INVESTIGATION: Are your groceries costing more because of this?

 

We’ve all seen grocery prices skyrocket in recent years, as stores blame supply chain issues – despite reporting record profits. As consumers brace for how proposed tariffs may drive up the cost of food, a new investigation by Consumer Reports has found another shocking culprit: some grocery stores are mislabeling shelf prices that could leave shoppers paying 18 percent more on certain items at checkout! Our investigation into one of the nation’s largest grocery chains, Kroger – which operates in 35 states and also includes stores like Ralphs, Fry's and Fred Meyer – found significant errors on discount price labels on store shelves in 7 out of the 13 states and D.C. we shopped. In these Kroger stores, our shoppers found over 150 labeling errors on the store shelves, which would have cost an extra $260 at checkout! It’s tough enough to make ends meet these days without these kinds of pricing issues. Join Consumer Reports in demanding Kroger makes the price right and publicly commits to fixing this problem, and honors the shelf price for all items at checkout. Sign the Petition CR examined Kroger because it’s one of the nation’s largest chains, and after store employees told us and other news organizations that pricing errors were rampant due to a shortage of staff (through staffing cuts and reduced hours) to change out expired shelf price labels. Kroger has known about its pricing errors for years and has yet to meaningfully fix the problem, according to class-action lawsuits filed in four states, and consumer complaints filed in others. Shopping for groceries shouldn’t cost you more because of these pricing issues. Sign our petition, and let’s make sure your local Kroger store follows the law and ensures shoppers get the advertised price. Sign the Petition In addition to this mislabeling problem, we are looking into the broader issue of rising digital grocery pricing. Years ago, most groceries were affixed with a paper price tag. But now, stores are integrating bar codes, electronic shelf tags, and loyalty programs that offer different prices to different shoppers – which could leave consumers in the dark about what an item actually costs. Using technology and algorithms raises questions about the replacement of workers and potentially opens the door not only to surge pricing – the practice of increasing prices at times of high demand – but to potential misuse of customers’ personal data and shopping habits, prompting Consumer Reports to launch our Make the Price Right campaign to make sure you’re protected from potential abuses.  After you act, we’ll send you a copy of our investigation. And please share this petition with friends and family, so we can use our consumer power to tell one of the nation’s largest grocer to listen to shoppers, and do the right thing! Thank you, Angel Han Consumer Reports
© 2025 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 Contact Consumer Reports

Defending our watchdog agencies - next steps

 

Thank you for sending a message to your members of Congress in urging them to defend the Consumer Product Safety Commission and to fight for the reinstatement of its illegally fired leaders. 

It is a tumultuous time for consumer rights, as we're seeing many changes at the federal level that are impacting the ability of government watchdog agencies to do their jobs to protect consumers. 

Join us for a new virtual event series, The State of the Consumer Movement, to help you stay informed about the latest news, connect you with experts to answer your questions, and discuss what you can do to take action.  

The first event in this monthly series will be on Wednesday, May 21 from 2-3:00 ET, and will focus on your financial security and the changes happening at the Consumer Financial Protection Commission.  Sign up here to join us for that important conversation. 

Thanks for all you do to defend our important consumer protections and rights, and we look forward to talking with you at The State of the Consumer Movement event.   

Meg Bohne
Consumer Reports

BREAKING: Safety Commissioners illegally fired

 

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION (CPSC) OPERATES UNNOTICED UNTIL 

THEY PULL A HAZARDOUS PRODUCT FROM THE MARKET IN ORDER TO 

PROTECT CONSUMERS...WE NEED THEIR PROTECTION! PLEASE SPEAK OUT!

TRUMP ET AL ARE SLASHING GOVERNMENT PROTECTION TO FUND TAX CUTS 

FOR THE WEALTHY & CREATE ENDLESS DEFICITS AT OUR EXPENSE! 

PLEASE SAY NO! 

