07.28.25 Inflation & Retail Adaptation / Everyday Is Scam Awareness Day

Summary

The Clark Howard Podcast – Episode Summary

Episode: July 28, 2025
Title: Inflation & Retail Adaptation / Everyday Is Scam Awareness Day
Host: Clark Howard

---

1. Navigating Rising Costs and Shifting Shopping Habits

In this episode, Clark Howard delves into the significant impact of inflation on consumer behavior. With the cost of goods steadily increasing, Americans are adapting by altering their shopping habits to save money.

Key Points:

• Shift to Store Brands and Generics: Historically, U.S. consumers preferred brand-name products, but rising costs have pushed them towards more affordable store brands and generics.
• Changing Retail Preferences: Retailers like Dollar General and Aldi are gaining traction as consumers seek cost-effective alternatives.
• Shrinkflation Concerns: Clark explains the phenomenon of shrinkflation, where product sizes decrease while prices remain the same or increase. For example, “Hot Tamales used to come ... now what is this 4.5 ounces?” ([02:10]).

Notable Quote:

"Brand names cost more. Why? Because they're better sometimes. But that's not why they cost more. There's a lot of expense involved in packaging and marketing and advertising that you don't have with the store brands." – Clark Howard ([04:30])

Clark also highlights how manufacturers are reacting to declining brand-name sales by challenging competitors like Aldi in court, although he remains skeptical about the efficacy of these legal battles.

---

2. Listener Questions and Expert Advice

a. Investing a $20,000 Settlement for College ([06:05]–[08:04]): Jeffrey from Wisconsin seeks advice on investing a $20,000 settlement awarded to his 17-year-old daughter after a biking accident.

Advice Given:

• 529 Plan Utilization: Clark recommends continuing with the 529 plan for its tax-free growth, suggesting an age-based portfolio to ensure conservative investment until college.
• Future Flexibility: He mentions the possibility of converting unused funds into a Roth IRA if they are not needed for education ([07:38]).

b. Handling Subscription Scams ([08:04]–[09:05]): Danisha from Kentucky shares her frustrating experience with a meal kit subscription that auto-renewed despite her attempts to cancel.

Clark's Response:

• Effective Use of the Better Business Bureau (BBB): Clark commends Danisha for leveraging the BBB to resolve the issue, emphasizing that it works well with legitimate companies engaged in questionable practices ([09:05]).

c. Setting Up a 529 Plan without a Social Security Number ([09:34]–[12:35]): Peggy from Georgia faces challenges in setting up a 529 plan for her grandson due to her daughter-in-law’s reluctance to provide his Social Security number.

Advice Provided:

• Alternative Ownership Structures: Clark suggests naming a successor owner in the 529 plan, typically the parent, to ensure future access and flexibility.
• Direct Funding: He also recommends allowing the son to own the 529 plan directly, simplifying the process ([10:12]).

---

3. Everyday Is Scam Awareness Day

Clark dedicates a significant portion of the episode to raising awareness about the pervasive nature of scams, highlighting that 96% of Americans encounter scam attempts weekly ([14:34]).

Key Points:

• Common Scams Discussed:

  • Obituary Pirates: Scammers posing as funeral home representatives to exploit grieving individuals ([15:30]).
  • Student Loan Scams: Increased targeting following new legislation affecting student loans.
  • Storm and Cloud Storage Alerts: Fake warnings prompting unnecessary actions or purchases.
  • Unsubscribe Scams: Risks associated with clicking unsubscribe links that may compromise personal information.

• Scam Psychology: Most scams exploit greed, fear, or urgency, compelling victims to act without critical thinking.

Notable Quote:

"I don’t want you to be a cynic. I want you to be a skeptic." – Clark Howard ([18:00])

He emphasizes the importance of vigilance and skepticism in protecting oneself from financial fraud, underlining that scammers continuously evolve their tactics to deceive even the most cautious individuals.

