Protect your phone records and your privacy – National Consumers League

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September 2, 2008

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

Washington, DC- Phone records have become another opportunity for identity thieves, warns the National Consumers League, but there are new security measures for protecting personal information and phone records. This month, NCL is offering consumers advice on how to protect themselves from pretexting in its “2008 Consumer Calendar Tips: Do We Have Tips for You!”

“Pretexting,” when an ID thief contacts a telephone company pretending to be a customer, is an illegal way people may attempt to obtain your personal information. The Federal Communications Commission has implemented new rules to make this attack more difficult, by requiring that all people calling for phone records provide their password to the company before any information is released. Over the Internet, access to records will also require a password, and in-person, it will require a photo ID.

The nation’s oldest consumer advocacy organization, NCL works to educate people about how to make wise decisions in today’s marketplace. Each month, NCL’s Web site, www.nclnet.org, will feature the calendar and tips for the month. Covering a range of subjects from medication safety, to avoiding scams, the tips are sponsored by major companies, government agencies, and organizations. The September tips about protecting telephone records were sponsored by Verizon.

The print version of the calendar was distributed to consumers free of charge through agencies and organizations around the country. There are no printed copies of the calendar remaining.

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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.

NCL applauds passage of historic product safety bill – National Consumers League

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August 4, 2008

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

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League commended the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate for passing “truly historic reforms in the way we deal with consumer products” – reforms the League’s Executive Director, Sally Greenberg, said were “mere pipe dreams only a few years ago.” First and foremost, “the bill will provide badly needed improvements that will help enormously in keeping kids safe,” Greenberg said. The bill, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, awaits the President’s signature.

Greenberg noted that the presence of excessive levels of lead discovered in toys only a few years ago was a “wakeup call to consumers and Congress,” and opened the door to broad and badly needed reforms of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, its budget, and its underlying statute.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission was “withering on the vine” Greenberg said, despite being the only federal agency charged with keeping over 15,000 consumer products – many of them children’s products safe. Traditionally underfunded and under the radar screen, the CPSC was operating with half the employees it began with in the mid-1970s and a fraction of its original budget, while the number of consumer products has increased exponentially.

“To the credit of consumer advocates, they rolled up their sleeves and worked closely with Congress, notably Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-HI), Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK), Chairman Mark Pryor (D-AR), Senator John Sununu (R-NH), Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL), Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO), and Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). Ultimately they came up with historic reforms aimed at a system in deep need of repair. Greenberg noted the bi-partisan support for the bill, and the positive comments of the head of the Toy Industry of America, who called the bill’s passage “the right thing to do.”

The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 will:

  • Effectively ban lead from children’s toys, a position NCL has long endorsed. Lead is a proven toxin for children’s development and can do lifelong damage. No object intended for use by children should contain anything but the most minute amounts of lead.
  • Require toymakers to have independent labs to test products before they are sold; many consumers assumed this was happening already, but instead, too many toys and products intended for use by children were introduced into the marketplace without proper testing and analysis. Consumers may eventually see labels certifying toys have been tested before being sold, and consumers buying online or through a catalog will be able to see the same warning label that appears on packaging to warn parents of small parts or other potential hazards.
  • Allow the CPSC to post information about products that consumers have reported to the agency as being dangerous or defective; other federal agencies allow consumers to go to their Web sites to check on products before they purchase them. A provision of CPSC’s law prevented it from posting this information until the agency checked in with the manufacturer. That will change under the new law.
  • Increase fines against companies who fail to report to the CPSC– as required by the statute – evidence that a product may be present a substantial product hazard.
  • Allow state attorneys general to help enforce federal product safety laws and take manufacturers to court to keep dangerous products off the market. This is important. Attorneys general play a critical health and safety role for their own citizens. These state officials have often incubated consumer cases and protections that would take the federal government far longer to adopt.
  • Give this beleaguered agency the funding it needs to carry out its many and growing responsibilities. The CPSC budget will nearly double to $136 million, from $80 million for this fiscal year; the agency has already hired additional inspectors for the nation’s largest ports, where dangerous imports can enter the country currently unnoticed because of weak enforcement.