For over 50 years, an independent, bipartisan federal agency has had one mission: Protect the public against serious injury or death from dangerous consumer products in the marketplace. From baby cribs to space heaters, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has worked to ensure that what you buy won’t harm you or your family.  But right now the CPSC is under attack. In a shocking move, key leaders of the CPSC were fired—three Commissioners who were lawfully appointed and have a proven record of putting consumers’ safety first in a rapidly evolving marketplace. This isn’t just bureaucratic drama. It’s an unprecedented and unlawful move that puts your safety at risk and directly undermines the independence of the agency charged with protecting you. If we don’t act now, the CPSC’s independence and its ability to protect the American public from hazardous products could be destroyed. Tell your members of Congress: reinstate the CPSC Commissioners and protect our right to be safe. Email Your Members Here’s what’s at stake if we lose a functioning, independent CPSC: Products that could harm you or your kids sold online with no oversight: In 2024 alone, CPSC was responsible for the removal of more than 53,000 recalled or banned items sold on e-commerce sites. Dangerous imports flooding the country: In coordination with Customs and Border Protection, the CPSC has intercepted tens of thousands of harmful goods at U.S. ports of entry, before they could harm American families. Lives at risk—from babies to older adults: The CPSC sets safety standards to protect consumers from injury or death, such as for infant sleep products to prevent suffocation.  No consequences for companies that endanger consumers: Since 2021, the CPSC has issued over $125 million in civil penalties for violations of product safety laws. This is about your right to expect basic safety when you bring products into your home—and whether we let political interference erode that right. Consumer Reports has joined with 160 advocacy groups, grieving parents, and over 50 members of Congress to demand a reversal of these illegal firings. But your voice is essential. Tell your Senators and Representative to defend your right to be safe in your own home. Reinstate the illegally fired Commissioners. Protect the CPSC. Email Congress Now Thank you for standing up for what’s right.  And please share this message with your community so others can use their voice to stand up for consumer safety too.  Meg Bohne Consumer Reports
. © 2025 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 Contact Consumer Reports

BREAKING: Now they’re attacking our safety watchdog!

 

From exploding lithium-ion batteries in e-bikes, to furniture that tips over on infants and children, thousands of Americans are seriously injured or killed each year by hazardous or poorly designed products. And it’s up to one small – but mighty – government agency to find these products, warn consumers of the risks, get them off the market, and push industry for the safest products possible. But right now, the White House is floating a plan to eliminate the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and shift its critical duties to another already over-burdened federal agency! It’s vital that consumers across the country tell their members of Congress right now to stop this horrible idea. The CPSC is an independent, bipartisan agency whose sole mission is to protect American families from banned, dangerous, and faulty products, and it shouldn’t be politicized, or have its power weakened to crack down on industry wrongdoing. Send a message to your members of Congress to stand up for your family’s safety, and protect the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Send an Email Now The CPSC saves lives and prevents injuries. Created in 1972 by Congress, the agency oversees the safety of thousands of products, from appliances to toys to exercise equipment. Childhood deaths from garage doors and refrigerator entrapment are almost non-existent these days, thanks to agency rules, and crib deaths and child poisonings are both down 80 percent since its creation. And new agency rules on battery safety and infant sleepers will help save even more children' s lives.   Yet the Administration has proposed eliminating our product safety watchdog, and putting its duties inside the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). We think this is a dangerously misguided idea—especially at a time when HHS is already short-staffed and charged with running massive programs like Medicare, Medicaid, food safety inspections, and new medicine approvals.  Without Congress defending the CPSC’s independence and its data-driven, safety-first mission, the agency can’t do its job. It can’t keep pace with emerging threats, stop dangerous products at the border, or hold companies accountable when they put profits over people. A weakened CPSC puts all of us — especially babies and children — at greater risk. Send an email to your members of Congress urging them to preserve an independent, bipartisan CPSC so it can continue doing the job it was created to do: protecting you and your family from dangerous products. Email your members of Congress now, and urge them to protect the CPSC. Send an Email Now When constituents speak up, lawmakers listen. Thank you for standing with us to put consumer safety first, and please share this with friends and family so they can act, too! Sincerely, Meg Bohne Consumer Reports
© 2025 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 Contact Consumer Reports

UPDATE: Confusion and Chaos at the CFPB - Your action needed!

