by Ronald Montoya for Edmunds

The best time to buy a new car in 2026 is near the end of the year, according to Edmunds analysts. New car discounts tend to increase in the late summer to fall months when the latest car models hit dealership lots in greater numbers. As these new cars arrive, dealerships need space to park them, and the best way to make room is to lower the prices on previous-year models. The last part is important to remember. Don’t expect the same level of discounts on this year’s models as you would see on last year’s.

There’s more to determining the best time to buy a new car. The automotive marketplace and the U.S. economy have begun to stabilize slightly in 2026, though where it’s stopping might not be to everyone’s liking.

Current car market conditions

The average transaction price (the total cost of the car plus fees) for a new vehicle hit a record high of $49,639 in September 2026, according to Edmunds sales data. Interest rates for car loans have remained high, averaging about 7% through most of 2026. Note that interest rates can vary widely from state to state, not to mention from buyer to buyer.

Both automakers and car buyers were surprised last year when the Trump administration introduced tariffs and by how quickly the situation kept changing.

“2026 hasn’t been as turbulent, and automakers have tried to hedge their bets to reduce disruptions from future tariff changes,” said Ivan Drury, director of insights for Edmunds. He added that buyers in 2026 can feel more confident that they won’t see the dramatic changes or low inventory issues that plagued the industry in prior years.

If you’re in the market for a new car today, there’s one possible benefit to rising new car prices: More shoppers trading in their vehicle are realizing that it is worth more than they expected.

When are the best times to buy a car?

Given that every buyer can’t wait until the “perfect car buying conditions” appear, here’s some realistic advice: The best time to buy a car is when you need it and feel ready to buy, regardless of the time of year.

With the car market, it can sometimes feel like Murphy’s law is in effect, as something inevitably challenging will come up. Whether it’s high interest rates, limited inventory or low trade-in values, car buying can be stressful, and it can take a long time to go from deciding what to buy to actually closing the deal. Why add to that pressure by trying to squeeze your shopping into a certain day of the week or a holiday weekend when everyone has the same idea?

But if you’re a bargain hunter who really wants to pinpoint the best time to buy, let’s examine your options.

Best time of the year to buy a car

Best month to buy a car

Apart from a few years in the pandemic when everything was thrown for a loop, December has been the month with the highest discounts off MSRP.

“The traditional norms are back, said Drury. “The longer someone can wait, the better; discounts at the end of this year should be more generous.”

This is reflected in the table below, based on Edmunds data through September 2026. You’ll see that the percentage off MSRP has been steadily increasing in recent years.

As the month comes to an end, dealers might be a few cars short of meeting the sales quota, which could earn them an additional bonus. In these situations, salespeople have greater motivation to close a deal and might offer deeper discounts on cars, making up any lost money with the bonus. This is one of those times when buyers should not sleep on a car deal.

However, if the sales team has already met its monthly quota, a salesperson may be less motivated to give you the deal you expect. This is hard to know ahead of time. But if you’re in the middle of negotiating and you are offered a very low price, ask your salesperson why the dealer is willing to “lose money” on this sale. If the reason makes sense and the price is much better than your research suggests, it could mean the dealer is trying to meet a sales goal.

If you’re nervous about buying near the end of the month, test-drive the car earlier and close the deal at the end of the month. Also, many new-car incentives last a few days after the month ends, giving you a buffer.

End of the calendar year

The end-of-the-calendar-year strategy follows the same logic as the end-of-the-month strategy. Dealership sales departments that have not made their sales goals for the year will want to finish off the year as close to their goals as possible. The difference here is that late December also coincides with the time that dealerships are looking to get rid of any remaining current-year vehicles to make room for newer ones.

That said, each manufacturer handles its end-of-the-year sell-down differently. This means that some car dealerships will have a better selection of outgoing-year vehicles late in the year, while the pickings could be slim at others. There’s always a balance to be struck between getting a better deal and having more options to choose from — rarely can you have both.

Best day to buy a car

Early in the week: This tip is more about the level of attention you can expect from a salesperson than about getting a killer deal. Weekends are typically the busiest time at a dealership. The salesperson might be juggling multiple customers, and the finance office is likely to be a bottleneck. But if you show up on a Monday or Tuesday, there will be less foot traffic. You can ask plenty of questions, and the transaction should take far less time. In some parts of the country, however, dealerships are closed on Sundays. And as a result, Monday is a pretty busy day of the week. If that’s the case for you, go on a Tuesday or Wednesday.

Best times to buy a car

End of the model year

All the new model-year cars used to debut in the fall, making the end of summer a good time to shop for leftovers. These days, however, there is no unified new model-year season. For example, cars from the upcoming model year now debut as early as January of a calendar year.

Edmunds analysts say that August and September are when they generally see automakers make the most concentrated effort to transition to new models. In the past, the summer months tend to correspond with a bump in incentives, particularly low-APR financing on outgoing model-year vehicles.

Something to note: It’s worth looking at the incoming model-year cars to see what features have changed and to get a feel for pricing. It’s rare, but there have been instances when a car from the incoming model year has had better incentives than a car from the outgoing model year, particularly if you’re looking to lease.

End of the car’s design cycle (before a redesign)

When a manufacturer has announced a redesign or redesigned a car model, you will often find greater savings on the outgoing model. True, you are buying a car without the latest styling or technology, but if you’re more of a bargain hunter than a trendsetter, this might not matter to you.

End of the car’s life cycle (discontinued model)

Sometimes, the manufacturer announces that it will stop making a car altogether. There’s potential in this situation for even bigger savings. You should know that the car will likely depreciate sharply if it’s discontinued, but if you plan to keep it for a while, it won’t affect you much. It’s also worth looking into why the automaker is pulling the plug on a given vehicle. Is it a matter of changing tastes, or was the car subpar in terms of performance or reliability? For example, most domestic automakers have discontinued many sedans in favor of more popular SUVs.

Best holidays to buy a car

3-day weekends

It’s hard to miss the inflatable eagles, gorillas and wacky waving tube men that dot car lots on three-day weekends, to say nothing of ads that promise “rock-bottom” prices. Does a “Star-Spangled Sale-a-Bration” mean savings for you? Possibly.

Whether it is Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, or Labor Day, be prepared for a busier-than-normal showroom. Ideally, you want to do your research, take a test drive before the holiday, and close the deal on the weekend. Or better yet, wrap up the deal on the first weekday after the weekend.

Black Friday

Black Friday is the biggest retail shopping day in the U.S., and the same shopping fervor tends to happen on car lots after Thanksgiving. Automakers and dealers will offer more incentives, discounts and “doorbusters” as a means of capturing some of that retail excitement. Black Friday also coincides with the end of the model year, which means that you’ll likely see greater discounts on outgoing models throughout the month, so don’t feel pressured to wrap up the deal on that one day.

If you want to shop on Black Friday, you’ll need to do some pre-Thanksgiving planning, such as obtaining a value on your trade-in, getting preapproved for an auto loan from your bank or credit union, and taking test drives. Also, make sure you read the fine print on any Black Friday deal ads that seem too good to be true.

What time of year do new car models come out?

These days, new vehicles are launched throughout the year, though there tend to be clusters of new models in the spring and fall.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency actually has rules on how a vehicle is assigned a given model year: “For engines/equipment subject to emission standards based on model years, the first day of the annual production period can be no earlier than January 2 of the calendar year preceding the year for which the model year is named, or the earliest date of manufacture for any engine/equipment in the engine family, whichever is later. The last day of the annual production period can be no later than December 31 of the calendar year for which the model year is named or the latest date of manufacture for any engine/equipment in the engine family, whichever is sooner.”

In other words, a 2027 model-year vehicle can be released at any time on or after Jan. 2, 2026. Similarly, a new model can be labeled as a 2027 all the way until Dec. 31, 2026.

Final thoughts on when to buy a car

As noted, you’ll find many opportunities throughout the year to get a great deal on a new car. Ultimately, the best time to get a new car is when you need one and only after you have completed your research.

Get an appraisal for your current car, so you know how much it’s worth as a trade-in. Next, figure out the market value of the car, and factor in any incentives and rebates. Locate the vehicle you’re interested in, and determine how the asking price compares to what others are paying to provide perspective on whether you have a fair offer. Watch for unexpected add-ons. Then make your deal. In the long run, this approach makes more sense than trying to predict the effects of weather, holidays, and the seasonality of your car purchase.

This story was produced by Edmunds and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

The best time to buy a car, according to Edmunds data was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Lisa Reyes for Paychex

Salary ranges are now a standard part of many job postings. As of late 2026, 17 states and Washington, D.C., have pay transparency laws, and many require employers to list salary ranges in job postings. That means members of your team can now compare their pay with what other employers advertise for the same role, and with what you advertise, too.

It turns out that many employees are looking. According to Paychex’s Employee Compensation Confidence Index, an anonymous, public survey of 1,034 full-time U.S. employees about their pay, conducted online by independent research firm Centiment, 55% have seen the same work they do posted at a higher pay rate than they earn. Most won’t tell you about it, though: 64% didn’t ask for a raise after seeing their role listed at a higher salary, and 31% started looking for a new job instead.

A higher posted range doesn’t always mean an employee is underpaid. But when employees can’t see what explains the difference, the posting shapes how they feel about their pay. Paychex provides insight into what the data shows about how employees react, and how to respond before a pay question turns into a resignation.

Key Takeaways

• More than half (55%) of full-time employees have seen their job posted for more than they earn: 21% at their own employer and 37% at another company. (Some saw both.)
• Only 36% of those employees asked for a raise. 31% started job hunting, and 26% did nothing.
• Employees who’ve seen a higher-paying posting are about twice as likely to have quit a job over a pay problem (24% vs. 13%).
• Only 21% of employees say their employer shares pay range data with them.

Most Employees Who Spot a Higher Salary Won’t Bring It to You

When employees see their role advertised for more money, few take the question straight to their employer. Just over a third asked for a raise, while others talked to coworkers, started job hunting, or did nothing at all:

That silence could be a retention risk. Employees who’ve seen a higher-paying posting are about twice as likely to quit a job over a pay problem (24% vs. 13%). More broadly, a whopping 61% of those who saw a higher posting have seriously considered leaving over pay, compared with 30% who didn’t.

Where employees see the posting matters, too. Among all employees surveyed, 37% saw a higher-paying posting at another company, and 21% saw one at their current employer. Of those who saw their role posted at their own company, 46% asked for a raise, compared with 30% of those who saw it only at another company. Your own job listings are the hardest postings for current employees to explain away.

Employees under 46 years old are the most likely to notice, and the youngest are the most likely to act on it. Among employees aged 18 to 29, 64% have seen a higher-paying role, and 42% of them started job hunting as a result. In comparison, 46% of employees aged 46 to 61 have seen a higher-paying role, and only 21% of those started job hunting.

Here’s how to get ahead of these conversations with your employees.

Step 1: Check Current Pay Before You Post a New Range

Before you publish a job listing, compare the posted range with what current employees in the same role earn. If you’re offering new hires more than your existing team, a situation known as pay inversion, the posting shows your current employees exactly how much more. Compare:

• Duties and Scope: Make sure the posted role matches the work current employees do, including team size, budget and tools. If the new role carries more responsibility, say so clearly in the listing.
• Experience and Credentials: A higher range is easier to justify when the posting requires more experience, a specialized certification or an advanced degree. Spell out those requirements so employees can see why the range differs.
• Location: A remote posting open to candidates in higher-cost markets like San Francisco or New York City often carries a higher range. If your range is tied to a specific location, state that in the listing.
• Where New Hires Will Likely Land: A wide range draws attention to the top number. If most new hires start near the middle, current employees earning in that band are likely paid competitively, but they need to hear that from you.

If the comparison turns up current employees paid below what you’re offering new hires, adjust their pay before the listing goes live, or be ready to address it.

Step 2: Benchmark Pay Against the Market

Your employees are already researching market pay. Here’s how they check whether their pay is competitive:

• 39% compare pay on job sites or salary apps
• 26% ask people in similar jobs at other companies
• 23% openly discuss pay with coworkers

Use the same sources they do. Collect three to five postings for comparable roles in your local market, and pull wage data for your industry, occupation and region from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics . The most current BLS data, released in May 2026, reflects wages as of May 2025, so factor in market shifts since then. For a deeper look, here’s how employers benchmark pay.

Then, benchmark on a set schedule, not just when someone asks. Among employees who check their pay, 30% do so only when job hunting, and 26% only when they hear about someone else’s pay.