---

4. Additional Listener Interactions

a. Life Insurance and Weight Loss Impact ([18:58]–[21:47]): Kate from Florida inquires about the benefits of obtaining new life insurance quotes after losing significant weight.

Clark's Guidance:

• Timing for New Quotes: Advises waiting until achieving a normal BMI before seeking new quotes to potentially secure lower premiums.
• Policy Adjustment Options: Suggests considering shorter-term policies and exploring options to convert or replace existing policies once weight loss is achieved ([20:15]).

b. Necessity of Checkbooks in a Digital Age ([21:47]–[23:42]): Matthew from Texas contemplates whether to discontinue using paper checks due to their infrequent use.

Advice Provided:

• Starter Checkbooks: Recommends obtaining a courtesy starter book of checks from the credit union.
• Alternative Payment Methods: Highlights the dangers and obsolescence of checks, advocating for digital payments whenever possible ([22:21]).

c. Unauthorized Apple Pay Transactions ([23:42]–[24:25]): A caller shares an incident where an unauthorized charge appeared on their Apple Pay after declining a receipt.

Clark's Response:

• Importance of Alerts: Stresses the significance of setting up text alerts for all transactions to quickly identify and address unauthorized activities.
• Immediate Action: Encourages monitoring digital payment platforms closely to prevent prolonged unauthorized charges ([24:25]).

---

5. Conclusion and Resources

In wrapping up, Clark reiterates the importance of staying informed and proactive in managing personal finances and protecting against scams. He promotes the podcast’s associated resources, including clark.com, clarkdeals.com, newsletters, and social media channels, offering listeners multiple avenues to access free financial advice and consumer protection tips.

---

Key Takeaways:

• Adapt Shopping Habits: Embrace store brands and generics to mitigate the effects of inflation and rising costs.
• Stay Informed on Scams: Maintain skepticism and utilize resources like the BBB to safeguard against fraudulent schemes.
• Optimize Financial Planning: Use tools like 529 plans effectively and reassess financial products as personal circumstances change.
• Embrace Digital Security: Leverage digital payment alerts and minimize reliance on obsolete systems like paper checks.

By addressing current economic challenges and providing actionable advice, Clark Howard empowers listeners to make informed decisions, save money, and navigate the complexities of modern consumerism.

---

Transcript

[Clark Howard]

This message is brought to you by Apple Card. Get 3% daily cash back when you buy an iPhone 16 with your Apple card at Apple. Subject to credit approval. Apple Card issued by Goldman Sachs Bank USA Salt Lake City Branch terms and more at applecard.com Raise the Rudders. Raise the sails.

Raise the sails.

Captain, an unidentified ship is approaching.

[Progressive Insurance]

Over.

[Clark Howard]

Roger, wait.

Is that an enterprise sale sales solution?

[LinkedIn Ads]

Reach sales professionals, not professional sailors. With LinkedIn ads, you can target the right people by industry, job title and more. We'll even give you a $100 credit.

[Clark Howard]

On your next campaign.

[LinkedIn Ads]

Get started today at LinkedIn.com results. Terms and conditions apply.

[Clark Howard]