Finally, the bill contains a provision that Greenberg said consumer advocates and Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) had been working on for years. Named after a little boy who died when a recalled portable crib collapsed, choking him, the Danny Keysar Product Safety Notification Act, which is contained within the new bill, would require mandatory standards and testing for specific infant and toddler products, ban the sale, lease or use in commercial settings of cribs that do not meet current safety standards, and would require manufacturers to include product registration cards with new products to facilitate notice of recalled products.

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About the National Consumers League
Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

Stop for Brake Safety Month – National Consumers League

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August 1, 2008

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

Washington, DC – Keeping your car in good shape can prevent crashes and protect your investment, and brakes are one of the most important systems in a vehicle. In the National Consumers League’s 2008 Consumer Calendar this August, NCL is helping consumers learn the importance of a safe brake system and urging them to pull into an auto repair shop to get their brakes checked during Brake Safety Awareness Week (Aug 24-30).

During Brake Safety Awareness Week, an initiative of the Motorist Assurance Program (MAP) and the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA), all MAP Participating Service Facilities will check your car’s brakes for free by technicians that are MAP qualified or ASE certified.

The nation’s oldest consumer advocacy organization, NCL works to educate people about how to make wise decisions in today’s marketplace. Each month, NCL’s Web site, www.nclnet.org, will feature the calendar and tips for the month. Covering a range of subjects from medication safety, to avoiding scams, the tips are sponsored by major companies, government agencies, and organizations. The August tips were sponsored by Firestone Complete Auto Care, Just Brakes, Midas, and the Motorist Assurance Program.

The print version of the calendar was distributed to consumers free of charge through agencies and organizations around the country. There are no printed copies of the calendar remaining.

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About the National Consumers League
Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

 

Groups call for clear, concise single document from pharmacy – National Consumers League

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July 29, 2008

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

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League has asked the Food and Drug Administration to issue a guidance for a combined and simplified document for patients when they receive their prescription drugs. In a petition filed on June 30, NCL was joined by several national healthcare organizations including the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, the National Community Pharmacists Association, the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, the National Alliance for Caregivers, the Food Marketing Institute, Healthcare Distribution Management Association, and Catalina Health Resource.

“It is very important that patients receive clear, useful information in plain language with their prescription drugs. They should be able to talk to their pharmacist about potential interactions, how to take their medicine and what side effects to expect. Patients do not need to receive multiple and lengthy pieces of paper that are often redundant and may even contain conflicting information,” said Sally Greenberg, Executive Director of the National Consumers League. “The present jumble of documents ill-serves the patient who simply needs enough information to take a prescription drug safely and effectively.”

The multitude of documents delivered to patients in pharmacies arises from different FDA legal requirements or unwritten, informal interpretation of those requirements from offices within FDA. Some of the legal requirements were established long ago, and were intended to regulate communications directed to healthcare professionals and not directly to consumers.

The FDA-mandated documents for patient communications can be just “too much information,” said Greenberg. For example, a person refilling a prescription for an anti-depressant could, theoretically receive:

  • Consumer Medication Information (CMI) describing how to take the prescribed drug, its risks, and other information including risk information from the Medication Guide.
  • A Patient Package Insert from the manufacturer with a Medication Guide.
  • A Medication Guide provided by the pharmacy.
  • Full professional labeling if the patient receives a sponsored message about the anti-depressant from the drug manufacturer describing, for example, the importance of adhering to the doctors’ orders.

The National Consumers League and other petitioners believe that it makes more sense to provide a single, clear, patient-friendly document with information for the patient that reinforces the communications between the patient, the pharmacist, and the prescribing healthcare professional. This single patient document would consolidate the many documents now in use and replace them with one that is easy to read, in plain language, in a consistent format, with plain instructions informing the patient where he or she can reliably obtain additional information.

“Many of these documents were never designed for nor intended to apply to the unique pharmacy environment,” said Greenberg. “The risks of patient confusion, conflict, redundancy, and pharmacy burden would be eliminated if FDA permitted a ‘single document solution’ for all patient-directed information disseminated in the pharmacy.”

