power mowers, chain saws, wood chippers, and trimmers. They may not drive ATVs or tractors for non-agricultural labor if the equipment is used for transporting passengers.

Both teens and their parents should think carefully when choosing a job. Parents and teens need to be aware of potential dangers such as working with equipment or in extreme heat. Youth workers should never hesitate to ask for more training. Young workers and their employers need to be aware of labor laws and it’s up to good employers to abide by them. Being employed can be a safe and rewarding experience for teens and provide them with skills they will use in future jobs, but it’s important that everyone work together to ensure safe working environments for all.

 

 

*Links are no longer active as the original sources have removed the content, sometimes due to federal website changes or restructurings.

Labor Day Reflections – National Consumers League

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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director

As we observe Labor Day today, Monday, September 7, it’s interesting to think back on the work of NCL’s founders. In 1899 a group of women associated with the Hull House social settlement and led by Hull House member Florence Kelley established the advocacy group, the National Consumers League (NCL). Kelley’s objective as head of NCL was focused on improving the pay and working conditions of those who toiled in sweatshops and factories, and most important, getting children out of the workplace and into schools. Kelley traveled the country lecturing on working conditions in the United States. She also initiated the NCL White Label, and employers whose labor practices met with the NCL’s approval for fairness and safety were granted the right to display it.

NCL’s constitution stipulated that it was “concerned that goods be produced and distributed at reasonable prices and in adequate quantity, but under fair, safe, and healthy working conditions that foster quality products for consumers and a decent standard of living for workers.” By any measure, Kelley’s work advanced the interests of children and workers enormously.

I believe that Florence Kelley would applaud NCL’s being part of a coalition of unions, environmental and religious groups this Labor Day that are renewing a call on the world’s largest retailer and private employer, Wal-Mart, to use its power in the marketplace – as a corporate citizen and employer – for the good of workers and communities. Leading the charge is the United Food and Commercial Workers, which also runs the “WakeUpWal-Mart.com”. UFCW holds a seat on the NCL Board.

As UFCW has observed,

“Nobody wants an economy where workers earn wages that can’t support a family. Nobody wants an economy where people who goto work everyday and work hard have to turn to public assistance for basic needs. We are trying to engage Wal-Mart, not isolate it. With 1.4 million Americans working in its stores, Wal-Mart bears a unique responsibility to its workers and our communities, and we’re asking them to embrace this challenge.”

Though it has a few modern touches, Florence Kelley could have made that statement. The groups in the coalition – which are named below –  have issued direct challenges to Wal-Mart in five key areas: worker rights, quality jobs, equal opportunity, corporate responsibility and a healthy environment. As part of this renewed effort, WakeUpWal-Mart.com will be releasing two new television advertisements called “Common Sense Economics Rules” calling on Wal-Mart to offer quality, affordable health care coverage to all its employees. Both ads highlight Wal-Mart’s failure to cover 700,000 of its employees, nearly half of its workforce. They end with the message “Wal-Mart can afford to be a better employer; Now would be a good time to start.”

We join our coalition partners in this campaign with new energy – working for the passage of the Employee Free Choice Act in Congress, inspired by the tasks left undone by labor champion Senator Teddy Kennedy, and vowing to improve conditions for workers at Wal-Mart and so many other workplaces in the United States where benefits are scarce or nonexistent, the work dangerous or mind-numbingly tedious, and the pay low. Certainly since Florence Kelley’s time we’ve made progress, but there is so much more to do. Happy Labor Day to all from the National Consumers League.

Coalition members include: AFL-CIO, Change to Win, Sierra Club, Campaign for America’s Future, National Education Association, American Federation of Teachers, National Consumers League, AFSCME, American Rights at Work, Communications Workers of America, Interfaith Worker Justice, LIUNA, National Labor Coordinating Committee, Service Employees International Union, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, United Auto Workers, United Farmer Workers and United Steel Workers.

