Consumer Justice: Consumer Treatment, Medical Debt, Wildfire Liability

From November 9th- 25th, 2024, the Oregon Values and Beliefs Center (OVBC) conducted a statewide survey of Oregonians’ values and beliefs regarding consumer justice.  The research was conducted to assist Oregon Consumer Justice (OCJ) in their commitment to advance consumer justice, shape an equitable and inclusive marketplace, and improve Oregonians’ rights as consumers through advocacy, legal support, community engagement, and consumer outreach.

The question numbers in this document correspond with the accompanying annotated questionnaire and tabs. Due to rounding, the percentages reported below may not add up to 100% or compare exactly to the percentages for the same question in the annotated questionnaire or tabs.

Included below for selected questions are noteworthy subgroup variations for age, gender, area of the state, BIPOC/white, etc. The accompanying set of tabs notes subgroup variations for all the questions.

Unless otherwise noted, each statement that summarizes noticeable differences captures a comparison within an identification category. For example, if reported that those 75 and older show a higher support of a particular statement, this captures a comparison to other age groups.

For survey full question wording, all statistically significant subgroup findings, and respondent quotes, readers are encouraged to refer to the accompanying documents located at the bottom of this post under “For More Information”: (1) annotated questionnaire, (2) crosstabulations, and (3) verbatim written responses spreadsheet (upon request).

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Half of Oregonians experienced some form of unfair or illegal consumer treatment in the past year, with scams and fraud being the most common.
• Fewer than half of all Oregonians could comfortably cover a $400 emergency expense.
• 30% of Oregonians have incurred medical debt within the last two years, largely from hospitals or hospital-owned facilities, and say it has a significant impact on their lives.
• Oregonians feel strongly that utility companies found responsible for the 2020 Labor Day wildfires should be responsible for financial costs associated with the fires, and costs should not be passed on to customers or taxpayers.

CONSUMERS’ EXPERIENCES OF UNFAIR TREATMENT

Half of Oregonians report having experienced some form of unfair or illegal treatment during 2024. Scams or fraud are the most common form of mistreatment (24%), followed closely by issues with grocery, food, and beverage (22%), such as false pricing. Unfair or illegal treatment related either to debt collection or to telecommunications – phone or internet plans, for example – are the next most common experiences, at 13% each.

Compared to previous surveys conducted in the spring and fall of 2023 and the spring of 2024, scams and fraud have consistently remained the most commonly reported issue. Mistreatment related to grocery pricing, telecommunications, and debt collection have shown fluctuations over time but have consistently remainined among the top issues.

Oregonians believe that Know Your Rights education and training, access to legal counsel or services, and a mobile app for consumer rights information and resources would be the most beneficial in helping them resolve or avoid unfair or illegal consumer treatment.

5% of Oregonians report that they could not cover a $400 emergency expense without borrowing money or going into debt. An additional 25% say they could pay for the expense, but it would be challenging. Only 40% of respondents indicate they could pay the amount without difficulty.

Compared to when OVBC first asked this question in 2023, there has been both a decline in the proportion who could pay without difficulty, and a nearly 10-percentage-point increase in those who could not afford the expense.

MEDICAL DEBT

Nearly one-in-three Oregonians have incurred medical debt within the past two years. Among those who have incurred medical debt, hospitals stand out as the leading source, with 41% citing them as the primary contributor. While specialty care (19%), urgent care facilities (15%), and primary care physicians (13%) also contribute significantly to medical debt, their impact is notably smaller compared to hospitals.

A strong majority of those burdened with medical debt (85%) say it significantly impacts their lives. The most common consequence is increased stress and anxiety (59%), but the financial repercussions are particularly concerning. 42% have reduced discretionary spending, but 40% say they have delayed or avoided seeking further medical care and 34% have had difficulty paying for other essentials like food or housing as a result of their medical debt. About one in four have used up most or all of their savings, and 29% have seen a negative impact on their credit score.

2020 WILDFIRE LIABILITY

Oregonians were asked about who should bear the financial responsibility for the 2020 Oregon Labor Day fires, given that the electric company involved was found to have acted negligently. A majority of respondents (76%) believe the company should bear the full financial burden of its actions, while only 14% think the costs should be passed on to consumers or taxpayers, indicating widespread public support for corporate accountability in cases of negligently caused disasters.

SUMMATION QUOTES – Amaury Vogel, Executive Director

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“With half of Oregonians encountering unfair or illegal practices in the past year, including scams and fraud, the data underscores the need for stronger protections and enforcement to safeguard consumers.”

“The call for corporate accountability is loud and clear. A strong majority of Oregonians believe utility companies should shoulder the financial burden of their role in wildfires—not customers or taxpayers.”

“The findings reveal a troubling trend: more Oregonians are struggling to cover basic expenses, with fewer than half able to handle a $400 emergency. Medical debt, held by 30% of residents, is forcing many to delay necessary care and cut back on essentials like food and housing.”

“This research paints a clear picture of the mounting pressures on Oregon households. Financial strain is rising, and residents are calling for meaningful accountability from corporations, especially in industries like insurance, utilities, and healthcare.”

METHODOLOGY

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The online survey consisted of 1,763 Oregon residents ages 18+ and took approximately 10-15 minutes to complete. This is a sufficient sample size to assess Oregonians’ opinions and review findings by multiple subgroups. Respondents were contacted by using professionally maintained online panels. A variety of quality control measures were employed to gather responses, including questionnaire pre-testing, validation, and real-time monitoring of responses. To ensure a representative sample, demographic quotas were set, and data was weighted by area of the state, gender, age, and education.

OVBC surveys currently use aggregated data to analyze the opinions of BIPOC residents in comparison to the opinions of residents who identify as white and not another race. BIPOC residents are not a homogeneous population, instead, they represent a wide diversity of races and ethnicities. The findings included in this memo should not be construed such that all people of color are believed to share the same opinions. Disaggregated race data will be provided when sample sizes permit reliability.

Statement of Limitations:: Any sampling of opinions or attitudes is subject to a margin of error. The margin of error is a standard statistical calculation that represents differences between the sample and total population at a confidence interval, or probability, calculated to be 95%. This means that there is a 95% probability that the sample taken for this study would fall within the stated margin of error if compared with the results achieved from surveying the entire population. This survey’s margin of error for the full sample is ±2.33% 

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Data Files

Learn more about OCJ’s efforts to decrease the impacts of medical debt:

“Oregon lawmakers advance bill barring medical debt from credit reports” | Statesman Journal

“Oregon Senate advances bill to shield consumers from medical debt on credit reports” | KATU News

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

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