A Very Good Set of Consumer Commandments

Nicely done by MSNBC’s Herb Weisbaum. Here are his Ten Commandments, most of which are meant to help people avoid getting taken in by scams. I’m only presenting the commandments, so you’ll have to go to the link for details:

1. Thou shalt not assume.
2. Thou shalt get all promises in writing.
3. Thou shalt do thy homework before making a major purchase.
4. Thou shalt not be penny wise and pound foolish.
5. Thou shalt not hire a contractor who just shows up at the door.
6. Thou shalt not be pressured into buying.
7. Thou shalt not assume a transaction can be undone.
8. Thou shalt not buy a used car without an inspection.
9. Thou shalt guard all they personal information.
10. Thou shalt be more skeptical.

Weisbaum’s wrap, though is worth noting here:

With most scams the warning signs are there, we just tend to ignore them. We let greed and gullibility replace common sense. Don’t give your hard-earned money to a con artist.

Remember these rules:
- You can’t win a contest or lottery you didn’t enter — even if the prize winning notice says you did.
- If it’s a prize, it’s yours for free. You don’t have pay any money for anything or give out your credit card number.
- You can’t make lots of money doing virtually no work on a part time basis.
- You never have to pay money up front for a credit card or loan.
- No one can “guarantee” you a credit card despite your credit history.