It's great to have you here on the Clark Howard Show. You know our mission is all about you being empowered with knowledge so you make better financial decisions in your life. Today. How are you and I dealing with the cost of goods being so much higher? We are really changing. We're changing how, when and where we shop and it works. Also, I want to share something with you about scams later in this podcast. So you and I are behaving more like people elsewhere in the world. The United States has historically been the only developed market where people bought overwhelmingly brand name goods, but hit us in the head over and over again with costs going up. And what are we doing? Americans are now doing the rational thing. We're buying store brands, we're buying generics. We're changing where we shop. In fact, the brand name goods manufacturers had been playing a game on us, shrinking their packages. What became known during COVID is shrinkflation. So the bag might have been the same size bag but there was less stuff in it or the can had less in it, or the container had less or it shrunk. So there's a candy I like called Hot Tamales. Hot Tamales used to come, you know, in the theater size box they're sold came as a six ounce box, then it became a 5.5, then became a 5. Now what is this 4.5 ounces? Shrinking, shrinking, shrinking. Did the price go down? No, the price went up. If you buy it at $25 tree and from a dollar to $25 and so much less in it. But there are things we can do. First of all, shopping at $25 Tree is way up. Shopping at Dollar General way up. People of all income levels are changing where they shop to save money. They're changing what they buy. In fact, the brand name product manufacturers are scared so much so Aldi is being sued saying that their packaging of a lot of things looks Too much like the brand name. As a regular Aldi shopper, I was looking at some of these packages they're getting sued for and I actually don't see it. I don't see them confusing anybody. But it shows you how the brand name product manufacturers are seeing a decline in and customer purchasing and they're trying to do something about it by trying to beat the better competitor in court when they can't beat them in the court of public opinion, which is where you and I spend our money. So brand names cost more. Why? Because they're better sometimes. But that's not why they cost more. There's a lot of expense involved in packaging and marketing and advertising that you don't have with the store brands. Store brands when they started were selling inferior goods. That's not the way the game is played anymore because there's too much incentive for retailers to make sure the quality is good of the store brand because they make more margin, they make a higher markup on the store brand than they do on the brand name products that they sell side by side even though you're getting a lower price. So the market's moving, people are changing what they're doing. So much so that Barron's, which has one of the wealthiest readerships of any publication or website in the United States, Barron's wrote an article about how their readers are now shopping at places like Dollar Tree. And that is a shift in the marketplace. So what do their wealthy readers know that you should know? That's that they're getting more value for every dollar. Buying the brands that are not the normal brands, buying the store brands. I mean you go into Dollar Tree and you see the brands, mostly they're make believe brands. They're like made up brand names. They're just store brands, they're just cheaper and I like that.

[Caller]

All right, we'll go to questions. This one's from Jeffrey in Wisconsin. How should I invest $20,000 settlement for my 17 year old daughter. She was hit by a car on her bike. Oh no, she is okay thanks to her helmet and backpack. Went through a wind the windshield. My gosh.

[Clark Howard]

Oh my.

[Caller]

I would like to invest it for her college. She does have a small 529 plan Wisconsin plan.

[Clark Howard]

Wow. Gosh, I'm so glad she's okay. So if she is going to college, putting the money in her 529 would be a great idea because even though she's 17, that money would get some tax free growth if you let it sit there till later in her college career. Like maybe her junior or senior year. You let that money grow tax free, you're going to be what I'd want you in. In it is the age based portfolio or some plans call it inspected enrollment date portfolio. And so it'll be very, very conservatively put away. It won't be in stock type investing, but it will. The money will not be taxed. Then it can be used for college. Now if she doesn't need it for.

[Caller]

College, I did have a question about that 529. If the settlement's for her and he's the owner but she's the beneficiary, could you still put the money in it.

[Clark Howard]

So she can have her own 529?

[Caller]

Yeah, it'll just count against her for.

[Clark Howard]

Yeah, but having that money is going to count against her anyway.

[Caller]

Yeah, true.

[Clark Howard]

So why not have it grow tax free for several years? And I think that's what I would do. And then she will have the option way down the road. If she ends up not needing the money for college 15 years down the road, she can convert the money tax free into a Roth IRA, which is a wonderful provision of the law concerning 529s and Roths.

[Caller]

Danisha in Kentucky says for several years we have been subscribing to meal kit services when there's a good deal, then canceling when it goes to full price. I resumed one subscription earlier in the year and then in March I canceled. Or I thought I did. Last week I found a box on my front porch and a charge for $70.93 on my credit card. I called customer service and was informed the subscription had been paused rather than canceled. When the subscription is paused, it automatically resumes after three months. I had no notification option to choose the meals or opportunity to skip the delivery, just an email. On the day of that, a box was on the way. When I complained, the customer service rep informed me that the window to cancel to get a refund had passed. I just figured out I was 70 bucks. I was out 70 bucks in. Lesson learned. Technically my fault. But I was so annoyed at the company's sketchy business practices made to get my money. But then I thought, what would Clark do? And I submitted a complaint to the Better Business Bureau. Within two days I had an apology and a full refund. Thanks to you and your team for all you do.

