Hacker News with Generative AI: Consumer Rights

Verizon tries to get out of merger condition requiring it to unlock phones (arstechnica.com)
Verizon petitioned the Trump administration to let it lock phones to its network for longer periods of time, making it harder for customers to switch to other carriers.

Telecommunications, Law, Consumer Rights, Mobile Phones

38 points by coloneltcb 2 days ago | 7 comments

Double Trouble for Repair Monopolies: Washington Passes 2 Right to Repair Bills (ifixit.com)
Washington just became the sixth state in the country to pass Right to Repair for electronics and the third to guarantee repair access for powered wheelchairs.

Legislation, Consumer Rights, Technology, Accessibility

10 points by gnabgib 4 days ago | 0 comments

How to Get 600 EUR Flight Cancel Compensation (josecasanova.com)
I recently had an American Airlines flight from Barcelona to Miami (direct!) get canceled.

Travel, Airlines, Compensation, Legal, Consumer Rights

6 points by jcsnv 4 days ago | 1 comments

CT Towing Co's Can Hold Personal Property for Ransom Because It Was Inside a Car (jalopnik.com)
Towing companies in Connecticut are using the personal belongings inside towed cars to squeeze fees out from drivers who can't cover the costs.

Law, Connecticut, Towing, Consumer Rights, Legal Issues

5 points by rntn 6 days ago | 1 comments

VPN firm says it didn't know customers had lifetime subscriptions, cancels them (arstechnica.com)
The new owners of VPN provider VPNSecure have drawn ire after canceling lifetime subscriptions. The owners told customers that they didn’t know about the lifetime subscriptions when they bought VPNSecure, and they cannot honor the purchases.

Privacy, Business, Consumer Rights, Technology, VPNs

15 points by 01-_- 10 days ago | 2 comments

VPNSecure cancels lifetime subscriptions after changing owners (arstechnica.com)
The new owners of VPN provider VPNSecure have drawn ire after canceling lifetime subscriptions. The owners told customers that they didn’t know about the lifetime subscriptions when they bought VPNSecure, and they cannot honor the purchases.

Business, Privacy, VPNs, Consumer Rights

10 points by ndr42 11 days ago | 4 comments

Aetna reimburses 25% less than what they claim (case study) (johnsonkevin.com)
tl;dr - Aetna says they’ll reimburse 140% of the “Medicare Allowable Rate” for out-of-network medical expenses. In my case they find that number and reduce it by 25%.

Healthcare, Insurance, Consumer Rights, Case Study

17 points by kevin499 15 days ago | 0 comments

What DeleteMe and Incogni aren't telling you [video] (youtube.com)

Privacy, Data Removal, Consumer Rights

5 points by gslin 21 days ago | 1 comments

Payment processors shouldn't be able to charge through an expired card (ycombinator.com)
My web hosting service renewed my subscription by charging my bank account through an expired debit card. Why do banks give payment processors such power? It’s ridiculous!

Finance, Payment Processing, Consumer Rights, Online Services

17 points by Lopsii 23 days ago | 19 comments

Vizio Shows What Happens When U.S. Fascism and TV Enshittification Meet (techdirt.com)
We’ve noted for years how the “smart” TV sector is at the forefront of enshittification. It’s a sector full of companies that have doubled down on annoying ads and surveillance to the detriment of the customer. And while absolutely fixated on monetizing consumer surveillance data, it routinely fails to put anywhere close to the same attention on consumer privacy, resulting in a lot of scandal.

Politics, Consumer Rights, Privacy, Television, Surveillance

11 points by type0 30 days ago | 1 comments

It takes one click to join Uber One, and 32 actions to quit (theregister.com)
The USA’s Federal Trade Commission on Monday launched a lawsuit against Uber, alleging the rideshare giant ripped off customers by enrolling them in its “Uber One” membership scheme without permission, failing to deliver promised savings, and making it devilishly difficult to opt out.

Consumer Rights, Uber, Lawsuits, FTC

9 points by beardyw 31 days ago | 0 comments

Tesla speeds up odometers to avoid warranty repairs, US. lawsuit claims (cnbc.com)

Tesla, Lawsuits, Automobiles, Consumer Rights

21 points by SirLJ 35 days ago | 1 comments

Kmart lied to me, so I hacked their lamp [video] (youtube.com)

Kmart, Hacking, Retail, Video, Consumer Rights

92 points by jackedEngineer 41 days ago | 48 comments

In Trump's Tariff Era, the Right to Repair Will Be More Important Than (wired.com)
Hang onto your stuff. That’s the advice right-to-repair advocates are giving anyone worried about how the tariffs will hit their wallets—and collections of electronic gadgets.

Politics, Consumer Rights, Technology, Economics

9 points by nkassis 44 days ago | 0 comments

TradingView's "€1/month" plan became €59.95 with no warning – refunded only afte (medium.com)
In February 2025, I accepted what looked like a harmless TradingView promotion: Premium Plan for €1/month.