Step 3: Explain How You Set Pay

Only 21% of employees say their employer shares pay range data with them. When you don’t explain how you set pay, job postings fill in the blanks. You don’t need to publish every salary, but employees should understand:

• Their Pay Range: Share the range for their role and where they fall in it.
• What Moves Pay: Explain which factors lead to raises, such as performance, added responsibilities, certifications or tenure.
• When Pay is Reviewed: Tell employees when compensation reviews happen so they know when to expect the next conversation.
• Their Total Compensation: Bonuses, commission, retirement contributions, health benefits and PTO all count. Show employees the full value of what they receive, not just base pay.

You can also expect that employees will talk about pay with each other. Under the National Labor Relations Act, most private-sector employees have a legally protected right to discuss wages, so you generally can’t prohibit those conversations. The law excludes supervisors, independent contractors and some other categories of workers, however.

Step 4: Prepare Managers for the Raise Conversation

When an employee does bring a higher-paying posting to their manager, how the manager responds affects whether that employee stays. Make sure managers know how to:

• Listen First: Ask which posting the employee saw and what they think it shows. Treat it as one data point, not an ultimatum.
• Compare it Fairly: Walk through duties, experience, location, and total compensation together, using the same criteria from Step 1.
• Give a Clear Answer: If an adjustment is warranted, share the amount and timing. If it isn’t, explain why and what the employee would need to do to qualify.
• Follow Up in Writing: Summarize what was discussed and any next steps, and loop in HR or whoever handles compensation.

Step 5: Offer a Path Forward When You Can’t Raise Pay Now

Budgets don’t always allow for an immediate raise. But a flat no without a next step sends employees back to the job boards. Instead, offer:

• Alternatives to a Base Raise: Consider a one-time bonus, a title change, schedule flexibility, extra PTO or training and certification support.
• A Timeline: Agree on when you’ll revisit the request and what criteria the employee needs to meet. Put it in writing, then follow through.

Make Pay a Conversation Employees Have With You

Pay transparency laws mean employees will keep seeing what other employers advertise, and most won’t ask you about it first. Reviewing pay before you post a role, benchmarking on a regular schedule and explaining how you make pay decisions gives employees a reason to bring their questions to you instead of to a recruiter.

Methodology

The survey was conducted online by Centiment for Paychex, with a total sample size of 1,034 full-time employed U.S. adults aged 18 and older. To qualify, each respondent had to be currently employed by an employer (not self-employed or a business owner) and receive a regular paycheck. Fieldwork was undertaken from August 21 to August 31, 2026. Results are weighted to match the U.S. census. The margin of error is approximately ±3% for the overall sample at a 95% confidence level.

This story was produced by Paychex and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

55% of employees have seen their job posted for more money. Here’s how employers can respond. was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Leia Larsen for The Salt Lake Tribune

Sarah Miller biked with her 5-year-old son on a hot August afternoon to a vibrant new park in Utah City, the walkable community that sits on 700 acres in the heart of Vineyard, Utah. The area is envisioned as Vineyard’s new downtown.

They rode along the Greenline, a wide promenade flanked by pickleball, tennis and basketball courts that runs from the Vineyard FrontRunner train station toward glittering Utah Lake. She moved to Vineyard with her kids to live by the shore, she said, and she’s enjoyed watching Utah City go up near her home.

Its first two swanky apartment complexes, called 120 and 220 Bend, were finished in February, though only a few balconies had patio furniture. She and her son had the park, with its array of slides and wooden play structures to explore, almost to themselves.

“It’s very quiet for now. I imagine as it grows, more people will come in and it will feel a bit more alive,” Miller told The Salt Lake Tribune. “But I think it’s beautiful.”

Utah City’s developer is building on a rare opportunity to create a transit-oriented, high-density community from scratch in the middle of one of the state’s fastest-growing metro areas — with strong buy-in from past Vineyard officials, new tools for government to help with financing and significant investments from taxpayers.

But Utah City now faces heightened scrutiny from Vineyard’s new mayor and new City Council members who say they have a mandate from voters to roll back policies they argue were too deferential to developers. These leaders are skeptical both of the vision for Utah City and of the leeway and incentives provided to its developer.

“Maybe it can work, maybe it can’t,” said City Council member Jacob Wood, who took office in January. “It’s a gamble, but they shouldn’t be gambling with city money.”

The vast Utah City property was once home to Geneva Steel, an industrial complex built during World War II that went defunct in the 2000s. Former Vineyard officials created tax incentives to clean up the site and agreed to allow thousands of housing units and high-rise buildings to be built there, to help lure developers. The Utah Transit Authority built a stop at the site in 2022 for FrontRunner, the commuter train that runs up and down the Wasatch Front.

Flagborough LLC, the developer of Utah City, says it’s shaping a shining example of how Utah and other Western states can abandon suburban sprawl, with a downtown focused on people instead of cars and a solution to the smog that plagues the region every summer and winter.

“The biggest benefit of this project, the greatest opportunity, is that the project’s so big,” said Nate Hutchinson, a partner in both Flagborough and The Flagship Companies, which is spearheading development in Utah City and is one of the largest housing developers in the state.

“We’ve been working with a lot of people who’ve done this really well all over the country,” said Pete Evans, a co-managing partner of Utah City and Flagship. “We think we have a pretty good formula on how to make it viable.”

Longtime Utah County resident David Lauret, another of the new Vineyard City Council members who took office in January, questions whether too many public resources have been committed to that plan. City Council members also target the project’s density, which is partly funded using property tax incentives.

“The problem we have is many of the citizens feel they’re trying to use our money … toward building their business,” Lauret said. “It’s all rental facilities. We’re basically helping to hand them a business they’ll make money with in perpetuity.”

The city doled out $4.5 million to Utah City developers in 2026 alone, and council members interviewed for this story said they’re reviewing what those payments covered.

Walking through the city of the future

Bella’s Market, a grocery store with sparkling floor-to-ceiling glass windows, opened in Utah City late last year across the street from the FrontRunner station. Next door is the newly opened Fini Pizza, a slice shop recruited from New York City.

Utah City’s immaculate water-wise landscaping and green space have communal fire pits and conversation areas with candy-striped sun umbrellas. At the end of the Greenline lies the Utah City playground, topped by a spherical — and climbable — centerpiece that seemingly floats like a hot air balloon. Taken together, the development has the feel of a vintage boardwalk or century-old World’s Fair promenade, minus the crowds.

These are welcome amenities for Vineyard, which has surged from a sleepy town of 139 in 2010 to a booming city of about 16,000 today. Gently curving paseos beckon pedestrians to continue walking and discover what’s ahead — usually a small plaza with more sitting areas and common spaces. Lobbies for the apartment complexes are decked out in board games, books and vinyl records.

“The community’s rad,” said Cameron Larsen, a 34-year-old father of four who moved into a three-bedroom apartment with his family in Utah City last February. “The units are pretty bougie.”

Larsen was about to start a new job and expected to take the FrontRunner for his commute. His wife, 29-year-old Aunica Larsen, walks to work at Bella’s. “This is literally my favorite place I’ve ever lived,” she said. “It’s all very vibey.”

The developers have thrown in all kinds of perks to seal the deal, like ski passes to Sundance and unlimited access to the Peloton fitness center and future swimming pool.

Strolling or cycling through it all, visitors and residents likely won’t think much about vehicle traffic or crosswalks. That’s a big win, according to Jeff Speck, a lauded urban designer Flagship tapped for the project.

“The question isn’t getting Americans to give up their cars. It’s creating an environment in which they just want to use them less,” said Speck, author of the 2012 book, “Walkable City: How Downtown Saves America, One Step at a Time.”

New urbanists like Speck see value in cities where neighborhoods incorporate homes for the wealthy next to homes for the working class and civic buildings like town halls. They include narrow streets, bike paths and sidewalks, and look a lot like the cities that were built in the 18th and 19th centuries before cars rose to prominence in Western life.

The partners behind Utah City said they want wellness to be at the heart of their development, from the pickleball courts to the Peloton gym to free yoga in the park. “[We] try to be less online, mad at each other,” Hutchinson said, “and more just in real life, connecting with each other.”

They expect to finish building Utah City in 15 to 20 years.

Do Utahns want density?

In its earlier years, Utah City enjoyed strong support from Vineyard leaders. In 2022, the city applied for a special state designation for the project and succeeded in making it a Housing and Transit Reinvestment Zone. The program encourages multifamily residential and commercial clusters around transit hubs.

In these zones, as land values rise — and raise more property taxes — local governments capture that new tax income and use it to pay developers for up to 25 years to fund infrastructure like parking garages and utilities, as well as “vertical construction costs” — the additional expense of building above four stories.

But members of the new city council doubt high-rise, high-density housing can work among Utah County’s ever-expanding freeways, its frequent gridlock, its seas of subdivisions with single-family homes.

“The plans are ambitious,” Vineyard Mayor Zack Stratton, who took office in January, said of Utah City. “This is the reality: No one up and down the Wasatch Front wants density.”

In some ways, it’s an old story in a new location.

“Planners go in with the best intentions,” said Sarah Moser, a professor of urban and cultural geography at McGill University. “Everyone wants mixed-use, dense, walkable, bikeable cities, but the population is not there.”

In other words, people like the idea of riding bikes or taking trains, but when it comes down to it, they prefer to drive. That may be the case, especially for Utah residents who are drawn to the state because of activities where a car is necessary — like skiing or visiting national parks.

In 2023, 78% of Americans and closer to 79% of Utahns drove to work, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. In Utah County, just under 66% of its more urban population drives alone to work. Only 10% of Utah County workers carpool, and less than 2% take public transportation.

The City of Orem, which borders Vineyard, decided it was done with multifamily, dense rental properties last year and now prioritizes building more single-family homes.

Utah City “doesn’t feel like Utah,” said Wood, from Vineyard’s City Council. “Maybe that’s the point.”

In a January promotional video, Utah City partner Craig Cannon boasts of the “incredible” development rights Vineyard granted the project, allowing “unlimited” height and density.

Some new council members bristled, but Lauret acknowledged that Utah City’s zoning remains part of city code. “I’m not thrilled about it,” he said, “but there’s not much we can do.”

‘Pay a premium to live’

In the same video, Evans discusses creating a community where “people will pay a premium to live.” That’s another concern new Vineyard leaders say they have — affordability. “They’re in the market of selling a luxury lifestyle,” Wood said.

He figures most students and young professionals in the area can’t afford to live in Utah City. Studio units at the two current apartment buildings range from $1,325 to $1,410 a month. That rent does not include parking, pet rent or most utilities, and is based on a 17-month lease.

The average rent for a studio in Provo, the county seat and home of Brigham Young University, is $1,199 as of late September, according to Rent.com, while the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment there is $1,521. Utah City’s two-bedroom units currently start at about $2,500.

Wood, 25, said he would like to buy a house one day, but with his single income, homeownership feels increasingly out of reach. He said he wants the developers to build affordable retail, too, like a Ross Dress for Less.

In Vineyard’s application to create the housing and transit zone, the city, Flagship and other supporters asserted that increasing the availability of lower-cost housing was a key objective for Utah City. It would include “2,000+” attainable units, which cost 30% or less of a household’s income, the application said, and “thousands of housing units” near the FrontRunner stop with “affordable Utah County rents.”

Now a City Council member, Jacob Holdaway is a descendant of the Latter-day Saint pioneer family that settled Vineyard and named it after table grapes they grew. He dislikes how past city administrations have guided the city’s growth and has helped lead a community movement that’s cynical about developers.

“When you hear the sales pitch, you’re sold on the thing,” Holdaway said of Utah City’s pitch about its housing. “It was a complete bait and switch. They put this carrot in front of you, and it never happens.”

He wants to see more homes for sale, not rentals, he added.

But the developers say they plan to construct “thousands” of housing units, including single-family homes that will be among the few thousand that residents can buy instead of rent. They just want to build the surrounding parks, shops and eateries first.

“That was always the plan,” Hutchinson said. “To say it’s a bait and switch … is factually not even close to being true.”

He said the project is defining affordable based on a standard from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which says “low income” households are those that make up to 80% of area median income. For this population, Hutchinson said, almost all of the current units are affordable.

In Utah County, that means having an annual income of $95,350 for a four-person family and $66,750 for a single person. Federal guidelines have long set 30% as the maximum a household should spend on rent, which would be about $2,380 per month for a family of four and $1,670 for a single person.