 

Last night, the White House cut nearly 90% of the employees at our consumer financial watchdog – which would have left almost no one to protect Americans from financial fraud or abuse. Fortunately, the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia today halted the mass layoff of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) workforce that was underway, but the rollercoaster of uncertainty means that the agency that stands up to big banks, credit card companies, and debt collectors is unable to do its job.   “We’re relieved that the court has stepped in to stop this dangerous overreach,” said Amanda N. Jackson, Americans For Financial Reform’s consumer campaign director. “The attempted firing of 1,500 dedicated public servants was not only a threat to the livelihoods of workers, but to the millions of people who count on the CFPB to hold financial actors accountable. We thank the court for recognizing what the law and the public interest demand — that the CFPB must remain open, functioning, and fully staffed to fulfill its mandate to protect consumers.”  There's been a temporary pause on this new round of firings, but when the dust settles there might be no one left to hold the financial industry accountable in the federal government.  Consumers like you will quickly feel the effects of unfair, deceptive, and abusive practices by financial institutions.  Thank you again for the work you’ve already done in supporting this important issue. With so many steps happening against the CFPB moving so quickly, we need your help again. Can you make a phone call to your members to make sure they know you are watching, and that you want them to protect the CFPB and its mission? Call Now! And after you've called, please share this tool with your network and motivate others to speak up. It will take our collective voices to ensure our consumer rights are protected! Thank you, Alan Smith Consumer Reports
© 2025 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703

ALERT: Our financial watchdog shut down!

 

Our consumer financial watchdog was just shut down by the White House – leaving no one to stand up for you against the big banks, credit card companies, and scammers who are using every trick in the book to steal your money. Over the weekend, the acting director of the Consumer Financial Protect Bureau ordered the agency to cease “all supervision and examination activity,” closed its headquarters, and told staff to go home. This action leaves every one of us vulnerable, since no one is fielding complaints from Americans about fraud or financial abuse, or holding the financial industry accountable. Send a message to your members of Congress right now to protect our financial watchdog. Your elected officials have the power to stand up and do the right thing for consumers – make sure they know you’re holding them to account! Send a Message After you act, please share this with friends and family so they join you in standing up for our consumer financial watchdog. Chuck Bell Consumer Reports _________________________________________________________________ After the bank-fueled economic crash in 2008, consumers like you helped push Congress to create an independent watchdog to protect your money – and stand up to financial institutions and scammers looking to separate you from your hard-earned cash. Since then, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has returned $21 billion to consumers who were taken advantage of by the big banks, credit card companies, debt collectors and others, and held corporations accountable for violating the law. But our financial watchdog is under attack right now in Congress. Not only are some trying to completely defund the CFPB, efforts are underway right now that would block reforms that put money back into your pocket, and protect your sensitive data like Social Security numbers from being sold to the highest bidder. It’s critical your members of Congress hear from consumers who want a strong financial watchdog – not a big bank lapdog. Send a message to your Senators and Representative that you want them to stand up for you and your family, not the banks! Send a Message Efforts are underway in Congress and the Administration to block or repeal many of the pro-consumer rules we recently fought together for, including: Ending outrageous fees on credit cards and bank acounts. These new rules would cap credit card late fees at $8, and bank overdraft fees at around $5, which would save those that pay these fees more than $400 a year. The House is moving to kill the overdraft rule, and the Administration just stopped defending the credit card cap in a court case brought by the big banks, who filed suit to kill it. Rein in data brokers who share and sell your Social Security number and other sensitive information. A proposed rule was just put on hold that would have stopped data brokers from selling your data – including your income and your Social Security number. We just exposed this practice in our investigation of exercise equipment companies that give themselves permission to share your most private data with these brokers. Holding banks and payment apps accountable for fraud that cost consumers $10 billion a year. The CFPB was digging into how to combat fraudsters that trick people into draining their bank accounts, as well as make banks and payment apps reimburse customers for these losses. That work appears to be shut down. Stopped medical debt from being listed on credit reports, since a lot of medical debt is disputed or inaccurate, and isn’t a good indicator of a person’s creditworthiness. This rule, which the House is moving to kill, is expected to help more people get mortgages and raise the average credit score 20 points by those with this kind of debt. Make sure your members of Congress know that you want these and other important pro-consumer rules protected, and the CFPB’s work to continue. Your voice matters, so send an email directly to your members' inbox now. Send a Message And please, share this message with friends and family so they can join you in standing up for our consumer financial watchdog. Thank you, Chuck Bell Consumer Reports
. © 2022 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 Contact Consumer Reports

BREAKING: Your financial watchdog under attack!

