CT BBB Marks National Consumer Protection Week with Advice on Avoiding Scams

March 7, 2011 - PRLog -- BBB Recommends Five Easy Steps to Become a Smart Shopper and Savvy Consumer

As a part of National Consumer Protection Week March 6-12, Connecticut BBB recommends five easy steps you can take to become a smart shopper and savvy consumer.  National Consumer Protection Week is an annual effort led by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to educate consumers on how to use their money wisely.

“Scammers are not going away, but savvy consumers make the con artists’ job more challenging,” says Connecticut Better Bureau President, Paulette Scarpetti.  “With so many people closely watching their budgets, it is more important than ever to protect yourself from being cheated out of your money by scammers and disreputable businesses.”

BBB recommends the five following tips to protect your wallet:

Get everything in writing and always read the fine print - Contracts, customer agreements and fine print protect the business and outline the terms of the agreement with the customer.  While it’s natural to want to avoid reading the legalese, it’s important that customers understand their rights. Whenever signing a contract, BBB recommends reading the fine print carefully—even if it means taking it home and sleeping on it.  Also, get all verbal promises in writing.  

Protect your identity and your pocketbook - Fighting identity theft means staying vigilant online and off. Protect your identity by taking the following steps:

•Always shred sensitive documents that include personal financial information such as bank, credit card and Social Security numbers.

•Monitor your financial accounts closely to more quickly detect suspicious activity.

•Make sure your computer has up-to-date anti-virus software and be extremely selective when opening attachments or clicking on links in e-mails.

•Shop online through secure sites only and always confirm that the business is trustworthy before entering your credit or debit card number.

Never wire money to someone you don’t know - Many scams bilk victims by convincing them to wire money.  The stated reasons can vary and include mystery shopping, paying fees to win a lottery, and—if the target is a small business owner—overpayment for goods or services.  Scammers know it’s extremely difficult to track money sent via MoneyGram or Western Union; it’s nearly impossible to get your money back.  Even if you’ve been given a check to supposedly cover the amount you’re wiring, never send money to someone you don’t know personally and keep in mind checks that require wiring money back to the sender are in all likelihood, counterfeit.

Know where to complain - If you’ve been cheated by a business, there are a number of organizations and government agencies that want to hear about it.  You can file a complaint with:

•Your Better Business Bureau at http://www.bbb.org

•Federal Trade Commission at http://www.ftc.gov, and

•Your state Attorney General or Department of Consumer Protection.

If you’ve lost money in an online scam such as a phishing e-mail or deceptive website, you can also file a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center at http://www.IC3.gov.

Always check businesses out with BBB - You can check out BBB Business Reviews for nearly 4 million businesses across North America by visiting http://ct.bbb.org/Find-Business-Reviews/.   A BBB Business Review will tell you how many complaints a company has received, whether it responds to complaints and much more.

For more advice on managing your money and avoiding scams, visit http://ct.bbb.org/Consumer-Tips/.

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Founded in 1928, Connecticut BBB is an unbiased non-profit organization that sets and upholds high standards for fair and honest business behavior. For more advice on finding companies and businesses, start your search with trust at www.bbb.org.