About the National Consumers League
Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

NCL challenges myth that some alcoholic beverages are safer and less potent – National Consumers League

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July 16, 2008

New Initiative Underscores Need for New Alcohol Label

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

Washington, DC – For the many Americans confused about the potency of different alcoholic beverages, one of the most respected national consumer organizations has this important message: it is a myth that beer and wine are not as strong as the typical cocktail. Standard serving sizes of all alcohol beverages — beer, wine, and distilled spirits — are equal in alcohol strength and their effect on the body.

Because even the most basic information about alcohol content is not clearly and consistently listed on the labels of beer, wine and distilled spirits products, the National Consumers League is going public with Alcohol: How It All Adds Up, a new initiative challenging the myth that some alcoholic beverages are “safer” and less “potent” than others. According to the League, this belief is pervasive and linked with the overconsumption of alcohol and the permissive attitudes of some parents about underage drinking. In an opinion poll commissioned by the Center for Government Reform, 88% of parents mistakenly concluded that beer is safer than liquor.

“Without ready access to information about the amount of alcohol they are consuming, many Americans believe that beer and wine offer a ‘soft’ option and can be consumed in greater amounts than so-called ‘hard’ liquor,” said Sally Greenberg, Executive Director of the League. “We are trying to give consumers the basics about the alcohol content of different alcoholic beverages, but the real answer is government action to require standardized and complete labeling information on beer, wine and distilled spirits products. Consumers should know how many calories, carbohydrates, and other nutrition information are in a standard drink. They have it for nonalcoholic beverages, food, and nonprescription drugs. It is time for this information to be on the labels for alcoholic beverages.”

The Meaning of a “Standard Drink”

While renewing its calls for the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) to make information about the alcohol content per serving a requirement on alcohol labels, the League is attempting to fill the void with a new guide that tackles one of the most important concepts for consumers to grasp – what constitutes a “standard drink.” Research commissioned by the League finds 54% of Americans don’t know there is such a thing as a “standard drink,” even though a large majority of state drivers’ license manuals and national and state public health agencies use the “standard drink” concept to explain responsible drinking.

As the guide explains, the common denominator for a “standard drink” of beverage alcohol is 0.6 fluid ounces of pure alcohol. Based on this amount of alcohol, a standard drink consists of a 12-ounce bottle or can of regular beer (5% alcohol), a 5-ounce glass of regular (dinner) wine (12% alcohol), and a 1.5 ounce drink of 80 proof (40% alcohol) distilled spirits or liquor (either straight or in a mixed drink).

“It shouldn’t take a calculator to know how much alcohol you are consuming,” Greenberg stated. “Better labeling is badly needed to tell how many ‘standard drinks’ are in a particular product. If consumers can tell from the label how many standard drinks they are consuming, they can learn their limits and avoid exceeding them.”

Misperceptions Contribute to Underage Drinking, Binge Drinking

As part of its initiative, the National Consumers League is also calling on parents and community leaders to address underage drinking, reporting that parents often underestimate how early drinking begins, how much alcohol their adolescents consume, and the risks involved. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), three-fourths of 12th graders, more than two-thirds of 10th graders, and about two in every five 8th graders have consumed alcohol. Compounding the problem, research commissioned by The Century Council finds that 65% of underage youth who drink obtain alcohol from their parents, their friends’ parents, older friends and older siblings or have easy access to alcohol on college campuses.

“Parents need to understand that one can of beer or one wine cooler has roughly the alcohol equivalence of one shot of vodka,” said Greenberg. “Believing otherwise undermines and runs counter to all we know and all we have done to prevent underage drinking.”

While underage drinking is associated with motor vehicle crashes, major injuries and delinquency problems, what is not well understood is its link to binge drinking, which NIAAA defines as a pattern of drinking alcohol that brings blood alcohol concentration to 0.08 grams percent or above. For the typical adult, this pattern corresponds to consuming five or more drinks for men, or four or more drinks for women, in about 2 hours. Consumption at this pace can also result in alcohol poisoning, a serious condition that can lead to choking, coma and even death.