[Clark Howard]

All right. I love this that you told your story because the Better Business Bureau works when you're dealing with a legitimate company that does something that is, as you said, sketchy. It doesn't work when you're dealing with somebody who's a crook or somebody who's just running a dirty rotten business. So you use the services the Better Business Bureau exactly like you should.

[Caller]

Okay, back to 529s from Peggy in Georgia. Peggy says my daughter in law does not want to give me my grandson's Social Security number so I can open a 529 plan for him. He's two years old, their first kid, and just paranoid about giving his number. She's just paranoid about giving his number out. So I set a 529 plan up under my name. I'm just wondering if I die tomorrow, if my son can easily have access to my account to change it to one in his son's name. I have no other grandchildren. He seems to think he can easily do this. But I just want to be sure this will not be a problem. I can't find anything on the529 website that answers this question. So I don't want to keep contributing if it's not a viable alternative.

[Clark Howard]

Okay, so your daughter in law is going to have to give her son's Social Security number for so many things in the future. And I love her being protective and careful of it. And one thing she should do if she's this worried about it, set up a child credit freeze is what I'd like your daughter in law to do. Because that's what's really going to protect her child, her son from having people abuse that Social Security number being out there. I can't tell if there's a weird family dynamic going on here or anything like this, but what I'd prefer that you do is that your son own a 529 plan. You can give him the money to fund it and then he will obviously know his child's Social Security number or should and can set up an account without any fuss or must. But in the situation you have here where you are the owner and you're the beneficiary, in most state 529 plans, you can name kind of like a contingent owner, successor, successor owner. So you name your son as the successor owner in the event of your untimely demise. And then your son would have the ability to change the designated beneficiary to your grandson. So that would be how you do it. It'd be a lot easier though if your son is ultimately going to end up potentially being the owner of the account anyway that you just give money you can give up to was 18 or 19,000 a year. These days to anybody else doesn't have to be a family member and there's no consequence to that at all, tax wise or whatever. So I would rather you keep it simple up front and just have your son be the owner and you give him the money to fund it. That would be how I would handle that. Coming up ahead, your daughter in law is worried about Scams we're going to talk about scams.

This podcast is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Fiscally responsible financial geniuses, Monetary magicians. These are things people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds because Progressive offers discounts for paying in full, owning a home and and more. Plus you can count on their great customer service to help you when you need it. So your dollar goes a long way. Visit progressive.com to see if you could save on car insurance, Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states or situations. This message is brought to you by Apple Card. Did you know Apple Card is designed to help you pay off your balance faster with smart payment suggestions? And because fees don't help you, Apple Card doesn't have any. So if your credit card is an Apple card make maybe it should be subject to credit approval. Apple Card issued by Goldman Sachs Bank USA Salt Lake City Branch Variable APRs range from 18.24% to 28.49% based on creditworthiness rates as of July 1, 2025 Terms and [e-mail].

[Progressive Insurance]

This podcast is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy. Just drop in some details about yourself and see if you're eligible to save money when you bundle your home and auto policies. The process only takes minutes and it could mean hundreds more in your pocket. Visit progressive.com after this episode to see if you could save Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.

[Charles Schwab]

We all have moments when we could have done better. Like cutting your own hair. Yikes. Or forgetting sunset screen so now you look like a tomato.

[Clark Howard]

Ouch.

[Charles Schwab]

Could have done better. Same goes for where you invest. Level up and invest smarter with Schwab. Get market insights, education and human help when you need it. Learn [e-mail].