 

After the bank-fueled economic crash in 2008, consumers like you helped push Congress to create an independent watchdog to protect your money – and stand up to financial institutions and scammers looking to separate you from your hard-earned cash. Since then, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has returned $21 billion to consumers who were taken advantage of by the big banks, credit card companies, debt collectors and others, and held corporations accountable for violating the law. But our financial watchdog is under attack right now in Congress. Not only are some trying to completely defund the CFPB, efforts are underway right now that would block reforms that put money back into your pocket, and protect your sensitive data like Social Security numbers from being sold to the highest bidder. It’s critical your members of Congress hear from consumers who want a strong financial watchdog – not a big bank lapdog. Send a message to your Senators and Representative that you want them to stand up for you and your family, not the banks! Send a Message Efforts are underway in Congress and the Administration to block or repeal many of the pro-consumer rules we recently fought together for, including: Ending outrageous fees on credit cards and bank acounts. These new rules would cap credit card late fees at $8, and bank overdraft fees at around $5, which would save those that pay these fees more than $400 a year. The House is moving to kill the overdraft rule, and the Administration just stopped defending the credit card cap in a court case brought by the big banks, who filed suit to kill it. Rein in data brokers who share and sell your Social Security number and other sensitive information. A proposed rule was just put on hold that would have stopped data brokers from selling your data – including your income and your Social Security number. We just exposed this practice in our investigation of exercise equipment companies that give themselves permission to share your most private data with these brokers. Holding banks and payment apps accountable for fraud that cost consumers $10 billion a year. The CFPB was digging into how to combat fraudsters that trick people into draining their bank accounts, as well as make banks and payment apps reimburse customers for these losses. That work appears to be shut down. Stopped medical debt from being listed on credit reports, since a lot of medical debt is disputed or inaccurate, and isn’t a good indicator of a person’s creditworthiness. This rule, which the House is moving to kill, is expected to help more people get mortgages and raise the average credit score 20 points by those with this kind of debt. Make sure your members of Congress know that you want these and other important pro-consumer rules protected, and the CFPB’s work to continue. Your voice matters, so send an email directly to your members' inbox now. Send a Message And please, share this message with friends and family so they can join you in standing up for our consumer financial watchdog. Thank you, Chuck Bell Consumer Reports

© 2022 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 Contact Consumer Reports

RE: Let’s stop these preventable deaths

 

It’s the start of another school year, and as any parent knows, it’s also a start to a whole new routine. Unfortunately, those changes in routine can lead to heartbreaking tragedies when a parent or caregiver forgets a child in the backseat of a car. A child dies on average every 10 days from heat stroke after being left in a vehicle. And If you’d like to think you would never forget a child in a car, think again. Experts say this is a common memory problem, not negligence, exacerbated by sleep deprivation, stress of parenting – or a change in routines.  Affordable technology exists right now that can detect a child left in a car and alert the driver – we just need automakers to make this safety feature standard. Join thousands of others who’ve already signed our petition calling for advanced detection technology in all new vehicles. Sign the Petition Thanks, for helping us put an end to these tragedies. Meg  ______________________________________________________________ As temperatures soar, we’re all on high alert to the damaging effects of heat. But the most vulnerable among us – infants and toddlers – are dying from heatstroke inside vehicles at a staggering rate: a child dies on average every 10 days. Stories of parents or caregivers changing their routine and forgetting a child in the backseat are tragic, yet all too common. With the adoption of front airbags and requirements that car safety seats be rear-facing – making it harder for drivers to see a child in the back – an average of 38 children die each year from heatstroke inside a vehicle.  But together we can help end these tragedies. Affordable technology exists right now that can detect a child left in the car and alert the driver – we just need to let automakers know this safety feature should be standard in all new cars, and not a luxury add-on. Send a message to automakers to include this technology in all new vehicles, and let’s prevent these tragic deaths. Sign the Petition If you’d like to think you would never forget a child in a car, think again. Experts say this is a common memory problem - not negligence - exacerbated by sleep deprivation, stress of parenting, or a change in routines. And even when temperatures outside seem moderate, temperatures inside cars rise rapidly, putting a child in danger of heatstroke. Advanced detection technology can alert drivers to the presence of a child in the backseat by honking the horn and notifying them via an alert on their smartphone app. Already being added to cars in Europe, this technology would cost car buyers as little as $20, according to government estimates. But to get U.S. automakers on board and make this life-saving technology standard – and not a luxury add-on – it’s going to take all of us speaking out. Join us in telling automakers to do the right thing by families, and include this technology in their new vehicles. Sign the Petition Please share this with friends and family so they can join you in taking action. And please read and share our tips to prevent hot-car deaths, or watch this recent report. Meg Bohne Consumer Reports
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