Flagborough LLC was described in earlier documents as a joint venture between The Flagship Companies and Woodbury Corporation. But Woodbury Corporation confirmed in early 2026 that it had quietly stepped away from the project. A spokesperson would not say why.

Flagborough appears to have found new sponsorship through Sandlot Partners, an Orem-based private equity firm founded in 2020 that invests in real estate, oil and gas. Sandlot posted the January video.

Hutchinson declined to discuss Woodbury or any current backers of Utah City. “We still locally own and control a majority of the project,” he said, “and we care about it.”

The council’s new scrutiny

Vineyard’s Redevelopment Agency also provides financial support to Utah City, such as paying for the cleanup of the old Geneva steel mill, which once covered nearly 2,000 acres. An investigation by the Utah State Auditor last year found Vineyard’s RDA hadn’t properly reported big payments to developers citywide, while a city-commissioned audit found poor oversight and management of RDA money. Utah City isn’t specifically named in the state audit, but city officials said they still can’t say how much taxpayer money the RDA has paid developers, including those at Utah City.

“We have contracts,” Hutchinson said, “and we keep them.”

In a controversial move, the City Council recently hired a panel of residents to probe the RDA’s past contracts and payments, including those tied to Utah City. So far, council member Lauret said, “Have we uncovered anything earth shaking? No.”

Vineyard once planned to build a $35 million city hall in Utah City as a civic anchor, but Stratton, now the new mayor, led a signature-gathering effort against it. The developers had intended to donate land for the project, but opponents decried the building as too expensive and the prior mayor and council abandoned the idea.

Former Council member Ezra Nair, who also worked as Vineyard’s city manager from February 2022 until November 2023, publicly supported the Utah City development.

“Unfortunately, it’s a lot easier to get people angry about something than get people excited about something,” Nair said in an interview in June. “Building takes time, but tearing down goes really fast.”

Nair resigned his council seat on Aug. 30 to take a job at Provo City.

Vineyard’s previous city council also approved the creation of 10 public infrastructure districts, or PIDs, for Utah City in 2023. These are quasi-governmental agencies that issue bonds to fund public infrastructure like roads and water pipelines, though districts in or next to a Housing and Transit Reinvestment Zone can also provide financing for private improvements.

The first PID for Utah City paid $52.3 million to Flagborough LLC in May. Hutchinson said it will be used for public infrastructure like roads.

Despite resistance from the new City Council, Utah City developers remain undeterred. As businesses succeed there, increased revenues from sales taxes can shift the burden of funding city services away from property owners and residents.

“The priority for everybody,” Evans said, “is how do we create a great sales tax base and ensure the success of the future of the city?”

In 2028, Utah City will become home to a Huntsman Cancer Institute hospital and research facility, which offers immense opportunities for local employment. On the east side of the FrontRunner tracks, the developers expect to build light industrial and biomedical facilities that will complement a future Utah Valley University campus.

Even skeptics of Utah City call the hospital and university big wins. “That’s exciting for the state,” Stratton said, “exciting for our city.”

This story is made possible through a partnership between The Salt Lake Tribune and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.

This story was produced by The Salt Lake Tribune and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

Can a walkable downtown thrive in the heart of suburban sprawl? was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Richart Ruddie for Captain Compliance

A visitor opens a retailer’s chat box and asks where an order has gone. Behind the chat window, a software provider routes the message through its servers, generates a transcript, identifies the customer and possibly analyzes the exchange to improve its product. The visitor may assume the conversation is simply between the customer and the retailer. A plaintiff’s lawyer may see something else: An electronic communication acquired by an undisclosed third party.

That difference in perspective has produced years of litigation over website chat. Now AI assistants, automated call centers, meeting transcription tools and model-training practices have made the underlying question more complicated. Who is actually listening when someone speaks to a business, and what permission did that person give?

These are not hypothetical claims. California courts have considered cases involving American Eagle Outfitters, Sephora, Ford and Beyond Yoga. A federal court ruled on Google’s AI-powered customer-contact system in October 2026. Another federal court allowed an Electronic Communications Privacy Act claim against the AI meeting assistant Otter.ai to move past dismissal in August 2026. The results differ materially. Some complaints failed because plaintiffs could not show interception in transit, an independent third-party eavesdropper or legally insufficient consent. Others survived because the allegations described more than a vendor acting as a digital recorder.

For companies, the practical problem is that a chatbot is rarely one piece of technology. It may combine a website widget, customer relationship management system, transcript database, live-agent dashboard, language model, analytics platform and multiple subprocessors. The legal answer depends on what each component actually does, not the marketing description of the product.

This guide from Captain Compliance examines the cases, the law, the firms pursuing digital wiretap claims, the defenses that have worked, and the technical evidence that businesses and insurers should obtain before assessing exposure.

How live chat became a wiretapping target

Website chat is older than generative AI. Businesses have used live-agent widgets for years to answer product questions, handle refunds and collect sales leads. Many widgets rely on outside technology providers that host chat infrastructure and retain conversation logs. That architecture gave plaintiffs a relatively simple allegation: A customer intended to communicate with a business, but an outside vendor received the contents at the same time.

In a 2023 review of the early live-chat docket, law firm Hogan Lovells Cadwalader described more than 70 putative class actions involving website chat features filed over roughly an 18-month period. The figure refers to that early period and specific litigation category; it should not be treated as a 2026 national chatbot case count. More recent analyses describe renewed growth in AI-related wiretap disputes, although the datasets and definitions are not identical.

A 2026 Legal 500 analysis cited a Baker Botts review of 284 deployer-facing AI litigation matters and reported that chatbot wiretap matters increased from two in 2021 to 30 in 2025. That dataset concerns identified AI-deployer litigation, not every chat-widget complaint, private demand letter or arbitration filing. It is evidence of an expanding theory, not proof that every chatbot presents a statutory violation.

Claims started with an apparently familiar form of consumer interaction. Plaintiffs later focused on session replay, embedded analytics, online forms and pixels. Generative AI has brought the question back to conversations themselves. A chatbot that merely relays a question raises one set of issues; a provider that independently retains the text, evaluates sentiment, builds user profiles or trains models with it raises another.

What laws do chatbot plaintiffs actually invoke?

California Penal Code Section 631: Interception and third-party access

California Penal Code Section 631, part of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), prohibits specified wiretapping and unauthorized attempts to read or learn the contents of communications in transit without the required consent. The statute also reaches people who aid or assist conduct prohibited by its operative provisions. Although written decades before modern websites, courts have recognized its potential application to internet communications.

In a typical chatbot complaint, the claimed interception happens when a software provider receives the substance of a chat before it reaches the intended business, or at the same time the business receives it. Plaintiffs may claim the website operator aided that conduct by installing the software and making the connection available. Defendants may respond that the provider was the business’s agent or an instrument used to conduct its own conversation, not a distinct eavesdropper.

The timing matters. Acquiring a completed transcript from storage is not necessarily the same as intercepting a communication during transmission. Nor is receiving a communication automatically unlawful simply because an outside vendor owns the server. Courts have examined the provider’s actual role, its use of the data, the design of the connection and the plaintiff’s factual allegations.

Section 632: Confidential communications

Section 632 addresses intentional recording or eavesdropping on a confidential communication without all-party consent. Its confidentiality requirement is important. Not every customer-service interaction qualifies merely because a user considered it personal. The setting, subject matter, disclosures and reasonable expectations can affect the analysis. A private discussion about health or finances may present different facts from a public-facing exchange asking for store hours.

Section 632.7: Cellular and cordless telephone communications

Section 632.7 applies to recording specified communications involving cellular and cordless telephones. Plaintiffs have tried to use it for internet chats performed on smartphones. Courts have rejected that extension where the facts describe a web chat rather than a qualifying telephone communication. A smartphone browser does not automatically turn every typed message into a telephone call.

The federal Wiretap Act and ECPA

The federal Wiretap Act, 18 U.S.C. Section 2511, prohibits certain intentional interceptions of wire, oral or electronic communications. It contains important exceptions, including interception by a party to the communication or with the prior consent of a party, subject to the statute’s criminal-or-tortious-purpose qualification. A federal civil remedy is available under 18 U.S.C. Section 2520. Federal statutory-damages calculations are different from California’s; they cannot responsibly be summarized as a universal $5,000-per-chat penalty.

The central federal disputes are whether the vendor contemporaneously acquired the communication, whether it was itself a party, whether another party consented, and whether an exception is unavailable because of the purpose of the interception. The mere use of artificial intelligence does not answer any of those questions.

Other state laws, consumer claims and biometrics

Pennsylvania’s Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act, Florida’s Security of Communications Act and other state statutes create additional questions about consent, location and the characteristics of covered communications. Some states require all-party consent for particular kinds of recordings; the exact rules are not interchangeable. A chatbot that records spoken conversation may implicate materially different laws from a text-only widget.

AI voice systems also create potential biometric issues when they generate or retain voiceprints capable of identifying individuals. Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) has specific notice, consent and retention provisions. Privacy-notice accuracy, unfair or deceptive practices, children’s data and sector-specific confidentiality obligations can add exposure even when a wiretap theory fails. A HIPAA-covered entity, for example, must separately examine whether its vendor relationship and handling of protected health information meet applicable requirements.

How much can a chatbot privacy claim cost?

Under California Penal Code Section 637.2 as amended in 2026, qualifying civil CIPA claims may seek the greater of $5,000 per violation or three times actual damages, with the relevant exceptions and restrictions. The statute does not mean every message, page visit or transmitted packet automatically produces a separate award. Whether a violation occurred, how it should be counted, standing, class treatment, other defenses and the applicable cause of action are all disputed issues.

A plaintiff may nevertheless invoke the statutory figure to frame settlement negotiations. For a large retailer with substantial chat volume, multiplying a proposed per-violation amount by hypothetical interactions produces an intimidating headline number. That calculation is not an adjudicated exposure estimate. It often leaves unanswered whether every class member communicated without consent, which vendor received which data, and whether the same transmission supports separate counts.

Companies also incur costs without any judgment: investigating network activity, preserving logs, reviewing contracts, retaining expert witnesses, responding to discovery, and defending a putative class action or individual arbitration. Cyber insurers have to distinguish a credible privacy event from a complaint built mainly around a website scan and assumptions about the vendor’s capabilities.

The actual cases: what judges decided

1. Licea v. Cinmar: The vendor as a tool, not automatically an eavesdropper

In Licea v. Cinmar, LLC, plaintiffs challenged the chat function on Frontgate’s website. On Feb. 13, 2023, a federal district court in California dismissed the Section 631 claim because the allegations did not overcome the party-exemption theory or adequately establish interception in transit. It also dismissed the Section 632.7 claim with prejudice based on the statutory telephone-communication requirement. Counsel’s contemporaneous account of the ruling identifies the distinct grounds.

The point was not that outsourced chat platforms enjoy blanket immunity. Rather, a plaintiff must plead more than the existence of a third-party software vendor. Courts need a legally meaningful distinction between a provider that facilitates a company’s own exchange and an outside actor that allegedly intercepts it for independent purposes.

2. Martin v. Sephora: Recordings and a named vendor were not enough

In Martin v. Sephora USA, Inc., the plaintiff alleged that the retailer used chat software that created transcripts and allowed HubSpot and/or Salesforce to receive the content. The complaint asserted CIPA claims under Sections 631 and 632.7. A March 2023 findings and recommendations examined the party-exemption and interception issues, and an April 24, 2023 order granted dismissal with leave to amend.

Importantly, identifying a popular CRM brand in a pleading does not establish that the brand read a particular message during transit. Technical evidence must tie the disputed software to the actual communications. A general assertion that a vendor collects chat transcripts is not a substitute for proving statutory interception.

3. Licea v. American Eagle Outfitters: A pleading cannot skip the architecture

In Licea v. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc., the plaintiff alleged that the retailer’s chat feature secretly recorded exchanges and enabled third-party eavesdropping. The 2023 court order granted dismissal with leave to amend, finding deficiencies in the asserted Section 631 theories, including the party exemption and inadequately pleaded interception during transmission.

For risk reviews, the decision illustrates the gap between what browser inspection can establish and what a lawsuit must prove. A scan may reveal a remote endpoint and a loaded chat script. It does not, by itself, establish that the vendor wrongfully learned the contents of a particular exchange while it was in transit.