Trading, Finance, Consumer Rights, Pricing, Software

5 points by zigfrid 46 days ago | 0 comments

Wyden Asks for Rules About Whether You Own Your Digital Purchases (theverge.com)
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) has sent a letter to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) chair Andrew Ferguson urging the FTC to require that companies admit when you’re not really buying an ebook or video game.

Digital Ownership, Consumer Rights, Government Regulation, Technology, Law

10 points by m463 87 days ago | 1 comments

Right to Repair laws have now been proposed in all U.S. states (ifixit.com)
With the introduction of a bill in Wisconsin, Right to Repair legislation has now been introduced in every single US state.

Legislation, Consumer Rights, Technology, United States

502 points by LorenDB 88 days ago | 160 comments

Disney+ Ad Policy Change (rossmanngroup.com)
In January 2025, Disney+ updated its Subscriber Agreement to include provisions allowing advertisements in content across all subscription tiers, including those marketed as "no ads" or "ad free."

Streaming Services, Advertising, Disney, Consumer Rights

27 points by instagib 104 days ago | 3 comments

Show HN: FreeDemandLetter – A Weapon for Anyone Who's Sick of Getting Shafted (freedemandletter.com)
Let's be honest: few things are more satisfying than getting what you're owed. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, over $230 million in back wages were recovered in 2021 alone.¹ Yet countless more go unclaimed because people don't demand what's rightfully theirs. We're here to fix that.

Legal, Consumer Rights, Technology, Web Apps

54 points by arashvakil 104 days ago | 57 comments

Automakers Sue to Kill Maine's Popular 'Right to Repair' Law (techdirt.com)
A little over a year ago, Maine residents voted overwhelmingly (83 percent) to pass a new state right to repair law designed to make auto repairs easier and more affordable.

Auto Industry, Law, Consumer Rights, Maine, Technology

36 points by hn_acker 105 days ago | 0 comments

Why Banks May Be Hoping You're Not Paying Attention (nytimes.com)
They have no fiduciary duty in many cases and can profit from customers’ confusion. But where’s the line between unsavory and illegal?

Finance, Banking, Ethics, Consumer Rights

5 points by JumpCrisscross 106 days ago | 0 comments

FTC Sues John Deere over Its Repair Monopoly (404media.co)
The Biden administration and the states of Illinois and Minnesota sued tractor and agricultural manufacturer John Deere Wednesday, arguing that the company’s anti consumer repair practices have driven up prices for farmers and have made it difficult for them to get repairs during critical planting and harvesting seasons.

Antitrust, Agriculture, Lawsuits, Consumer Rights, Business

67 points by jbiason 128 days ago | 11 comments

Right to root access (medhir.com)
I believe consumers, as a right, should be able to install software of their choosing to any computing device that is owned outright.

Consumer Rights, Software, Operating Systems

487 points by medhir 131 days ago | 417 comments

YouTube laywer LegalEagle is suing Honey and wants to take the company down (dexerto.com)
The Legal Eagle, a YouTuber with over three million subscribers who doubles as an actual attorney at law, has filed a class-action lawsuit against Honey, with the goal of getting creators back the money they allegedly stole through affiliate link fishing.

YouTube, Lawsuits, Affiliate Marketing, Consumer Rights

19 points by f1shy 140 days ago | 7 comments

2024 was the year gamers started pushing back on the erosion of game ownership (pcgamer.com)

Gaming, Consumer Rights, Industry Trends

30 points by pseudolus 150 days ago | 4 comments

Senators slam automakers for selling data and blocking the right to repair (theverge.com)
A bipartisan group of senators is calling out the auto industry for its “hypocritical, profit-driven” opposition to national right-to-repair legislation, while also selling customer data to insurance companies and other third-party interests.

Politics, Consumer Rights, Automotive Industry

13 points by speckx 154 days ago | 2 comments

Canada's new Right-to-Repair laws "good news for farmers" (farms.com)
Two federal bills received Royal Assent in November that will make it easier for consumers to fix and service the products they use on a daily basis. That includes phones and fridges and even tractors.

Canada, Legislation, Agriculture, Consumer Rights, Repair

15 points by kspacewalk2 161 days ago | 0 comments

Feds help health insurers hide their dirty secret: denials on the rise (nypost.com)
The health insurance industry’s dirty secret is that it’s no longer selling insurance: It’s selling a crapshoot.

Health Insurance, Government, Business, Consumer Rights

150 points by mancerayder 161 days ago | 279 comments

Amazon accused of cheating low-income Prime users out of two-day deliveries (theregister.com)
Amazon has trouble in the US capital, where the city's attorney general alleged in a lawsuit filed today that the company excluded two postal zip codes from its fastest Prime delivery service without informing customers.