Pennsylvania touts consumer protections as feds withdraw

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Consumer scams are on the rise and one of the main consumer watchdogs is being de-clawed in Washington, D.C., so Pennsylvania is providing a place to turn for those who have been financially wronged.

“That, to me, just doesn’t make sense,” Governor Josh Shapiro said of President Donald Trump’s dismantling of the Federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. “You’d think they’d want to root out fraud and abuse as they talk about seemingly every day, so I think it’s counterintuitive.”

“You would think they would want to arm those who are combating fraud and abuse in our system with more tools, not less, to be able to protect the people,” Shapiro added.

As the feds back off, the state is leaning in. Shapiro announced a website and hotline Thursday for consumers with disputes or victims of fraud.

“There are too many dishonest people out there in this world who want to make a buck off of scamming the good people of Pennsylvania,” Shapiro said. “Or take advantage of a young student trying to pay for higher education or deny a sick Pennsylvanian the healthcare coverage they are owed.”

Staffers from the state’s Department of Banking and Securities and the Pennsylvania Insurance Department will man the phones and steer callers to appropriate resources. They’ve been doing it for years.

“Every week, the department receives approximately 200 calls and complaints from consumers,” Banking and Securities Secretary Wendy Spicher said. “They are mostly reporting frauds and scams.”

“We get calls about any number of issues,” John Smith, one of the calltakers, said. He’s been fielding calls for four years and he calls scams ever-present and sad.

“They really do prey on our most vulnerable citizens,” Smith said. “So we try to intervene wherever we can.”

With the feds withdrawing and the Governor trumpeting the hotline, Smith’s phone is likely to ring even more.

“Bring them on, I love talking to Pennsylvania consumers,” he said.

It’s worth one more mention, if you’ve been scammed or financially wronged, visit www.pa.gov/consumer or call 1-866-PACOMPLAINT.