4. Rodriguez v. Ford: Alleged independent vendor use kept a theory alive

The Rodriguez v. Ford Motor Co. litigation shows why defendants cannot assume early chatbot dismissals settled the question. The plaintiff alleged that LivePerson operated the chat service from its own servers and exploited the information beyond delivering chat functionality. In a Dec. 3, 2024 order, the Southern District of California allowed the remaining aiding-and-abetting allegations under Section 631 to proceed while dismissing a direct claim under the first clause with prejudice.

The court was deciding a pleading motion, not finding that Ford or LivePerson had committed wiretapping. Nonetheless, it treated allegations about the vendor’s own commercial uses and Ford’s knowledge as sufficient at that stage. The practical question is not just whether a chat provider maintains the transcript. It is whether the provider acts beyond the business’s authorized service relationship in a way relevant to the statute.

5. Beyond Yoga: Evidence of interception matters at summary judgment

A 2026 California state-court ruling involving I Am Beyond, doing business as Beyond Yoga, provides a different example. Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl granted summary judgment against a Section 631 aiding-and-abetting theory over website chat. According to Covington’s Feb. 9, 2026 case analysis, the defense submitted expert evidence that messages were encrypted when sent, in transit and when received, while the plaintiff did not offer admissible evidence establishing a prohibited in-transit interception. The court also flagged fabricated or inaccurate AI-generated case quotations in the plaintiff’s briefing.

This outcome should not be read as a holding that TLS encryption makes all chat architectures lawful. Encryption protects data along a given path, but the authorized receiving endpoint may still decrypt and process a message. The significance of the case is narrower: On that evidentiary record, the plaintiff did not prove the required interception by the provider. Technical proof and admissible expert analysis were decisive.

6. Google Cloud Contact Center AI: An October 2026 ruling on consent and intent

One of the most instructive recent decisions involves In re Google Cloud Contact Center AI Privacy Litigation, Case №3:23-cv-05437 (N.D. Cal.). Consumers challenged Google’s alleged recording and analysis of calls to businesses using its AI-powered contact-center product. The pleadings described virtual agents, real-time transcripts, suggested replies and potential AI-model improvement. The plaintiffs alleged that callers had not adequately consented to Google’s participation.

On Oct. 22, 2026, Judge Rita F. Lin dismissed the remaining Section 631 claims with leave to amend. Two Home Depot account holders had agreed to account documents incorporating a privacy statement that disclosed recordings of customer-care calls and disclosure to service providers. The court held that those plaintiffs had not plausibly alleged absence of consent to Google’s access. A non-account holder, by contrast, had plausibly alleged no consent because his awareness of or agreement to those terms was not established.

Even that non-account holder’s claim was dismissed, however, because the complaint failed to plausibly allege the required intent: that Google intended to listen without consent. The court distinguished intentionally processing calls, which the product was designed to do, from deliberately doing so in the absence of permission. It allowed amendment because additional allegations might address the deficiency. The same date, the court compelled three other plaintiffs to arbitrate their claims pursuant to agreements with the companies they had called.

The ruling contains an operational lesson. Notice, actual assent, the scope of disclosed service-provider access, the vendor’s knowledge of consent practices and enforceable contract terms all mattered. It does not establish that every general privacy policy confers consent, nor that an AI vendor has an automatic defense simply because its business customer promises to obtain permission.

7. In re Otter.ai: Real-time AI transcription and model training

In re Otter.ai Privacy Litigation, Case №25-cv-06911-EKL (N.D. Cal.), is not a retailer chat-window case. It concerns an AI note-taking assistant that allegedly joined virtual meetings, transcribed conversations and retained data for commercial uses without consent from all speakers. It belongs in the same discussion because it tests whether a machine acting within a conversation is a neutral service tool or an independent collector of communications.

In its Aug. 13, 2026 order, the court denied dismissal of the plaintiffs’ ECPA claim. It found that the allegations plausibly described contemporaneous acquisition of communications and that the asserted commercial use of conversation data for machine learning could support the alleged tortious-purpose exception to federal party-consent protections at the pleading stage. Other claims received different treatment, including allegations under Illinois BIPA concerning identifiable voiceprints.

No liability finding followed from that ruling. The court accepted specific allegations for purposes of deciding whether the claims could proceed. The decision nonetheless makes clear why AI training rights, retention and speaker-level consent cannot be dismissed as incidental product details.

8. Popa v. Harriet Carter Gifts: The limits of the party exception vary by state

In Popa v. Harriet Carter Gifts, Inc., the Third Circuit considered website tracking under Pennsylvania law rather than chat transcripts. The 2022 appellate opinion rejected a broad party-exception approach and held that a third-party marketing service’s receipt of website data could qualify as interception at the user’s browser. On remand, a subsequent judgment reported in 2025 favored the defendants based on consent.

The case was not about an AI chatbot and should not be portrayed that way. Its relevance is jurisdictional: A party-exemption argument that works under one statute may not work under another, while evidence of valid notice and consent can still change the result.

The plaintiff-side ecosystem: Named firms, repeat claims and demand letters

These disputes do not arrive solely as conventional class actions. Businesses also receive prelitigation notices, requests for settlement and demands to arbitrate. Defense-side accounts identify firms including Pacific Trial Attorneys, Manning Law APC, Tauler Smith LLP, Potter Handy LLP and Victims Advocacy Group PLLC in the wider CIPA website-tracking ecosystem. A September 2026 analysis by Jeffer Mangels & Mitchell discusses the shift in legal theories, while Donahue Fitzgerald names Tauler Smith and the Swigart Law Group in connection with website-tracking demands.

These names concern documented activity in the broader website privacy litigation market. They should not be read as an assertion that each firm has filed a chatbot-specific case, used identical tactics, or engaged in improper conduct. A named attorney or firm must be connected to a particular filed matter before that particular claim is attributed to them.

Some complainants are repeat visitors or self-described privacy testers. The Martin v. Sephora pleadings, for instance, described the plaintiff as both a consumer and a tester. Testing can uncover real compliance deficiencies; it can also create disputes about standing, injury, the nature of the interaction and whether a scripted visit establishes the facts alleged. A plaintiff’s repeated filing history is not itself proof that a claim is frivolous. Equally, a routine chat-widget installation is not itself proof that the plaintiff experienced unlawful interception.

The economic structure encourages early evaluation. A demand letter may cite an elevated statutory multiplier, identify a tracker or a chat vendor, and propose settlement before discovery. Some disputes enter private arbitration rather than appearing in publicly searchable court dockets. That makes comprehensive nationwide counting difficult, particularly when the claimant or defendant has confidentiality obligations. Public filing totals cannot simply be added to estimates of demand letters or arbitration notices as though they measured the same thing.

Businesses should assess the legal and technical merits of each demand independently. A claimant who provides a screenshot showing a chat button and a request to a remote domain may have shown a deployed vendor. The submission may not establish who received message contents, when they received them, whether consent was obtained, or whether the statutory exception applies. Conversely, an organization should not dismiss a demand as boilerplate if its own vendor agreement permits independent use of identifiable transcripts or its pre-chat notice is demonstrably absent.

Why the 2026 CIPA reform does not end chatbot cases

California enacted Senate Bill 690 on Sept. 30, 2026. Effective Jan. 1, 2027, the law restricts private civil actions against private actors under the CIPA pen-register and trap-and-trace provision, Section 638.51, when the alleged conduct occurred on a website, online application or mobile application. In those circumstances, the California Attorney General retains the specified authority to sue. The legislation also contains a retroactivity rule affecting certain pending actions commenced within two years before its operative date.

What the law does not do is repeal Sections 631, 632 or 632.7. It does not categorically legalize chatbot transcript collection, retroactively validate every consent notice or change the federal Wiretap Act. The operative-date and retroactivity language also require careful treatment; the measure was signed in September 2026 but is not yet effective as of early November.

DLA Piper’s October 2026 analysis describes the narrowed private remedy and the continuing availability of other wiretap theories. As a result, businesses should not treat SB 690 as a blanket defense to a live-chat claim under Section 631. Nor should every CIPA tracking suit be called a chatbot lawsuit. Pen-register disputes involving IP addresses and metadata involve different statutory elements from alleged acquisition of the contents of typed or spoken customer messages.

How an AI chatbot can create privacy exposure technically

Message content is routed to an outside processor

When a visitor types a question into a chat widget, the browser often sends the message to the vendor’s endpoint rather than directly to the website operator’s own application server. That can be a legitimate hosted service. The legal review must determine whether the vendor is processing solely for the business or also for itself, what the user was told, and which statute applies.

Engineers should document the actual sequence: browser submission; network destination; TLS termination; message queue; model gateway; transcript store; live-agent handoff; downstream analytics; and deletion or archival. Each stage may have a different recipient and purpose. A single vendor name on a list of scripts reveals only part of that architecture.

Draft messages and abandoned chats may still be collected

Some applications capture typing events, draft text or interaction telemetry before a user presses Send. Whether a particular product does this must be verified, not assumed. If it does, a customer may disclose sensitive content without completing a chat. The issue is especially relevant where the interface gives no meaningful notice until the first message is submitted.

Testing should determine whether keystroke or draft-event payloads contain actual text, masked text or merely event counts. It should also check whether a partially typed phone number, symptom, financial balance or email address appears in logs or vendor dashboards.

Conversation transcripts feed analytics or AI training

Chat vendors may provide quality scoring, sentiment analysis, conversation summarization, intent classification, agent coaching and training-data features. The fact that a service supports these functions does not prove they are enabled for a particular customer. Vendor defaults, enterprise contracts, privacy controls and product versions matter.

The highest-value question is whether identifiable conversation content can be used for the provider’s independent purposes. A contract might prohibit training on customer data while allowing limited abuse monitoring or service improvement. Other contracts may allow broader analysis unless the customer opts out. Those are different arrangements, and a privacy notice must not pretend they are equivalent.

Chat identities are linked to advertising and CRM profiles

A chat conversation may be joined to cookies, customer IDs, analytics events, campaign parameters, emails or CRM records. Such linkage can enable helpful customer support, but it also creates a more extensive record than a one-off message. If a chatbot contains health, legal, financial or other sensitive statements, profile enrichment and ad-platform transmission deserve particularly close scrutiny.

Do not assume a global cookie banner governs the chat flow correctly. Chat may use essential-service processing, independent analytics, or optional marketing features with different legal bases or disclosure obligations. A blanket rule that every chat message must wait for advertising-cookie consent would oversimplify the law; a blanket assertion that chat is always essential would be equally unsound.

Audio, voiceprints and meeting participation change the risk

Voice bots and meeting assistants bring in additional questions: whether a call recording announcement was delivered, whether all speakers understood that a recording assistant joined, whether speech was converted to identifying biometric templates, and whether audio is retained after a transcript is generated. As the Otter.ai litigation shows, an AI transcription dispute can involve federal interception claims and state biometric rules simultaneously.

A company that supplies a spoken assistant should separately inventory raw audio, speech-to-text output, speaker embeddings, training samples and agent summaries. Deleting the visible transcript may not delete every associated copy or model-development record.

What a defensible chatbot consent process looks like

There is no universal checkbox that resolves every state and federal claim. A defensible system starts with a precise description of the processing and a legally appropriate way to notify users and obtain any required permission before the relevant collection or recording.

A pre-chat disclosure should explain, in plain language, that the exchange may be recorded or retained, whether a third-party service provider processes it, and the relevant purposes. For AI-powered applications, it should accurately describe whether the user is speaking to automation, a live agent or both. Where applicable law requires all-party consent or a specific form of consent, the product team should build a corresponding interaction rather than relying solely on a distant privacy-policy link.

The consent event should be recorded with the notice version, timestamp, jurisdictional configuration, channel and interaction to which it applied. If a user declines optional processing, the system should honor the selection technically. Where service provision cannot occur without necessary processing, the interface should explain the choice and provide an alternative contact method when feasible.

The Ninth Circuit’s 2022 decision in Javier v. Assurance IQ is instructive on timing. In a website recording dispute, the court held that a plaintiff had sufficiently alleged lack of prior consent and rejected the premise that subsequently accepting a privacy policy necessarily retroactively authorized an earlier interception. That was not a chatbot case, but it directly affects designs in which collection begins before a visitor has seen or accepted the pertinent terms.

The October 2026 Google ruling shows a different side of consent: An actual contractual agreement incorporating a privacy disclosure can matter where it meaningfully covers the activity at issue. The right approach is to document exactly what the customer agreed to and exactly what the vendor did, rather than assuming either a generic link or a generic consent banner always suffices.