[Clark Howard]

Scams and scamsters are everywhere. One of my relatives just got scammed in a very common scam involving searching for a business contact number through a Google search and they got scammed. And according to an article in CNET 96% of us, I think it's 100%, but I guess, gotta say 96%, 96% of Americans are targeted how often by scamsters? At least every week. How about that? And I mean, I'm looking here and I got a list of scam articles that I've seen just in the last few days. Here's one about AI. Obituary pirates. Think about that one that we've talked about where we've had calls from people who've been ripped off. I've done TV stories on this where someone is grieving, having lost a loved one. And the scamsters pretend to be from the funeral home and come up with some crazy story about why you got to pay some extra money right now. Or else. And people in their time of sadness suspend normal belief and they give money to scamsters. All the student loan scamsters right now. Gosh. Story after story after story. Just this week, with all the new laws that Congress just passed making life much more difficult for people with student loans, that's led to a big rush of scamsters trying to exploit those student loan borrowers. How about this one? Hurricane Season, Prepare to avoid scams is the headline of that story. How about this one? Are you really out of cloud storage or is that message a scam? Yep. How about this? These are. I mean, these are just a handful of them. Think twice before you click to unsubscribe. We did that as a topic one day on the podcast and YouTube show about when it's okay to click an unsubscribe link and when that's going to give your information that you don't want them to have to a scammer. And this is just like open season on all of us. And no matter how sophisticated you are, no matter how much you think you know how to protect yourself, know that all of us have to be on guard because there's so much money to be made running a scam. And we think, how could somebody. Blah, blah, blah, or how could somebody have fallen for blah, blah, blah? Understand that the scammers, this is what they do all day long. And you know, we've talked about the phony toll bills things, the things with plates and tags, I mean, goes on and on. So know everywhere you turn, I don't want you to be a cynic. I don't want you to assume the worst of your fellow human being. But there are bad people out there and for them, this is just a way to make a living. Okay, I read the craziest story Just the other day, there's so much money to be made in doing scams for a living that there are now scam schools that people can enroll in. This is not a joke. Scam schools you can enroll in that teach you how to scam people out of their money. So again, I don't want you to be a cynic. I want you to be a skeptic. I want you to be aware that most scams involve either an appeal to greed, an appeal to fear, or an appeal to immediacy. You must do it right now is a core element so that you don't have time to step back and think before you end up getting taken.

[Caller]

All right, we'll go to questions. Kate in Florida sent this one for you. Clark, I'm in my early 40s and a single parent to a young child. Following your suggestion, I obtained a 30 year fixed term life insurance policy for $1 million last year, which gives me peace of mind. Although I'm generally healthy, I'm significantly overweight and currently pay about $2,750 a year for the policy, which has a rating premium due to my weight. I've lost around £50 in the last year.

[Clark Howard]

Congratulations.

[Caller]

But I still need to lose another 50 pounds to reach a normal BMI, which I expect will take another 12 to 18 months. Can I and when should I start obtaining new quotes for coverage due to my weight loss? I know that each year that passes will increase my premiums due to my age, though as my son grows, I might consider a shorter term policy like 20 to 25 years instead of 30 for rating purposes. Will losing weight may make a significant difference or will insurers require me to maintain a healthy weight for a certain period before adjusting my risk rating? Obviously, I would not cancel my current policy until I have a new one in place. While I can afford the premiums, I'd rather not spend the extra money if it's unnecessary. Thank you for all your great advice. I've been listening since I was seated in the backward third row seat of my mom's dual tone station wagon with fake wood trim, which you can guess has been a long time.

[Clark Howard]

Okay, I love that Kate. So first of all, there's a great thing you're doing. Getting to the normal bmi. Not that many Americans have a normal bmi. If you're only as best you can tell a year to 18 months away and you're in your early 40s. No need for you to feel like you need to rush to apply. Give it another year or so you get your BMI near normal or normal. That's when you apply again, depending on the insurer. Some insurers will just do a current medical exam of you and your premiums will be based on what your current condition is. Others may do it based on checking your prior medical background. And there may be a longer period of time till they will quote you a significantly lower rate, having reduced your weight at such a remarkable pace. It's just great. But you will be able in the next year or so to quote a lower premium on a level term. And it'll be up to you whether you do 25 or 30 years since your child's young and you've got another 25 years of work in front of you or whatever. I would at least go 25 year level term, maybe 30 with the replacement you'll get in a year or two.