“Study after study shows that parents have the most influence over their teen’s decision to drink,” Greenberg said. “Parents should be a role model for their teen about responsible drinking, whether they drink or not. This means talking regularly and often about drinking alcohol, including how to resist the peer pressure that can lead to underage and binge drinking.”

New Tools for Consumers

To improve Americans’ alcohol awareness, the National Consumers League is making available a new Alcohol: How it all adds up guide and a series of information sheets about alcohol content, alcohol labels, and binge drinking to consumers, community leaders and health professionals. These materials are available in downloadable form on the League’s Web site, www.nclnet.org.

NCL’s Greenberg addresses NACPI at annual meeting – National Consumers League

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July 14, 2008

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

New Orleans, LA — Focusing her remarks on strategies for prevention of consumer fraud in mortgages, car loans, Internet and telemarketing, Sally Greenberg, National Consumers League Executive Director, addressed the annual meeting of North American Consumer Protection Investigators, many of whom work in state attorneys general offices and other state and local agencies, representing 22 states, Canada and Bermuda.

“The problem of consumer fraud is rampant. It affects over 30 million consumers, 13 percent of U.S. adults. According to the FTC, and African Americans and Hispanics are victimized more than whites,” said Greenberg. “According to complaints at NCL’s Fraud Center, fake check scams, prizes and sweepstakes, and advance fee loans top our lists of scams that prey on desperate consumers enduring increasingly difficult economic times.”

Greenberg called on the consumer investigators to work with NCL and consumer protection lawyers and open up investigations related to mortgage lending and auto loan fraud. “It’s disappointing that even many reputable companies are entangled in financing and other schemes that rip off consumers. All of us who work on consumer protection must hold them accountable.”

Greenberg also told the group, “The National Consumers League gets 60-70 online complaints each day from people who’ve been victims of fake check scams, phony lotteries claiming that the consumer has won a big cash prize, and sweetheart swindles where a lonely consumer is talked into giving large sums of money to a supposed love interest abroad. Sometimes we can save them from becoming victimized. More often, we can only report the scam to law enforcement. The con artists are very, very good at telling people what they want to hear.”

The National Consumers League, which is the nation’s oldest consumer organization, founded in 1899, hosts the Web site, Fraud.org, and Fakechecks.org. Fraud.org sees 25,000 unique visits each week. The NCL also hosts the Alliance Against Fraud, bringing together consumers, business, government, labor, and nonprofits to share strategies and provide the latest updates on emerging fraud schemes.

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About the National Consumers League

Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

NCL to teens: avoid these five worst summer jobs – National Consumers League

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July 10, 2008

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

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL) has issued its annual report for 2008 on the Five Worst Teen Jobs, with recent accidental deaths in agriculture keeping work in fields and processing at the top of the list for the second year running. Based on statistics from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, a teen American worker is injured on the job every two minutes, and one teen dies from a workplace injury every five days. Reid Maki, NCL’s Director for Social Responsibility and Coordinator of the Child Labor Coalition, reminded teens and parents that it’s not too late to focus on safety when considering a summer job.

“More than half a million youth help harvest our nation’s crops each year. Farms may look bucolic and pretty, but they have proven too often to be dangerous workplaces, especially in fields where heavy machinery like tractors are used,” said Maki. “Summer provides numerous opportunities for young workers across the country to make some extra money, whether it’s in the fields, in a retail store, or making French fries in a fast food restaurant. It’s crucial for teens and their parents to understand the dangers of summer work, especially when it comes to the jobs that have made our list.”

Maki cited two 2008 examples of fatal incidents involving young agriculture workers, which helped put fieldwork and processing at the top of this year’s list: In May, Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez, a 17-year-old farmworker died in San Joaquin County, California of heat stroke after working nine hours in a vineyard. Jimenez was pregnant at the time. In January, Edilberto Cardenas, 17, was killed in a Groveland, Florida citrus grove. It was his first day on the job. Cardenas was emptying bags of oranges into a truck when then truck backed over him.