A technical audit that is useful in litigation, not just marketing

A website audit should reproduce concrete user journeys and preserve results in a form that counsel or a technical expert can evaluate. A practical methodology includes the following steps.

1. Identify each deployed conversation product. Inventory web chat, embedded sales chat, support widgets, AI assistants, voice bots, contact-center tools and meeting add-ons. Capture vendor, version, integration method, account owner and relevant contract.
2. Test a clean visitor session. Use a fresh browser profile with no existing cookies or authenticated session. Record what loads before any choice, before opening chat, while typing, on sending a message and after closing the widget.
3. Repeat across consent states. Test before choice, after accept, after reject and after changes to preferences. If a banner is geo-adaptive, test the relevant jurisdiction configurations rather than extrapolating from a single Florida or California session.
4. Inspect network payloads. Capture HAR files and developer-tool traces, recording destination domains, request times, methods and fields actually transmitted. Do not put live sensitive customer information into third-party test environments. A request to a vendor alone does not establish unlawful interception.
5. Examine the chat interface itself. Check what notice appears before a message is transmitted, how any acknowledgment is captured and what happens when a user refuses optional processing. Verify keyboard and mobile experiences as well as desktop.
6. Check draft, replay and telemetry features. Determine whether typing, cursor behavior, chat text or hidden field values can reach analytics or session-replay providers. Confirm masking and redaction in actual traffic, not just vendor documentation.
7. Review vendor-side evidence. Identify who can view transcripts; whether admins can export them; whether the provider trains on them; retention and deletion settings; subprocessors; cross-border transfers; and whether controls differ by plan or contract.
8. Validate the server-side path. Browser analysis cannot reveal all downstream processing. Ask vendors for architecture diagrams, data-flow maps, relevant logs, model-training terms and proof that disabled features are actually disabled.
9. Preserve reproducible records. Maintain timestamps, screenshot sequences, consent-state records, tested URLs, configuration versions and artifact hashes. The method must permit another reviewer to understand what was observed and when.
10. Have counsel map facts to elements. Identify the precise statute, the allegedly intercepted content, timing, third-party role, consent evidence and available exceptions. A scan finding is an investigative lead, not a legal conclusion.

Businesses that deploy chat through Google Tag Manager or another tag-management system should not assume that disabling one tag removes all copies. A widget may be installed through the site template, a commerce plug-in and a vendor SDK simultaneously. Consent Mode, CMP settings and customer-support configurations may also operate independently. After remediation, rerun the exact failed journey and retain before-and-after evidence.

Legal defenses businesses should evaluate before settling

The recipient or party exception

The strongest defense in many early California chat cases was that the business could receive and record its own communications, and its service provider functioned like an instrument for doing so. The outcome depends on the applicable statute and allegations about a vendor’s independent conduct. This is not a universal exemption for any third party called a processor.

No acquisition of contents in transit

Section 631 claims require careful examination of what was allegedly read or learned and when. A transcript generated after a message is received may present a different theory from a vendor simultaneously receiving content during transmission. Beyond Yoga shows that expert evidence can matter at summary judgment. Conversely, encryption alone should not be treated as a universal defense when the provider itself is the intended decrypting endpoint.

Actual prior consent within scope

Courts examine whether permission was obtained, how terms were presented and whether the challenged activity fits what was disclosed. A statement that a company uses analytics is not necessarily equivalent to notice that an AI provider receives and processes the contents of sensitive conversations. But the Google case also warns against assuming that a vendor must always be individually named where a valid agreement meaningfully covers service-provider disclosure.

Intent and vendor knowledge

As the Google court explained in October 2026, allegations of intentionally running an AI transcription product do not necessarily show intent to intercept without consent. Vendor contracts that require the customer to obtain consent may help establish good-faith operating expectations, although a contractual promise alone does not immunize a vendor that knows the required permission is absent.

Standing, jurisdiction, pleading and proof

Defense counsel should review the plaintiff’s actual interaction, alleged injury, connection to the forum, timing and whether the pleadings establish the specific statutory elements. An out-of-state corporate parent is not necessarily subject to personal jurisdiction for every subsidiary’s or vendor’s California operations; a June 2026 AutoNation call-analytics decision illustrates that distinction without deciding the merits of the alleged interception.

Arbitration and class-action provisions

Where legally enforceable and applicable to the claimant and claim, arbitration terms may change the forum. Google’s October 2026 arbitration order illustrates how agreements with a business can affect litigation against its technology provider. But arbitration is not a guaranteed cost-saving mechanism: Filing fees, mass-arbitration provisions, enforceability challenges and individualized defense costs may alter the economics. A company should not add terms without considering how assent will be documented and whether those provisions actually cover claims against its vendors.

How businesses should respond to a chatbot wiretap demand

First, preserve the evidence. Do not immediately remove or reconfigure the chat platform without retaining relevant code versions, vendor settings, policies, data-flow records and logs under counsel’s preservation instructions. Remediation may be necessary, but destroying the pre-change configuration can make it harder to establish what the plaintiff actually encountered.

Second, ask for particularity. Which date and URL? Was the claimant signed in? What did the chat notice say? Which communication content was supposedly intercepted? Which third party received it, and was the assertion based on a browser request, a copied vendor statement or a verified transcript? Which statute and remedy does the claimant invoke? A defensible response addresses facts rather than merely denying everything.

Third, investigate the vendor relationship. Read the actual order form, data processing agreement, subprocessors list and product settings effective on the alleged date. A current vendor FAQ may not describe an earlier integration. Obtain documentation of training defaults, opt-outs, log retention and administrative access. If the vendor provides an indemnity, tender or notice mechanism, consult counsel and follow the contract’s deadlines.

Fourth, map the insurance issues early. Privacy-related claims can implicate cyber, technology errors and omissions, media liability or other coverage, depending on policy wording and exclusions. Notification timing, defense control, statutory-damages coverage, consent to settle and allocation may matter. A carrier should ask for the same technical record that counsel needs, rather than relying entirely on the demand letter’s characterization of the site.

Finally, consider targeted remediation with documented verification. A clear pre-chat notice, restricted vendor training permissions, better transcript minimization or an architecture change may address real weaknesses. The chosen measure should match the legal and technical problem; switching vendors while retaining the same data flow may not eliminate exposure.

What cyber insurers and outside counsel should ask in underwriting and diligence

Traditional security questionnaires often ask whether a company has a privacy policy, a cookie banner and a written incident-response program. Those questions say little about what an AI contact-center integration does with the contents of live conversations. Underwriting should distinguish ordinary processor access from independent commercial reuse and identify where a company lacks evidence.

Useful diligence includes the number and type of deployed chat systems; whether the customer’s location is known; how recording consent is obtained; whether notices differ by channel; whether voiceprints are created; whether vendors can train on customer conversations; whether real-time content reaches advertising or analytics systems; whether the organization can honor deletion requests across copies; and whether the business has faced prior demands concerning the same deployment.

Insurers should also ask how configuration changes are monitored. A compliant-looking test in March may not prove the site behaved the same way in September after a vendor released an SDK update, a marketing team changed its tag manager or a support department enabled a conversation intelligence module. Evidence needs a date, scope and reproducible method.

Law firms assessing a demand should avoid treating automated risk scores as answers to legal questions. A scanner can show that a network call occurred before an acceptance click; it cannot, by observation alone, determine whether the actor was a legally separate interceptor, whether a user’s prior agreement covered the exchange or whether a particular statutory remedy is available.

What happens next for chatbot privacy litigation?

There is a reason to expect continued disputes over how AI providers use conversations. Products are increasingly capable of live transcription, summarization, personalized follow-ups and model improvement. Each function creates another question about recipients and purposes. A court may reject a poorly pleaded wiretapping complaint while leaving unanswered whether a different configuration, a stronger evidentiary record or a separate consumer-privacy law would support a claim.

At the same time, published decisions do not show a single, uniform plaintiff victory. The early Cinmar, Sephora and American Eagle decisions were skeptical of expansive chat allegations. Ford permitted an aiding-and-abetting theory to proceed. Beyond Yoga prevailed on summary judgment. Google obtained dismissal with leave to amend on consent and intent grounds, while Otter.ai faced a surviving federal interception claim at the pleading stage. These outcomes are distinct, and treating them as interchangeable would misstate the state of the law.

California’s SB 690 changes the economics of a subset of website-tracking cases beginning January 2027, but it leaves core chatbot wiretap provisions untouched. Plaintiffs can continue to test federal and state claims; defendants can continue to contest whether their actual technology satisfies the statutory elements. For businesses, the strongest position is neither panic nor dismissal. It is an accurate map of the conversations, vendors, consent flows and retained data, supported by evidence that can survive scrutiny outside the engineering department.

Frequently asked questions about chatbot privacy lawsuits

Are AI chatbots illegal under CIPA?

No. CIPA does not prohibit businesses from using AI chatbots as a category. Whether conduct violates the law depends on the relevant provision, what was collected or recorded, who received it, when it was acquired, the user’s consent and any applicable exception.

Can a business be sued for using a third-party chat service?

Yes, businesses have been sued over third-party chat services. Being sued does not mean a violation occurred. Courts have dismissed some complaints and allowed others to proceed on more detailed allegations, particularly involving possible independent use of conversations by a vendor.

Does a privacy policy alone provide sufficient chatbot consent?

Not necessarily. The answer depends on applicable law, whether the visitor actually agreed to or received the relevant notice, its language, the timing of collection and the processing at issue. The October 2026 Google decision illustrates both a successful consent analysis for account holders and an insufficient consent showing for a non-account holder.

Can chat transcripts be used to train AI models?

Whether training is lawful depends on the contractual permissions, disclosures, applicable privacy laws, content, individual rights and the circumstances of collection. Training rights do not automatically make a vendor a wiretapper, but independent model-training use can complicate consent, party-exemption and data-governance analyses.

Did California end CIPA chatbot lawsuits with SB 690?

No. Effective Jan. 1, 2027, SB 690 restricts certain private claims under Section 638.51 involving websites and apps. It does not repeal CIPA Sections 631, 632 or 632.7 or the federal Wiretap Act.

Can a scanner determine whether a chatbot violates CIPA?

Not conclusively. A scanner can identify observable scripts, network transmissions, consent behavior and possible configuration gaps. Legal conclusions also require analysis of vendor relationships, transcript processing, timing, user agreement and statutory requirements.

This story was produced by Captain Compliance and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

Chatbot privacy lawsuits: AI wiretapping claims and the legal fight over customer conversations was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Joseph Brynes for Trauma Services

Aging happens one person and one family at a time, and America now has a much larger older population than it did two decades ago. U.S. Census Bureau data show that 61.2 million Americans were 65 or older in 2024, representing 18% of the population. That number is expected to keep growing: According to the Population Reference Bureau’s Fact Sheet: Aging in the United States, the population age 65 and older is projected to increase from 58 million in 2022 to 82 million by 2050.

In 2004, that age group accounted for 12.4% of the country, or about one in eight Americans, compared with nearly one in five today. Brookings Institution demographer William H. Frey told Harvard Business School’s Institute for Business in Global Society that the country “is aging rapidly, and that’s going to affect everything.”

And the size of that older population becomes especially important when looking at how many people live alone. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Living Arrangements Varied Across Age Groups, nearly three in 10 adults age 65 and older lived alone in 2022. Using a different measure, Pew Research Center found that the share of older adults living alone was 26% in 2023. Yet a smaller share of a much larger population still adds up to roughly 16 million people living by themselves.

For older adults who live alone, long stretches without contact mean no one else is there to notice an illness or injury. This leads to cases where limited contact delayed the discovery of a health emergency or death.

While no national system tracks unattended deaths as a separate category, millions of older Americans are spending their later years at home, making independent living an important part of how the country ages. Below, Trauma Services explains how this impacts the biohazard cleanup industry.

The Rise of Aging in Place

Most Americans over 50 want to stay right where they are as they grow older. AARP’s 2024 Home and Community Preferences Survey found that 75% of adults age 50 and older want to remain in their current home as long as possible, while 73% hope to stay in their community.

Experts call this aging in place, a way of growing older at home while keeping independence. UCHealth social worker Emily Johnson said home offers comfort and a familiar history, and staying there can help older adults keep a sense of control when they need support. And keeping that control also depends on whether staying home remains affordable.

Housing costs are a major reason some older adults expect they will eventually have to move, with AARP finding that 71% point to rent or mortgage costs and 60% to home maintenance.

