ConsumerWatchdog

When I recently wrote about concerns being voiced, mine included, about self-driven (robotic or driverless) cars I did not imagine I would get to say, “I told you so” quite so quickly.

Consumer Watchdog has raised concerns that refunds owed ratepayers of Los Angeles DWP, many of whom have already made overpayments, will not be delivered for one year and a half under the best case scenario, while plaintiff attorneys will get paid $13 million in May.

Consumer Watchdog's problems with the settlement include the need for immediate refunds, no more threats of disconnections, no requirements for deposits for people who owe back bills, and the need for an impartial standard for whether ratepayers get paid, not whether DWP says so or not.

The Federal Communications Commission's new Internet rules require that the broadband internet  access providers — like Comcast, Time Warner, and AT&T — must protect the privacy of consumers' personal information as they use the networks.

Consumer Watchdog's John M. Simpson, a Google shareholder, raised the questions about the privacy and safety issues involving Google's driverless cars during the question-and-answer portion of Google's annual shareholders' meeting.

Some are wondering why gas prices are up at a time when crude oil prices remain low.

"The last time gas prices were over $4.00 in California, crude oil prices were over $100 a barrel. Today, crude oil prices are about $60 a barrel," said Jamie Court, president of the non-profit Consumer Watchdog.

"California’s oil refiners are the only industry in America that make a fortune when their factories go down,” said Jamie Court, President of Consumer Watchdog. “Oil company CEOs are boasting to investors on conference calls about huge West Coast profits from their refinery outages while refusing to appear before state legislators.  Why would oil refiners ever fix their refinery problems if it’s making them a fortune? It’s time for legislative reform.”

What a rip-off! Gasoline prices in Southern California just topped $4 per gallon with crude oil prices at historic lows. That’s $1.30 over the national average.

The oil company executives are refusing to answer questions. It’s time for subpoenas to fly! 

Sign the petition here: http://bit.ly/1A1eEMs

A Santa Monica-based nonprofit organization is blasting Google's self-driving cars, calling into question their safety and reliability.

Consumer Watchdog released a video this week following the technology company's report that the cars had been involved in a total of 11 accidents since the program began six years ago.