[Caller]

Matthew in Texas says, now I'm moving to a new credit union and I was about to buy new checks, but then I asked myself if I even need checks anymore. I look through my records and see I've only written 10 checks in the last 10 years. Practically all of my payments are electronic. So I'm tempted not to even buy a checkbook. Do you have any advice about what I should do on occasions when I need to write a check? I'm thinking that on the rare times I do need a paper check, I might use a cashier's check or money order or I should just ask the credit union for a free supply of temporary checks. But I suspect that I will inevitably still need to write a check sometimes. What do you think?

[Clark Howard]

Yeah, I think a lot of credit unions give you a starter book of 10 checks and if you're ever going to need more, then you have to order them. I would ask your credit union if they have any kind of courtesy starter checkbook you can have of like 10 checks. Ask what happens if you don't get checks and you occasionally need to have them issue a check? What is the cost for that? And depending on the credit union you may get so many courtesy free ones a year and after that you have to pay. But yeah, I mean, it's so dangerous to have a checkbook. Checks are so obsolete. We're the only developed country that still writes the kind of paper checks we do. Everybody else has moved away from that and thank goodness the number of checks written in the United States keeps going down because the check system, the clearing system for checks is not a safe system. It is dangerous to you, dangerous to your money, and also Creates the possibility if somebody writes a check as if they're you, that you end up being arrested. Checks need to go the way of the dodo Bird Allen in California says.

[Caller]

Last week I made a purchase at my local grocery store for $44 using Apple Pay. I declined a receipt. When I got home, I received a text alert from my Costco Visa for $123.50. How did this happen? At this store, at least there is a two stage process. First, my card got authorized and then I went on my merry way home. But the second stage, which was not done, is for the checker to approve the sale, closing out my purchase. This was inadvertently not done, so I paid for the buyer after me. The lesson learned is always get a receipt and set up text alerts. I'm sure this happens to other people, but if you don't get text alerts, it's unlikely you will ever realize what happened. I was made whole by the store, including getting my groceries for free.

[Clark Howard]

That is fantastic. I mean, that is wonderful that that happened at the store. And I'm so glad you shared this. So I use the Google competitor, Google Wallet, and I have mine set up where every time I use Google Wallet I get an alert by text and I wear a Samsung watch and I immediately get it showing me where I did the purchase and how much it was for. And so anyone who uses Apple Pay or Google Wallet, you want to do that. Getting receipts. Most people don't keep good track of receipts, so you want the electronic thing. And if you don't get that alert, which usually comes within probably 5 to 10 seconds of when I've tapped to pay, you don't get that alert. You know, stop right then and make sure that transaction went through in this case. Alan, I love that you shared the story and that everybody did the right thing after a bad clerical thing occurred. It's great. And thank you so much for joining us on today's podcast. I hope that you have just a wonderful week this week. And I want to tell you we serve you all week long with our newsletters. Our newsletters are free by the way, our websites, clark.com and clarkdeals.com what we have available to you on YouTube, on social media, and those of you live in markets where I'm on the television news. I still do that. I've been doing that for 35 years and I still do commentaries on radio. I've been doing that for 39 years. And scattered markets around the country these days. The idea is to reach you, however wherever and whenever you want to be empowered with knowledge. And if you've got a problem or a question that you've not heard us address, we provide one on one free advice for that through our Consumer Action Center. You can see how to get that information. Have that one on one free [e-mail] cac everything we do, every way we do it, is all about you being empowered so you can save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off. And we'll see you on Wednesday.

[FIFA World Cup]

The FIFA World Cup 26 is coming to North America next summer. It's the ultimate celebration of sports and culture and an opportunity to elevate your company. Get closer to where business meets the beautiful game with a premium hospitality package. Build partnerships in the best seats and suites. Achieve goals over world class food and beverage. Get closer to wins on and off the pitch. Book a package at fifaworldcup. Com Hospitality.