Even if they reach a point where they need regular help, many would still prefer to remain at home. Pew Research Center found that 60% of older adults living at home without a caregiver would want to stay and receive care there if they could no longer manage on their own.

Choosing to receive care at home preserves independence, but it also changes how often some older adults interact with other people during everyday life.

The Growing Reality of Social Isolation Among Older Adults

Both social isolation and loneliness affect well-being, but experts draw an important distinction between them. Loneliness centers on how a person feels, while social isolation refers to having little regular contact or connection with other people.

Among older adults, social isolation is common enough to affect a large share of the population. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine estimates that approximately 24% of community-dwelling Americans age 65 and older are socially isolated. Its report, Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults: Opportunities for the Health Care System, also cites research finding that 43% of adults age 60 and older report feeling lonely.

The health concerns tied to that lack of connection have also drawn greater attention. University of Michigan physician Dr. Preeti Malani has said health experts now have a better understanding of how loneliness and isolation affect people as they age.

One reason health experts take social isolation so seriously comes from research reviewed by the National Academies, which associates it with a higher risk of premature death and approximately a 50% higher risk of developing dementia.

Why Unattended Deaths Are Becoming More Common

Perhaps the biggest concern with Americans growing old alone is that some of them also die alone. That concern has grown, with some physicians seeing more older patients approach the end of life without close family or friends nearby.

Dr. Jairon Johnson, medical director of hospice and palliative care for Presbyterian Healthcare Services, said clinicians have always seen patients who were essentially alone near the end of life, but “they weren’t as common as they are now.”

Johnson’s observation also brings attention to what professionals refer to as an unattended death, when someone dies without another person or medical provider present and the death is not discovered right away.

Even with growing concern around dying alone, national data do not provide a reliable count showing whether unattended deaths themselves are rising. But what researchers can document more clearly are the circumstances that delay discovery.

CDC data show more than one in four older adults report falling each year, and a fall at home with nobody else present leaves no one to respond right away.

Regular contact is what shortens that wait, while its absence leaves more time before someone realizes something is wrong. And if the emergency is fatal, the same delay can postpone discovery and leave families facing a new set of health and safety concerns.

The Public Health Challenges That Follow

The reality of an unattended death brings public health problems that most families never expected to solve. The first of those problems is inside the home, where decomposition affects nearby materials and leaves conditions that regular household cleaning cannot safely address.

Faced with those risks, grieving families have to decide who should enter the home and what should be left to trained professionals. And the timing makes those decisions especially hard, since families are trying to protect their own safety while processing a death.

But even during that difficult process, the response has to respect the person who died, and the standards professionals follow help determine how that work is carried out safely and respectfully.

How the Biohazard Cleanup Industry Is Evolving

Cleanup after an unattended death requires specialized training, which is why the biohazard cleanup industry built standards of its own. And one of the people who helped formalize those standards was Kent Bert, who chaired the committee that produced the first ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup in 2017.

Bert said in the IICRC announcement that the goal was to bring trauma and crime scene cleanup closer to the level of professionalism already established in other IICRC-backed fields. The IICRC released an updated edition of S540 in 2023.

Professional standards, however, are separate from government licensing, and biohazard remediation does not operate under a broad federal trade-licensing system, though some states set their own registration or permitting requirements.

Worker safety falls under OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, which applies when employees face occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials, but OSHA does not license biohazard remediation companies. And by the time those protections are needed, the crisis has already happened, leaving an earlier public-health responsibility with families and communities.

What Communities Can Learn From These Trends

Among older adults who choose to remain at home, staying connected works best when support protects the independence they value, a balance UCHealth’s Johnson described as accepting help while still being the one “running the show.”

And support on those terms begins with family members and neighbors, who often provide that first point of connection and already know the routines well enough to notice when something changes. If more help becomes necessary, caregivers and healthcare providers add regular contact without taking control away.

Columbia geriatric psychiatrist Dr. Mark Nathanson has described living alone as a collaborative experience between older adults and loved ones, reinforcing why independence does not have to mean isolation.

Beyond loved ones, community organizations provide social programs and wellness checks that give older adults more regular points of contact while they continue living on their own.

Supporting Independent Living as America Ages

Growing older at home should remain a choice people make without surrendering control over daily life. And making that choice work starts before more help is needed, while older adults can still make those decisions for themselves. Some of that preparation happens at home, where ColumbiaDoctors points to medical alert systems and smart-home devices that can help older adults get assistance quickly.

Biohazard cleanup remains a professional response when deaths go undiscovered, but by the time that work is needed, a family is already coping with a loss and the difficult circumstances surrounding it.

That’s why planning should begin much earlier. Jodi Waterhouse of the University of Colorado Multidisciplinary Center on Aging told UCHealth that older adults should work with a team including their healthcare provider and care partners to weigh whether home remains the right place for them.

Her guidance keeps the final say with older adults themselves, who can decide early who will help if their health changes and what support they are willing to accept at home.

This story was produced by Trauma Services and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

Why America’s aging population is reshaping the biohazard cleanup industry was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Jennie Boland for Wealth Enhancement

When people ask, “How much life insurance do I need?” it’s rarely a straight-line answer. It depends on your income, expenses, lifestyle, obligations, and existing assets. What is clear is that this calculation matters even more when you’re in your 40s as your career and family grow.

To help you determine the right amount of life insurance for your needs, this guide from Wealth Enhancement:

• Outlines several life insurance calculation methods
• Reviews average premium costs
• Explains how to choose between term life and permanent life insurance

Why Life Insurance Matters Most in Your 40s

The main goal of life insurance is to close a financial gap others might experience upon your death. Most often, that means family, but it could also include a business partner. The reason the stakes rise in your 40s is that it’s often the time more people tend to rely on your income for longer than at almost any other point in life.

It’s also a time when multiple pressures overlap. Your mortgage may still have decades to mature and may be one of your largest expenses. The runway until your children are independent is frequently long. While your financial planning is probably underway, college and retirement savings are generally still works in progress. Many people in their 40s also find themselves in the so-called sandwich generation, providing financial support to both aging parents and young children.

There are also practical reasons that make your 40s a good time to apply for life insurance. Most people are still healthy enough to qualify for good rates. Plus, a policy you buy now could last until you’ve paid off your mortgage and your children are grown.

How Much Life Insurance Do You Actually Need?

When it comes to life insurance, there’s no magic number. The key is to have enough coverage to provide short-term support to the people grieving your loss, as well as long-term income replacement so your family can maintain their lifestyle. There are several ways to calculate that number.

The Income Multiplier Rule of Thumb

A good starting point to calculate your life insurance needs is to use a simple income multiplier. In essence, you multiply your annual income by 10 or 15. On a $100,000 salary, that comes to $1 million to $1.5 million of coverage. Some people increase that amount by $100,000 per child for college.

While this method is quick, it’s often not sufficient, as it fails to take account of your debts, savings, children’s ages, and whether your spouse works.

It also falls short for high-net-worth households. A salary multiplier can overstate the need for income replacement when much of a household’s income comes from other sources. At the same time, it excludes expenses unrelated to your salary, such as cash to settle an estate tied up in a business or real estate, funding for buy-sell agreements, or estate taxes on assets above the personal exclusion.

Rules of thumb can be useful when calculating your life insurance needs, but they’re rarely sufficient. You’ll get greater accuracy with a personalized analysis that considers your full financial picture and long-term goals.

The DIME Method: A Smarter Calculation

The DIME method offers a more accurate way to calculate your life insurance needs. That’s because it considers your actual income and expenses across four categories:

• Debt: Total non-mortgage debt, including car loans, credit card balances, student loans, and final expenses
• Income: Annual income x years until your youngest child is self-sufficient
• Mortgage: The remaining balance on your mortgage
• Education: Estimated college costs per child

The idea is to add up those numbers, then subtract your existing savings, investments, and current coverage. That total is your coverage gap.

While the DIME method still involves judgment calls, such as how many years of income to replace and your kids’ future educational goals, it does provide an estimate that may be more in line with your financial realities.

DIME in Practice: A Dual-Income Family of Four

To see how DIME works in practice, let’s take an example of two 40-year-old spouses. One earns $100,000, while the other earns $50,000. They have two children (5 and 8), owe $350,000 on their mortgage and $40,000 in other debt, and have $60,000 in savings.

In the chart below, income is replaced for 13 years, until the youngest child turns 18. Education costs are calculated using the College Board’s 2025–2026 average budget of $30,990 per year for an in-state public four-year college. Here’s how the DIME calculation would look for each spouse:

Income replacement often constitutes the highest proportion of this calculation, so the number of years you plan for matters. Two earning spouses could potentially adjust these figures to take their own salaries into account. Employer coverage would lower their needs further. On the flip side, this hypothetical couple might need more coverage if they hope to send their children to a private college.

It’s also worth noting that the DIME calculation suggests more coverage for both spouses than the simple income multiplier calculation. This underscores the need for careful planning. In fact, according to the American Council of Life Insurers, the average individual life insurance policy purchased in 2024 was just $209,000, far below what most families in their 40s need.

What Does Life Insurance Cost in Your 40s?

Estimated Monthly Premiums by Coverage Amount

The table here shows average 2026 term life insurance rates for a 20-year term policy, for a 40-year-old non-smoker in average health. Applicants in excellent health may pay less, and different insurers offer different rates, so it’s worth shopping around.

Factors That Affect Your Premium

Although industry averages provide an indicator of cost, premiums are calculated using a wide variety of inputs. These include:

• Age: This is often the biggest factor affecting your rate. Your premium is based on your age when you apply, and that premium stays the same for as long as the policy lasts. Typically, the younger you are, the lower your premium will be. That’s why locking in life insurance in your 40s is frequently much less expensive than waiting until you’re older.
• Health history: Insurers often look at your medical records, prescriptions, blood pressure, cholesterol, and weight to determine your rate class. If you have an existing health condition or a family history of serious disease, they’ll consider that too.
• Smoking status: Tobacco use is one of the costliest rating factors for any type of policy. Most insurers require you to be tobacco-free for at least one year to qualify for non-smoker rates.
• Gender: With longer life expectancies, women tend to pay less for insurance than men.
• Coverage amount: While larger policies cost more, premiums don’t rise in step with the coverage. For instance, doubling your coverage typically won’t double your premium, so each additional dollar of protection costs a bit less.
• Occupation and lifestyle: Hazardous jobs, a poor driving record, or risky hobbies can all lead to higher rates.
• Policy type and term length: Permanent coverage costs more than term life insurance. Similarly, when looking at term insurance, longer terms cost more than shorter terms because the rate is guaranteed for longer.

Term vs. Permanent Life Insurance in Your 40s

As its name implies, term insurance covers you for a set term or period of time, usually between 10 and 30 years. Conversely, permanent insurance, such as whole or universal life policies, lasts for life and builds cash value over time. It also costs far more, with premiums ranging between $540 and $574 per month for $500,000 of whole life coverage for a 40-year-old.

When Term Insurance Makes Sense

Term insurance tends to provide sufficient coverage for most families in their 40s. Its main purpose is to replace your income during your peak earning years so your family can maintain their standard of living. It also lets you choose a term that aligns with your financial obligations, such as 20 years until your mortgage matures or your kids finish college. If your children are very young or you’ve recently taken out a new mortgage, a 25- or 30-year term is also an option.

The downside is that term insurance is temporary and builds no cash value. If you outlive it, the policy simply ends. That said, many policies let you convert from term to permanent coverage without a new medical exam if you act within a specific timeline. If that feature would be of value to you, be sure to check the policy’s terms in advance.

When Permanent Insurance May Be Appropriate

Permanent coverage costs more than term life insurance, but it can make sense for needs that don’t end at age 60 or 65. Some common examples include:

• Estate planning: A permanent policy guarantees a death benefit whenever you die. This can provide your heirs with the financial means to pay estate taxes, allow you to equalize inheritances, or help fund a charitable gift.
• Business succession: Permanent policies also make sense for business owners funding buy-sell agreements. If one partner dies, the surviving partners can use the proceeds to buy out the deceased owner’s share. Additionally, because these policies build cash value, they can be used to buy out a retiring partner’s shares so the business can keep its operational funds intact.
• Special needs: If you have a dependent with special needs, permanent insurance can be a sound way to provide support for life. By pairing the policy with a special needs trust, you can make sure the benefit doesn’t disqualify your dependent from government programs.
• Wealth planning: If you’ve maximized your retirement plan contribution room, it’s possible to use the cash value of a permanent life policy as part of a broader wealth strategy, as it grows on a tax-deferred basis and can be borrowed against. For this strategy to work, you’ll need to comply with certain IRS rules, so be sure to consult an advisor before proceeding.

