Attorney General Becerra Points to Consumer Tips and Resources for National Consumer Protection Week

SACRAMENTO – California Attorney General Xavier Becerra today issued a reminder to consumers of the many resources and tools available from the California Department of Justice to help them protect themselves. These resources are available on www.oag.ca.gov/consumers.  

There, consumers can find a variety of helpful consumer tips:

• Money, Credit, and Debt – Consumers can learn how to protect their hard-earned money and watch out for financial scams, including how to deal with banks, credit card issues, loans, debts, and other financial issues.
• Housing and Vehicles – Consumers can find resources for landlords, tenants and other housing-related issues, as well as learn about auto-related issues including auto repair, insurance, and car rentals.
• Sales Offers, Purchases, and Returns – Consumers can discover how to protect themselves from scam sales offers, from checking a company’s background to spotting the warning signs for scams related to credit cards, zero-interest financing, crowdfunding, trial products, junk mail, magazine scams, sweepstakes, online purchases, and online privacy threats.
• Contractors, Consultants, and Other Companies – Consumers can learn how to vet – or report complaints about – contractors, immigration consultants, financial advisors, attorneys, investment professionals, estate planners, tax preparers and tax scams, tech support scams, travel agents, and healthcare providers.
• Commonly Targeted Groups – Unfortunately, scammers often target certain groups of consumers, including immigrants and limited-English consumers, seniors, veterans, students, and children. In addition, helpful information on military consumer protection issues including scam alerts, and resources and tips for financial readiness, is available on the Attorney General’s Military Consumer Protection page.
• Common Scams – Consumer can learn how to protect themselves from common scams, including charity scams, identity theft, living trust mills, loan modification fraud, and pyramid schemes.

Attorney General Becerra urges consumers to report complaints if they suspect misconduct. Complaints regulated by other government agencies should be reported directly those regulating agencies. Consumers can find the appropriate agency and contact information using the complaint referral table offered on the Attorney General’s website at www.oag.ca.gov/consumers/complaint-referral-table.

Consumers seeking to file a complaint against a business not regulated by another agency may file directly with the Attorney General’s office by calling (800) 952-5225 or visiting www.oag.ca.gov/complaint.