Mar 6, 2026
Every year, without most people ever noticing, more than $165 billion (1) quietly disappears from the wallets of everyday Americans. Not through fraud or illtimed investments, but through the death-by-a-thousand-cuts of junk fees and time on hold.
We’ve all been there: hotel resort fees, the overdraft fee charged to your account or the health care surcharge that can’t be explained by your provider's billing department — once you finally get them on the phone.
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And when Stanford University economics professor Neale Mahoney and Chad Maisel, policy fellow at the nonprofit think tank the Groundwork Collaborative, went in search of how big this “annoyance economy” really is, what they found was astounding.
When broken down by the number of households in the U.S. (2), each family throws away about $1,230 per year. That’s equivalent to one month’s groceries for a family of four living in New York City (3).
Who’s in charge of combating these fees, and what’s slowing them down?
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was leading the charge against unwarranted and predatory fees. While in office, former President Joe Biden worked to require sellers to scrap junk fees and make more costs transparent (4).
And while the government was on the path toward limiting predatory practices, when Donald Trump was reelected president, the tide began to change.
In one example of policy backtracking, a federal court struck down a CFPB provision to cap credit card late fees at $8, down from the typical $32 that consumers face, according to reporting by Reuters (5). This is just one instance of how financial junk fee practices could be back on the rise thanks to less government oversight.
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How funding cuts affect you
According to former CFPB head Rohit Chopra, fired by Trump within his first month back in office, the ramifications of reducing the power of agencies meant to protect consumers could have wide-ranging consequences. In a Reddit ‘Ask Me Anything,’ Chopra described the ways that limits to the CFPB and other governmental agencies power could have negative consequences (6):
- Cutting staff who handle student loans means your application for cancellation may take months to be approved.
- Cuts to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division could allow employers to get away with wage theft.
While cuts to the CFPB are reportedly already costing consumers $18 billion (7), and a backlog of over 16,000 consumer complaints (8).
The only thing left is to look out for yourself
If you can’t rely on government agencies to step up on your behalf, it may be time to take matters into your own hands (within reason). Don’t assume you’ll have the support of the CFPB or other federal agency to back up your claim, and instead, use your voice and document your specific situation to give yourself the best likelihood of fighting back against unwarranted costs.
Here are some ways you can fight back:
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Push back at the counter if you see an “airport surcharge” on your rental car bill.
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Call and threaten to cancel if your streaming service raises its rates.
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Leave a detailed review and dispute excessive cleaning fees for a vacation rental.
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Renegotiate and make it clear you’ll cancel your gym membership over fees for amenities you don’t use.
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Review itemized internet/mobile bills for “vague” extra fees and demand they be removed or you’ll switch providers.
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If you receive incorrect invoices from a contractor or repair person, don’t pay anything until it’s resolved in writing.
We also can’t begin to imagine the ways artificial intelligence will impact the “annoyance economy.” If you haven’t already dealt with an AI customer service representative, it won’t be long until you experience the pain that can come from dealing with a robot to answer your most basic service questions or upsell you for a service that you didn’t intend to purchase.
But, the AI boom is also giving us reason for hope in warding off unnecessary charges.
AI agents are now being deployed to identify hidden and unnecessary costs and even fight on your behalf. New tech startups are now allowing you to fight AI with AI, employing your own automated bot to battle against health insurers that deny care (9), or others designed to argue endlessly in an attempt to lower your phone or cable bill (10).
Staying vigilant on what’s fair and right will only become more important as businesses automate payment processing to extract every dollar out of your pocket. It may be that using these same technologies against big businesses could be the key to keeping more money in your wallet.
Article sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.
Groundwork Collaborative (1); Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (2); Economic Policy Institute (3); NPR (4); Reuters (5), (7); @r/IAmA/Reddit (6); The Verge (8); Stateline (9); BusinessWire (10)
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Dan Pelberg has been a financial services copywriter and journalist for more than a decade. He's worked with companies across the industry, from leading banks and institutions to fintech startups and media outlets. When he's not working, Dan enjoys playing with his two children, walking in the woods, and sitting in silence.