The Laddering Strategy

Although many people buy only one insurance policy, it’s possible to buy several to accomplish multiple goals. For instance, you could use a $1.5 million 20-year term policy to act as income replacement and cover your mortgage and college expenses and bolster that with a longer-term policy, such as a 30-year term policy or a $500,000 permanent policy for estate planning or final expenses.

This is called a laddering strategy because once the shorter-term policy expires, you step up to the next policy to gain longer-term coverage. When properly structured, this can be a cost-effective way to cover different financial needs.

How Life Insurance Fits into Your Financial Plan

Rather than being considered a standalone solution, life insurance should be approached as part of a comprehensive wealth plan. That’s because your broader financial realities may affect the insurance decisions you make.

Take retirement savings as an example. As your savings grow, your need for coverage may shrink, and allocating too much of your budget toward insurance could reduce your retirement contributions during the years they compound most. To find the right balance, it’s important to approach these objectives holistically.

The same is true about estate planning. Insurance policies allow you to name specific beneficiaries to receive your insurance proceeds. Notably, those beneficiary designations override your will. A failure to coordinate estate and insurance planning could result in inconsistencies and create confusion after you’re gone.

Taxes also play a part. For instance, while withdrawals from a traditional 401(k) or IRA are taxed as income, death benefits are generally free of income tax. Reviewing these outcomes in tandem may suggest an approach that works best for your family.

Working with a financial advisor can help you pull the disparate elements of your financial life together to create a cohesive plan. For unbiased advice, consider working with a fiduciary advisor, who is legally obligated to act in your best interest. That way, any recommendations you get start with what you need, not with a product.

When You Might Not Need More Life Insurance

Life insurance exists to fill a specific gap, so more coverage isn’t always better. If you have no dependents, no outstanding debt, and substantial liquid assets, a large policy may not make sense. Similarly, if you have group life insurance through your employer that provides you with sufficient coverage, you may only need a small policy to cover you if you leave your job. As you age and your retirement savings grow, cutting back on insurance coverage is also an option, especially if your surviving spouse will have access to the funds they need.

Yet, even if you don’t need more life insurance, it’s worth confirming that the policies you have are the right type and length, and that your beneficiary designations are current.

Frequently Asked Questions About Life Insurance

Is $1,000,000 enough life insurance?

That depends on your income, debts, and the number of dependents you have. In the DIME example above, $1 million would cover only about half of the higher earner’s $1.9 million need, but would come close to the lower earner’s $1.23 million estimate. Running DIME with your own numbers is the most reliable way to answer the question.

Is age 40 too late for life insurance?

No. Your 40s are a good time to buy coverage as you likely still qualify for favorable rates, particularly if your health is good.

Is it worth getting life insurance at 45?

Absolutely, especially if anyone depends on your income. Coverage at 45 still costs far less than it will at age 50 or 55. Waiting does add up, though. Based on 2026 averages, premiums for the same 20-year term policy rise roughly 8% to 9% for each year you delay between 40 and 45.

Is $500,000 enough life insurance?

While $500,000 may cover your final expenses, debts, and part of your mortgage, it’s unlikely to provide full income replacement. That said, if it’s all your budget allows, it makes sense to start with a smaller policy and increase your coverage when you can.

Review Your Coverage as Life Changes

As with any type of financial commitment, it’s a good idea to reassess your insurance needs every three to five years and any time you experience major life events. Marriage, divorce, a new child, buying or refinancing a home, starting a business, retirement, or taking on care for an aging parent can all change how much coverage you need and who should receive it. At each review, confirm that your coverage amount, policy length, and beneficiaries still align with your needs.

This story was produced by Wealth Enhancement and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

How much life insurance should you have in your 40s? was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Keana Ashley for BUILT

Protein was once viewed as a niche supplement reserved almost entirely for bodybuilders and extreme athletes. But today, it turns up on labels throughout the everyday snack aisle.

Circana’s annual Eating Patterns in America report found that 48% of adults are now seeking more protein, up seven percentage points over the previous year, with only vegetables ranking higher among the foods and nutrients Americans want more of.

And as that interest has grown, registered dietitian Daphene Alteme-Johnson of the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future says much of the current focus comes from the belief that “more protein equals better health.”

Food companies are seeing similar expectations from shoppers, as people want food they enjoy while paying closer attention to what it offers nutritionally. Still, as BUILT reports below, nutrition researchers point to more specific reasons protein has become such a priority.

Why Consumers Are Prioritizing Protein

Perhaps the most popular reason people buy protein snacks is that protein keeps hunger from returning so quickly. Registered nutritionist Jemma Joel told BBC Good Food that protein is slow-digesting and “keeps us feeling fuller for longer,” which she also connects with weight management.

Feeling satisfied longer also gives protein an appeal that goes well beyond fitness, especially as people get older and start paying closer attention to muscle loss. And the federal health guidance reflects that concern, with the Administration for Community Living reporting that too little protein among older adults is linked with reduced physical function and a higher risk of falls.

Federal advice has increased the recommended daily protein intake for everyone else, too, with the 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommending 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, up from 0.8.

Still, Boston University nutrition professor Joan Salge Blake cautions that most people without specific health needs already get enough. Her concern is balance, since focusing too heavily on one nutrient pushes other important foods aside. But even with that reminder, demand has given food makers plenty of reason to put more protein into foods that shoppers already buy.

The Reinvention of Classic Snack Foods

Getting extra protein outside a regular meal used to leave people with far fewer choices, often sending them toward a traditional protein bar or a scoop of powder. But familiar foods have taken over much of that job, with a Talker Research survey reported by Food & Wine finding that 63% of respondents view adding protein to unexpected foods positively.

So while protein bars still hold a large place on store shelves, more protein is now being worked into everyday snacks such as chips and cookies. And savory foods have grown the quickest, with Glanbia reporting that salty protein snacks rose 47.5% over the prior year, well ahead of bars and cereals.

Beyond the snack aisle, freezers and beverage coolers now hold high-protein ice cream and ready-to-drink shakes alongside more traditional choices. But remaking a familiar food only goes so far if it does not fit naturally into the times people actually reach for a snack.

Convenience Is Driving the Trend

Life gets busy, and tight schedules often leave food decisions competing with everything else that needs to get done. All the more reason “smart snacking” appeals to people looking for simple ways to keep their health goals from getting lost during the day.

Richard Poye, founder of the Food Trends Think Tank, told CSP Daily News that single-serve and portable foods are “precisely the formats where modern protein products shine.” And those occasions now make up a sizable part of how Americans eat, with Circana finding that 55% sometimes choose a snack instead of a meal while on the go, compared with 46% in 2021.

So on days when a full meal is not practical, a snack that needs little or no preparation gives people an easier option between meetings or during a commute. But saving time is not enough to keep people buying the same snack.

What Consumers Are Looking for Beyond Protein

Protein on its own is not very appetizing, but thanks to food scientists, the protein snacks found in local grocery stores are far more enjoyable than the old powders people remember. And this has sparked a lot of curiosity among many food companies and researchers about understanding what people actually want when they are looking for smarter snacks.

The Talker Research survey found that 66% trust a snack more when it has fewer ingredients, although registered dietitian Stephanie Schnaufer cautions that a shorter list does not automatically make a food better.

The same careful thinking applies to the nutrition label, Food & Wine reports, with dietitian Juhi Shah encouraging people to look beyond protein grams and also pay attention to added sugar.

But even when the nutrition looks right on paper, texture still helps shape the eating experience, since crunch, softness, or chewiness also influence whether a snack is worth buying again. And meeting all of those expectations is now raising the bar for what people want from smarter snacks.

Why Functional Snacking Is Gaining Popularity

Snacking is already a major part of how Americans eat, with research published in Nutrients showing that more than 90% of U.S. adults eat at least one snack on a typical day, averaging between one and three. And with snacks making up so much of everyday eating, people are expecting more from the food they choose between meals.

Circana chief advisor Sally Lyons Wyatt told Food & Wine that people expect snacks to do more, whether that means supporting a health goal or simply providing “a moment of joy.”

Protein fits naturally into those expectations, and its appeal now extends far beyond people focused heavily on fitness. Glanbia also found that most shoppers from Gen Z through boomers specifically look for protein in their snacks, while extremely active people show only slightly more interest.

With demand coming from such a wide mix of shoppers, food companies have continued working protein into foods people already enjoy. And as more people expect their snacks to offer nutrition along with satisfaction, high-protein options are becoming an easy fit for everyday eating.

This story was produced by BUILT and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

Why high-protein snacks are replacing traditional junk food was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Colby Droscher

Quick Read

Phil Collins has spent most of his life on a stage, and he isn’t fully convinced he’s done with it. In a new interview with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, recorded days before his induction as a solo artist, the 75-year-old said that every now and again he still thinks about going back on the road.

“Once you’ve been on stage all your life and tasted that, it’s difficult to stop,” Collins said. “I never say exactly never.”

The obstacle isn’t only physical. It’s the math. “You can’t do that kind of thing just for a half a dozen shows, because it’s not financially practical,” he said. No tour has been announced, and nothing Collins has said amounts to a plan. But for a performer whose last show was more than four years ago, the door is open (a crack).

A second trip to the Hall

Collins will be inducted on Nov. 14 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, part of a 2026 Performer class that also includes Oasis, Sade, Iron Maiden, Wu-Tang Clan, Billy Idol, Joy Division/New Order and Luther Vandross, according to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The ceremony airs in December on ABC and Disney+. It’s his second induction. The first came in 2010, with Genesis.

The honor caught him off guard. “I’d gotten quite used to being overlooked,” Collins told The New York Times, adding that he was “quite surprised” to learn he was up for induction, Louder reported. In the Hall’s interview, he framed it as a capstone: “I think getting inducted into the Hall of Fame is a lovely way to end it.”

Don’t expect him to sing. Collins told BBC Breakfast in May that he’d turned down a request to perform at the ceremony. “You’ve got to be match fit to do something like that,” he said.

Why Phil Collins stopped touring

The man behind pop’s most famous drum fill hasn’t been able to drum for years. A 2007 spinal injury and the nerve damage that followed eroded his ability to play; by 2021, he said he could “barely hold a stick.” Back surgery and a series of knee operations came after.

Genesis’ The Last Domino? tour ended on March 26, 2022, at London’s O2 Arena, with Collins singing from a chair while his son Nic played drums. It was billed as the end.

Recent updates are more hopeful. Collins told the BBC his health has improved over the past 18 months. “I can’t really see it happening, but I’m healthier now than I have been for quite a while,” he said of touring. Speaking to the Hall this month, he went a step further: “I’m now back to being where I think I could do it.”

Could Phil Collins release new music?

A tour and a record are separate questions, and the second may be easier to answer. “I’ve got a studio that’s totally in working order downstairs in the basement of my house,” Collins said in the Hall interview, adding that he has ideas and songs in varying states of completion, Rolling Stone reported. In May, he said he’d like to “have a fiddle about and see if there’s more music.” That’s a shift from early 2025, when he said he wasn’t hungry enough to make new music.

No album has been confirmed. His last record of original songs was 2002’s “Testify.” His most recent studio album, 2010’s “Going Back,” was a collection of Motown and soul covers.

Phil Collins’ 5 best solo albums, ranked

Whatever comes next, the catalog is already settled. Stacker ranked Collins’ five best solo studio albums (Genesis records, live albums, compilations and soundtracks excluded), weighing contemporary and retrospective criticism, published rankings, U.S. and U.K. chart history, Grammy recognition and Collins’ own assessments.

#5. Hello, I Must Be Going! (1982)

Collins’ second album carried the raw, divorce-shadowed mood of his debut into tracks like the snarling, Grammy-nominated “I Don’t Care Anymore.” His cover of the Supremes’ “You Can’t Hurry Love” became his first U.K. №1 single. Critics split at the time, but it’s the bridge between “Face Value” and the horn-driven pop that followed.

#4. Both Sides (1993)

Collins made “Both Sides” entirely alone, credited with every instrument, and it sounds like it: hushed, melancholy, unguarded. Radio balked at the downbeat pace. Time has been kinder. AllMusic’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine called it “quietly compelling,” and Collins has named it his favorite “from a songwriting and creative perspective.” That reappraisal edges it past his second album.