Copyright laws and Digital Rights Management – National Consumers League

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The National Consumers League recently commissioned a survey to explore consumers’ attitudes and expectations regarding their DVD collections of backed-up or copied movies and music. Amidst the backdrop of a troubled economy, Americans believe it should be their right to copy their collections. But what about copyright laws and artists protecting their content?

Consumers’ ability to copy or save content from their movie or music collections involve issues surrounding something called “Digital Rights Management.”

What is DRM?

Digital Rights Management, or DRM for short, refers to a r ange of technologies used to control access to digital media. As entertainment content has shifted to digital media, content producers, copyright holders, and hardware makers have increasingly turned to DRM as a way to protect their content from unauthorized use, such as piracy, and to preserve traditional revenue streams.

DRM is used by many major content producers, software and hardware vendors. Some examples include:

  • Apple – until recently, iTunes’s FairPlay DRM software prevented iTunes customers from using music purchased directly from iTunes on any portable music player beside iPod, the iPhone, and a few authorized cell phone models.
  • Microsoft – Microsoft’s 3-play technology, which is integrated into its Zune portable music players, restricts music files received from other Zunes to a maximum of three plays. Song recipients also cannot re-send received music files to other users.
  • Sony – MiniDisc player usage is restricted by the company’s proprietary MagicGate DRM software.

Under international and federal law, most software that circumvents DRM restriction is illegal. In the United States, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, passed in 1998, makes it a crime to disseminate technology allowing users to circumvent DRM. However, these restrictions have not stopped a thriving trade in software that can crack most DRM restrictions.

How does DRM affect DVDs?

DRM affects consumers most often through their inability to transfer content from one medium (a DVD, for example) to another (a computer hard drive). In a recent survey commissioned by NCL, 4% of consumers reported that they had tried to save the content of a DVD to their hard drives, but failed due to DRM restrictions.

Since 1996, DVDs have generally come encoded with DRM technology called Content Scrambling System (CSS). HD-DVDs and Blu-ray discs are controlled by DRM software called Advanced Access Content System (AACS)

To legally copy a DVD to their hard drives, consumers must currently purchase an “expanded pack” edition of a DVD at an additional fee. These “expanded packs” generally contain a separate “DRM-free” disc that allows the copying of the disc’s contents. NCL’s survey found that consumers overwhelmingly desire the ability to copy DVDs to their hard drives for back up purposes or simply so that they do not have to carry around bulky DVD discs in order to watch movies while on the go. In addition, more than half of those surveyed were bothered that they can’t save most DVDs to their hard drives without cracking the encryption or having to purchase an expanded version of the DVD.

Additional Resources

HowStuffWorks: How Digital Rights Management Works

Electronic Frontier Foundation Primer on DRM

Electronic Privacy Information Center backgrounder on Digital Rights Management and Privacy

DefectiveByDesign.org, a project of the Free Software Foundation

www.esecurityplanet.com

Traveling Sales Crews: The Perils of Life on the Road – National Consumers League

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By Reid Maki, Child Labor Coalition Coordinator, and Lauren Perez, NCL Communications Intern

Next in our five-part series of worst teen jobs is traveling youth crews who sell items—often magazine subscriptions— door-to-door.

When young workers leave the safety of home, family, and friends and hit the open road bad things can happen. Add into the mix selling door-to-door to strangers in unknown neighborhoods and the job can become quite dangerous.

In February 21, 2007 New York Times article about the industry told the story of one young recent high school graduate, Jonathan Pope, who spent six months with a magazine sales crew working 10 to 14 hours a day, six days a week. His pay was often withheld and he was forced to get by on a meager $10-a-day food stipend much of the time. He witnessed co-workers being beaten by his managers and, when he asked to leave, his manager left him at a train station 1,000 miles from home with $17 cash.

According to Dan Smith, a representative of the National Field Selling Association quoted in the article, at any given time about 2,500 young people aged 18-to-24 years old are selling magazines door-to-door in these traveling crews.