NCL’s Five Worst Teen Jobs of 2008

  1. Agriculture: Fieldwork and Processing
  1. Traveling Youth Crews
  1. Construction and Work in Heights
  1. Driver/Operator: Forklifts, Tractors, and ATVs
  1. Outside Helper: Landscaping, Groundskeeping, and Lawn Service

The Five Worst Jobs of 2008 list includes both jobs that are permitted for teens by law and those that are prohibited by child labor laws, underscoring the need for teens, parents, and employers to be aware of existing protections. For example, operating forklifts, driving farm equipment, working on roofs, and applying or handling pesticides on farms are currently outlawed. Furthermore, despite urging by advocates for Congress and the Department of Labor to prohibit the what are know as the “most dangerous forms of child labor,” some of the activities on the list remain legally permitted work for teens, including work at heights, poultry catching and processing, driving tractors and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), operating chain saws (prohibited for only use on wood) and working on traveling youth crews that sell magazines or other products. All are legal work for minors, despite compelling statistics about the heightened threat of occupational injuries and deaths to working youth.

NCL compiles the Five Worst Teen Jobs each year using government statistics and reports, results from the Child Labor Coalition’s annual survey of state labor departments, and news accounts of injuries and deaths.

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About the National Consumers League
Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

Save the planet! (And some money) – National Consumers League

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July 1, 2008

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

Washington, DC – Global warming is a major challenge, but consumers can take simple steps to be a good global citizen, help protect the planet, and save money in the process. This month, the National Consumers League is helping consumers adopt environmentally-friendly practices that are also friendly to their wallets in NCL’s “2008 Consumer Calendar: Do We Have Tips for You!”

NCL offers a list of tips for going green, such as:

  • Tune up. Keep your call well-tuned and your tires properly inflated to get better gas mileage and cut pollution.
  • Switch to energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs, which last longer.
  • Turn off the TV and other appliances when you’re not using them. Use appliances’ — like computers’ — energy-saving modes.

The nation’s oldest consumer advocacy organization, NCL works to educate people about how to make wise decisions in today’s marketplace. Each month, NCL’s Web site, www.nclnet.org, will feature the calendar and tips for the month. Covering a range of subjects from medication safety, to avoiding scams, the tips are sponsored by major companies, government agencies, and organizations. The July tips about global warming were sponsored by Microsoft.

The print version of the calendar was distributed to consumers free of charge through agencies and organizations around the country. There are no printed copies of the calendar remaining.

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About the National Consumers League
Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

Event celebrates 100-year landmark case laying groundwork for workplace protections – National Consumers League

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June 24, 2008

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

Washington, DC—The National Consumers League will host a historic gathering of feminist scholars of the Progressive Era, labor activists, and leading gender discrimination lawyers at Georgetown Law Center in Washington, DC on June 25, 2008. The League, the nation’s oldest consumer organization, will mark the 100th Anniversary of Muller vs. Oregon, the first Supreme Court decision to uphold limits on the hours women workers could be forced to toil in factories and laundries. The experts gathered will also discuss the priority issues for labor and working families as Americans look toward new leadership in the White House.

Early leaders of the NCL worked in 1908 with then-attorney Louis Brandeis to write a successful brief in Muller to the Supreme Court. The brief was filled with data on the ill-effects of a 16- and 17-hour workday on women, their families, and their communities. The Muller brief was the first “Brandeis Brief,” a document that uses social evidence instead of law to make the case for legal reforms.

The event is the first time historians, lawyers, and labor leaders will come together to debate and discuss the effects of Muller on workplace regulations for women and ultimately all workers. Muller set the stage for the minimum wage laws and ultimately the landmark Fair Labor Standards Act, but was used in subsequent years by the courts to justify restricting women’s access to certain jobs.