#3. …But Seriously (1989)

Collins traded dance-pop for songs about homelessness, apartheid, and his own family without losing the hooks. “Another Day in Paradise” hit №1 and won the Grammy for Record of the Year, and the album spent 15 weeks atop the U.K. chart on its way to becoming Britain’s best-selling album of 1990. Critics heard too many ballads. Buyers didn’t care.

#2. No Jacket Required (1985)

This is the album that made Collins inescapable. All four of its singles reached the Billboard top 10, it spent seven weeks at №1, and it won Album of the Year at the 1986 Grammys (it’s since been certified Diamond in the U.S.). Some critics now hear it as dated, and Collins counts it among his least favorites. No record better captures mid-’80s pop.

#1. Face Value (1981)

Written largely in the wake of his first divorce, “Face Value” is Collins at his most exposed. “In the Air Tonight,” co-produced with Hugh Padgham, turned a cavernous gated-drum break into one of pop’s most recognizable moments. AllMusic’s Tim Sendra called the album “Collins’ most honest, most compelling work.” It has sold an estimated 12 million copies worldwide.

What comes next for Phil Collins?

Collins says he sometimes feels he “hasn’t finished.” Maybe he hasn’t. A basement studio and a healthier stretch make new music plausible, and the right offer could make a stage plausible too. Rolling Stone still calls a surprise performance at the ceremony “extraordinarily unlikely,” and Collins expects to watch from his seat.

He doesn’t need the encore. Five decades, two inductions, and a run of records that defined the sound of the 1980s already settled the question. But if he wants to take another spin out on the road, we’re more than happy to meet him there.

Originally published at https://stacker.com on November 13, 2026.

Phil Collins says he’s thinking about a comeback. Here are his 5 best solo albums, ranked was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Claudia Steiner for Sentient

Commercial fishing has had a profound impact on the diversity and sustainability of fish populations. The fishing industry has removed nearly half of the global biomass of targeted fish since pre-industrial times, scientists believe, and fishery biomass is currently declining in virtually every climate zone on the planet.

But it isn’t just the quantity of fish that suffers at the hands of the $400 billion global industry. Commercial fishing influences the molecular biology of fish — both their DNA sequences and the way their DNA is interpreted.

A study published in July on wild fish in the Mediterranean adds to a growing body of scientific research on how fishing is driving biological shifts in fish, both in the short term and across generations, as a form of human-caused evolution. These changes can reduce genetic diversity in overfished populations.

The deviations in genetic code and expression can interfere with the ability of fish populations to withstand the stress of climate change and disease and maintain healthy ecosystem interactions with other species.

“We are making populations less resilient to what is to come,” says Margarida Barceló-Serra, a molecular ecologist at the Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies in Spain and author of the paper on the biological effects of fishing pressure.

Wild fisheries throughout the world’s oceans are responding to the effects of fishing by evolving, and the literature shows it. Craig Primmer, an evolutionary genomicist at the University of Helsinki in Finland, has been studying fisheries-induced evolution for over a decade. His research has shown that wild-origin zebrafish can start to exhibit smaller adult body sizes and become less explorative over generations due to artificial selection, a typical condition observed in fisheries. Thanks to the natural tendencies of the fish themselves and policies set by the people managing these fish populations, characteristics like size and dominance tend to win out in an operation’s catch.

Similarly, Kwi Young Han, an evolutionary biologist at the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research in Kiel, Germany, found that the body lengths of a sample of Eastern Baltic cod had shrunk by 48% over a 25-year study period. In parallel, the genetics of these fish also changed to be more slow-growing.

How commercial fishing impacts fish genetics, and the extent to which it’s driving evolution, is still not clear, Barceló-Serra says.

But the last quarter century has seen the explosive growth of the field of epigenetics. Epigenetics refers to short-term, reversible changes to DNA expression that can be studied in a single generation, a promising tool for studying environmentally driven change. Offspring can also inherit some epigenetic markers from their parents in ways that scientists still don’t fully understand.

If genetics is interested in what genes humans have, then epigenetics deals with which genes are activated and how. If you think of the human genetic code as a book, epigenetic changes don’t change the words on the page. They are more like sticky notes directing the reader to ignore or pay close attention to certain pages, Janay Fox, an evolutionary biologist at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Florida, tells Sentient.

Most people learn about genetic evolution as something that happens over many generations, says Fox. Epigenetics “opens the door for more experience-based things to have an effect on evolution within a lifetime and also across generations.”

Barceló-Serra and her colleagues aimed to evaluate the correlation of fishing with both genetic and epigenetic changes in pearly razorfish, a culinary delicacy in Spain’s Balearic Islands. Authorities strictly enforce off-season fishing bans, though the authors report that recreational fishers catch up to 60% of a local population in just the first few days of open season.

In July of this year, they published the results of their study comparing populations of pearly razorfish off the coast of three locations in the Balearic Islands. Each location hosted a pair of adjacent study sites: one within the bounds of a recreational fishery and the other in a nationally designated marine protected area that prohibits all fishing.

The idea that fish populations of the same species would show epigenetic differences based on their environments, such as in a hatchery versus the wild, is not new. What is novel here, Primmer says, is that the two sites are in geographically similar environments. The variable is whether they’re being fished — and the team found that the epigenetic markers they looked at in fish living in the fishery sites and fish in the neighboring no-take protected areas were indeed different.

The mechanism the researchers studied, DNA methylation, serves as a kind of on/off switch for genes. Methylation can switch off the expression of a gene, partially dim its effects or fully activate it.

Here’s how this works. Conditions in the environment can trigger the addition of a specific chemical, a methyl group, to DNA, which then turns a certain gene off- affecting how its instructions are manifested by the fish outwardly. Alternatively, environmental influence can remove these chemicals from DNA in a process called demethylation and turn the gene back on. In the study, the genes in question had functions related to immune responses, melanin production, neural development, protein synthesis and more.

In the case of pearly razorfish, the researchers found that fishing seemed to have a pronounced effect on DNA methylation of certain genes. Some genes were more highly methylated at the sites with fishing, and other genes were more highly methylated in the marine protected area.

Many factors can influence DNA methylation patterns — especially an organism’s age. And in fisheries, the oldest (largest) fish may be plucked from the pool over their younger counterparts. However, the team applied a statistical model to correct for this, and the patterns persisted.

The differences in methylation were not mind-blowing, and not all of the genes they looked at demonstrated a difference based on protection level. But that doesn’t make the results insignificant — Fox says that even a small change in methylation patterns can have large downstream effects on an organism’s behavior or characteristics.

She also emphasizes that the study was done on a recreational fishery, rather than a large-scale commercial one. However, she believes that could actually mean the epigenetic effect of commercial fishing would be even more potent.

The genetic results were less conclusive than the epigenetic findings. Still, overall, the marine protected areas did contain higher genetic diversity than the fishery populations. Barceló-Serra says that could have been because of the age effect of fishing. When a lot of fish of the same age are removed from a population, such as the larger, older individuals, that reduces genetic diversity.

The study is correlational, and cannot rule out the multitude of other factors that can cause biological variation. However, epigenetic plasticity — or the ability of the genetic material to yield varying behavior or physical characteristics based on environmental pressure — says something about our impact on the animals that become our food. But not in the exact way that traditional evolution does.

“We see that when fishing induces genetic shifts, these are very difficult to reverse,” Fox says. “But if the changes are plastic, maybe that offers some hope that if we are able to reduce pressures or reduce the stresses that the individuals experience, that these can then be reversed more quickly.”

The Toll of Industrial Fishing

The study builds on a prodigious body of research documenting the impact of overfishing on species and population health.

Many Indigenous communities fish with ancestral methods that keep the long-term sustainability of these populations in mind, such as by catching only what the community needs to subsist, using small traps and avoiding the use of large boats.

But industrial fishing followed a very different path, eventually leading to the decimation of fish biomass across the world’s oceans and rivers.

A representative for the Marine Stewardship Council declined to comment on the significance of the aforementioned scientific studies or the general phenomenon of fisheries-induced evolution, citing genetic research as outside of their purview.

Gavin Gibbons, chief strategy officer of the National Seafood Association, formerly known as the National Fisheries Institute, tells Sentient over email, “All food production has an impact. Feeding people requires land, water, energy, and other natural resources, and can affect ecosystems, biodiversity, climate, soil, and species abundance but it is essential to human survival. Whether it’s agriculture, fishing, and other food systems, no method of food production is entirely without environmental effects. While feeding a growing planet is difficult, entirely eliminating the impacts of food production is all but impossible.”

Primmer says it’s important to continue research on genetic evolution and epigenetics linked to commercial fishing — and in fact it may be the best hope of preserving the ability to fish at all. “The more we know about the biology of species and the effect of external factors, be it fishing or climate change or pollution or anything, they can all help to improve the health and the viability of populations and stocks,” Primmer says.

This story was produced by Sentient and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

The fishing industry is changing fish DNA was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

by Rachel Brodsky for Intuit TurboTax

Anyone who’s planned a bachelorette party, run a group project, or fronted concert tickets knows how quickly one person ends up carrying the load. At Friendsgiving, that’s the host who offers their place, buys the turkey and the ice, rents folding chairs, and covers whatever else comes up, while the rest of the group arrives with a bottle of wine.

Sometimes guests just don’t know what to bring. Other times, money is tight: In a Credit Karma study, 49% of respondents said 2025 stretched their finances, and only 43% said their income was keeping pace with the cost of living. Either way, the math adds up fast. If 12 guests at an 18-person, $500 dinner chip in $20 each and the rest bring wine, the host is out $260. A friendly heads-up about what to expect and how to contribute can help prevent that. Intuit TurboTax shares tips for splitting Friendsgiving costs, setting expectations with guests, and avoiding leaving the host with the bill.

3 ways to split Friendsgiving costs

1. Assigned dish potluck

Best for: Big groups and hosts who don’t mind coordinating

Everyone claims one item in advance, so nothing gets duplicated and nobody arrives empty-handed. If you’re hosting, you can send out the guest list a few weeks in advance and ask everyone to reply with what they’re bringing. Late repliers can take the finishing touches (like napkins, single-use dishware, or ice), and the shared list makes it easy to see what’s covered.

2. Flat buy-in

Best for: Hosts who’d rather cook or order once than coordinate a menu

Everyone pays the same amount, and the host handles the food. For example, you could order a full turkey dinner from a grocery store, divide the cost by headcount, and text everyone the amount a week in advance. If it comes out to around $20 a head, everyone knows what to expect before arriving.

Asking friends to contribute might feel uncomfortable at first, but setting the expectation early can make it one of the easiest parts of the night.

3. Itemized split

Best for: Small groups or when one cost dwarfs the rest

The host covers the big-ticket item, and the group splits the receipts for everything else, with all expenses tracked in a shared document or app. It’s more precise and requires more admin, though it’s worth it when somebody’s fronting a $90 turkey.

Whichever you pick, put the number in writing. Text, email, spreadsheet, or an app. The format matters less than the fact that it exists outside your head.

Offer a different kind of currency: A trade

Someone may be between jobs, while another person’s rent has gone up. When the buy-in is genuinely too much for someone that year, there’s a second currency.

You might have friends who come over early to set up or stay late to do dishes instead of contributing money. Offering that option in advance can help everyone participate without feeling financially stretched.

Naming an alternative from the start is one way to make the gathering more equitable.

You can finish the invitation text with: “If this month is tight, that’s OK! I’d also appreciate help with setup or post-dinner cleanup.”

One final rule: Don’t make the trade public. Sending an invitation to each guest individually may make them more comfortable accepting an alternative way to contribute. After all, what’s most important is spending time with those you love.

Get the money talk out of the way

If you’ve hosted, you know the anxiety of asking people to pay up. Maybe you sent a Venmo request for a side dish and watched it sit there, then couldn’t bring yourself to follow up because nobody wants to be the friend who nickel-and-dimed the group over broccolini.

Or you were on the other end. The request came in, the money wasn’t there, and avoiding it felt easier than explaining why. Both situations bring a little awkwardness.

Talking about money can be uncomfortable, but if you set up the agreement in advance, you protect more than just your wallet. By avoiding these conversations later at the table, you also get to keep your peace of mind and probably more of your friendships, too.

This story was produced by Intuit TurboTax and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

How to split Friendsgiving costs without losing money was originally published in Stacker News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.