The National Consumers League recently received a call from one stranded young seller. Ricky, 24, said he’d been traveling with crews since he was 18. He’d recently been let go because a crew leader became angry with him. With no money, Ricky was trying to hitch hike 1,000 miles home.

Although it’s not an everyday occurrence, Ricky said he has also witnessed sellers get beaten because crew leaders were unhappy with their performance. “When you’re not getting your sales and not making your quota, the managers get really mad at you,” he said. I’ve seen someone “get jumped straight up and get beat down,” he said, noting that he has been threatened himself.

Ricky agrees with NCL’s advice that young workers should stay away from traveling sales crews. In his years on the road, he’s worked with sales crew members as young as 17 and he thinks that’s “way too young…to be traveling from state to state.”

Traveling youth sales crews are exposed to many hazards. Robbery and assaults, sexual exploitation, and exposure to the elements are all dangers of life on the road. According to Ricky, many of the young sellers engage in a “party lifestyle.” Drug and alcohol abuse are part of the scene, he noted.

One of the greatest dangers is all the driving in vehicles—often older vans that aren’t in the best shape—required by door-to-door sales. In 1999, 7 crew members of a traveling sales crew died in a car crash in Janesville, Wisconsin; five other passengers in the van were seriously injured.  One of the dead was 18-year-old Malinda Turvey from Wisconsin. Since that tragedy, Turvey’s father, Phil Ellenbecker, has crusaded tirelessly to improve safety for young door-to-door sales people and curb the industry’s worst excesses. On *his Web site, he has documented 86 deaths and 300 felony cases involving traveling door-to-door magazine crews.

Ellenbecker’s efforts helped bring about Malinda’s Act, which was signed into law by Wisconsin’s Governor Jim Doyle in March 2009. The law requires at least semi-monthly payment of wages and safety certification of the vehicles used to transport workers. It prohibits an employer from leaving employees stranded or taking away a worker’s money, ID, phone or any other personal property during the course of employment. It also prevents employers from restricting communication between the worker and family or friends and requires criminal background checks of crew members.

Wisconsin’s law is unique, and workers in most states enjoy few protections because they are often classified as independent contractors.

Consumers answering doors should also be careful. In May 2009, The Better Business Bureau said that in the previous 12 months it had received 1,100 complaints of deceptive sales practices from traveling crews working for 50 different companies.  Employees are often not licensed for sales work and can be misleading in their pitches.  The most common complaint was that the customer never received the magazine subscriptions they had purchased.

The National Consumers League offers tips for youth considering joining a sales crew, including questions to ask and warning signs.  Youth considering a traveling crew can also find a list of companies that have had complaints filed against them through the *BBB’s Web site.

Next, we will be covering landscaping, grounds keeping and lawn service jobs.

 

*Links are no longer active as the original sources have removed the content, sometimes due to federal website changes or restructurings.

Toyota Closing Plant at Workers’ Expense – National Consumers League

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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director

While finishing up a trip out to California’s Bay Area this week, I couldn’t help but lament the local news reports there that Toyota is closing its only unionized plant in the United States. The plant was a joint venture between Toyota and GM that launched in 1984 as an experiment for Toyota in building cars in the US and for GM to learn more efficient techniques from Japan. 4,700 workers will lose their jobs at the plant, which is based in Fremont, CA. California state officials say the ripple effect will cost 40,000 jobs in the state, all told.

Toyota’s decision strikes me as utterly unfair and unjustified on several levels. First, the carmaker has made out royally in the last few months, selling more cars than any other manufacturer through the U.S. taxpayer-subsidized “cash for clunkers” program. The hottest item was the Corolla, ironically built at this Fremont plant, and Toyota even had to bring more workers in to keep up with demand generated by this program. So here we have American auto workers – who happen to be unionized– working overtime to crank out cars so this Japanese car maker can profit from a United States government subsidy, and Toyota goes and closes the plant once the “cash for clunkers” program is over.