Speakers at the conference include California Congresswoman Linda Sánchez, co-founder and chair of the Working Families Coalition in the House, Joslyn Williams, head of Metropolitan Washington, DC AFL-CIO, National Labor Relations Board member Wilma Liebman, Ann Brown, former Chairman of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Mary Beth Maxwell, Executive Director of American Rights at Work and others. Event co-sponsors include Bernstein & Lipsett, AFL-CIO, UDC David A. Clarke School of Law, Alliance for Justice, United Food and Commercial Workers, and others.

The conference is free and open to the public. Online registration has closed. Please call Dana Brunson at (202) 835-3323 for more information or to secure your space at the conference.

WHAT: Muller v. Oregon Centennial Conference

Hosted by the National Consumers League

WHO: Academics, labor professionals, consumer and worker activists, students, and legal professionals are invited to attend this free one-day conference.

WHEN: June 25, 2008. Doors open at 8:15 am. Event runs from 9:15 am to 4:30 pm.

12:45 Keynote lunch Speaker: Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-CA)

WHERE: Georgetown University Law Center, McDonough Hall, Hart Auditorium

600 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20001

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About the National Consumers League

Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

Bad advice from retailers on DTV conversion could cost consumers millions – National Consumers League

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June 17, 2008

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

Washington, DC—Consumers aren’t getting accurate information from retailers about converting their televisions from analog to digital (DTV conversion), and that will cost them dearly, according to the National Consumers League (NCL). In the past week, NCL staff conducted an informal survey of Washington, DC-area major television retailers to test whether consumers inquiring about the DTV conversion were being given the right advice.

“We are just months away from the transition to digital television, and the fact that consumers whose screens will go blank come February 17, 2009 aren’t being given accurate information is frankly shocking,” said NCL Executive Director Sally Greenberg.

Over the past week, NCL staffers called or made in-person visits to seven1 major TV retailers in the Washington, DC area to inquire about the DTV transition, how to prepare for it, and whether they need converter boxes. While the boxes cost around $50 – $60 retail, the federal government is providing two free coupons for each household, worth $40 each, for use toward the purchase of up to two digital-to-analog converter boxes. Retailers are supposed to tell customers about the coupon and encourage them to apply before the consumer invests in the full cost of the box, which could save up to $80.00 per household. But NCL found that some stores’ employees failed to mention the TV Converter Box Coupon Program run by the federal government.

Adding insult to injury, the salespeople also told NCL staff that all consumers who don’t subscribe to a paid television service (cable or satellite) would require the converter box equipment; this is wrong. Most late-model televisions, particularly those manufactured since 2004, are likely to be digital and do not require the converters. In one case, an employee said that any television that does not have a flat screen will require the box, another glaring inaccuracy.

“We are particularly concerned about elderly, low-income, and non-native English speakers,” Greenberg said. “They may be more likely to have older TVs that use only an analog signal, and they desperately need the savings these coupons provide. Our survey suggests they won’t get these savings unless retailers do a far better job of training their sales staff.”

Greenberg also noted, “Even consumers who are aware of the transition and do their homework about what questions to ask the retailers may be getting information that is inaccurate, and that could cost them a bundle.”

NCL is asking retailers to go back to the drawing board, to set up rigorous training for all of their sales force, and to include training protocols for any new hires that are selling televisions and TV equipment. The sales staff should provide the following information to consumers:

  • If you have cable or satellite, you don’t need a converter box.
  • If you have a television manufactured after 2004, you very likely don’t need a converter box, but check the television and/or manual to be sure that you have a digital tuner.  Some televisions manufactured before 2004 have digital tuners, but not very many.
  • Flat screen televisions and high definition monitors may be analog so consult your manual or the TV itself
  • If you do need a converter box, you can apply for two $40 coupons per household at www.DTV.gov. Converter boxes typically cost from $50 to $60 so it pays to apply for the coupon, which you can do online, by mail, by phone or by fax. Your coupon should arrive within two weeks, and they expire 90 days after they are mailed.

1 Radio Shack, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Target, Circuit City, Kmart, Sears

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About the National Consumers League
Founded in 1899, the National Consumers League is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Its mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL is a private, nonprofit membership organization. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.