Non-Profit Groups Offer Aid to Fraud Victims and Consumers

by Dwayne Robinson | March 2019
____

If you think you have been (or are about to be) defrauded, cheated, or scammed, check out these organizations that offer resources and other information to protect yourself and others:

• Better Business Bureau (BBB): The Better Business Bureau (BBB) allows consumers and businesses to submit complaints related to marketplace issues that are not in litigation or arbitration. The BBB also has a Scam Alert search engine to assist consumers in identifying potential scams.  The BBB can assist victims to see what other complaints have been filed against certain businesses.  The Website for the BBB is https://www.bbb.org/.

• Consumer Action: Consumer Action offers multi-lingual information to consumers on non-legal advice and referrals.  Focus areas of Consumer Action include housing and mortgage lending, insurance, financial services, telecommunications and privacy.  The Web site for Consumer Action is http://www.consumer-action.org/.

• University of Miami Investor Rights Clinic: The University of Miami Investor Rights Clinic assists those with modest means who also suffered investment losses because of broker misconduct.  The clinic represents investors before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).  The clinic also provides information on how to avoid and detect fraudulent investment schemes.  The Web site for the Investor Rights Clinic is https://www.law.miami.edu/academics/clinics/investor-rights-clinic.

• Three Rivers Legal Services: Operating in North Florida, this non-profit law firm assists poor, disabled, and abused individuals.  Three Rivers assists consumers with loan modification scams, charity frauds, and consumer complaints. The Web site for Three Rivers is https://www.trls.org/.

• National Consumers League: The National Consumers League (NCL) operates Fraud.org, designed to promote the interests of consumers.  The NCL provides consumers information to avoid becoming victims of Internet and other frauds.  Other resources include information on common scams related to credit, debt, and loans; healthcare frauds, and money-making scams. The Web site for the NCL’s fraud project is fraud.org.