Second, Toyota is closing its only unionized plant, so this is an effort to cut costs at the workers’ expense. In fact, the company operates plants in Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Texas, and West Virginia and they aren’t closing those. Toyota has successfully resisted the UAW’s efforts to unionize in these other states.

Toyota’s spokesman for North America said that they “deeply regret having to take this action” but that “over the mid-to-long term, it would not be economically viable” to maintain the plant. So, close the union plant because workers make a little more money and get a little better benefits. That stinks. *UAW President Ron Gettelfinger observed that Toyota workers at the plant “deserve better than to be abandoned by this company, which has profited so richly from their labor, their productivity, and their commitment to quality.”  I couldn’t agree more.

 

*Links are no longer active as the original sources have removed the content, sometimes due to federal website changes or restructurings.

Good Corporate Citizen News – National Consumers League

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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director

Consumer advocates are known for leveling biting criticisms against corporations for their various bad acts. But when a company does something truly admirable, such actions also deserve our praise. The first admirable event came this week when Toys “R” Us announced that it would allow parents to trade in used cribs, car seats, and other baby products for discounts on new items in these categories. For each used item consumers bring to Babies “R” Us or Toys “R” Us, they’ll receive a 20 percent discount on a new product from select manufacturers. The list of products includes bassinets, strollers, travel systems, play yards, and high chairs.

Why is Toys “R” Us offering these discounts? For a very important consumer protection reason: CEO Jerry Storch told the Wall Street Journal, “We felt these were categories that were somewhat suspect, either because of the nature of the category or because there have been a large number of recalls in the category….We feel it’s critical to get these older products out of the chain of commerce.” Storch is exactly right; once a children’s product is in the market, the chance of getting it recalled and out of the nursery is extremely low, probably under 10 percent. The safety issue is all the more critical with products that children use every day. By offering this discount, Toys “R” Us is helping to cycle the use of older baby products out of the marketplace and bring in the newer, safer designs. Fewer children will be facing product hazards that can injure and even kill them because of the company’s actions.

Full Disclosure: Toys “R” Us has supported the National Consumers League’s teenage consumer education program, LifeSmarts, making financial contributions for the past several years, though the company didn’t ask us to write this blog post.

The second positive interaction with a corporate entity happened to me personally. In planning travel to Minneapolis to celebrate my father’s 91st birthday this weekend, I made the mistake of scheduling a plane trip several hours earlier than one member of my family could make. I was scheduled to arrive from another city, but they were coming from Washington, DC and simply couldn’t leave on the earlier flight. So I called the airlines and talked to an agent. She informed me that taking the later flight would cost $150 per-person change fee and a total of $1,000 to change the reservation for them to fly on the same route only two hours later.

I thanked her and asked to talk to a supervisor. She was perfectly pleasant, as was I, but asked me what she ought to tell the supervisor. “Tell her I would like to discuss my options,” I said. A few minutes later, her boss came on the line and I explained. “I screwed up and made reservations for the wrong time. My mother died this year and my father is celebrating his 91st birthday on Saturday. It would be a shame if his grandson couldn’t be there for the occasion, but I simply cannot spend an additional $1,000 to change these tickets for a flight 2 hours later.” She told me to hang on, and a few minutes later she was back with this news: “I made the change and confirmed your flights for the later time. There will be no extra charge. Enjoy your father’s birthday and thank you for flying with our airline.”

I thanked her profusely and let out a huge sigh of relief. I had despaired that my 13 year-old-son would have to forfeit his ticket and be unable to celebrate with his cousins and grandfather. But here’s the good news: an employee of a big airline was able to hear my story and out of kindness — and perhaps a sense that the rules are often too rigid — bend the rules a bit. No matter, this customer greatly appreciated that companies and their workers can do the right thing by their customers. Whether it’s Toys “R” Us or a big airline, when they do I believe we consumer advocates should commend them for it.