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 Consumer
Information
Consumer Organizations
Consumer Publications
Credit & Debt Problems
Credit Reports
Credit Risk Scores
Credit Unions & Organizations
Gambling Problems
Internet Forums & News
State & Federal Agencies
Other Useful Info
Consumer Organizations
Colorado Consumer Line
1-800-222-4444, or in the Denver-Metro area, call
303-866-5189
The Colorado Consumer Line is a joint effort between the Colorado Attorney
General's office and the Better Business Bureau.
Attorney General's Office of Consumer
Affairs
http://www.ago.state.co.us/index.cfm
The Attorney General's office of Colorado has a vast array of information
on consumer issues. Consumer complaints must be sent in writing.
On this site, you can review Colorado laws pertaining to consumer issues.
Better Business Bureau
http://www.bbb.org
Colorado Public Interest Research Group
http://www.copirg.org/
Federal Trade Commission
http://www.ftc.gov
The FTC is a government entity that enforces a variety of federal antitrust
and consumer protection laws and accepts consumer complaints on these
issues. On their web site, you can read about formal actions against
companies and order consumer protection information.
For Consumer complaints contact the Consumer Response Center:
By phone: toll free 877-FTC-HELP (382-4357);
9:00 am to 5:00 pm EST Monday through Friday
National Do Not Call Registry
http://www.donotcall.gov
Colorado No Call List
http://www.coloradonocall.com
National Consumer Information Center,
Pueblo CO
http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/
The Consumer Information Center has a wealth of consumer tips, publications,
alerts and more.
National Fraud Information Center
http://www.fraud.com
Consumer
Publications
Consumer Federation of America
http://www.consumerfed.org/
Financial Services Information for
Consumers
www.consumersunion.org/FinancialServices/
Nonprofit publisher of consumer reports
Credit
& Debt Problems
Choosing a credit counseling agency can be difficult.
Visit the following web site and click on "Credit Facts" and
"Credit Counseling Agency checklist" to help you understand
the standards that credit counseling agencies should have, before you
make a costly mistake:
National Foundation for Credit Counseling
www.nfcc.org
The NFCC is the national umbrella organization for Consumer Credit Counseling
Services and other members. Members of the NFCC adhere to industry
standards.
When you are in need of assistance, a local
credit counseling agency is in the best position to help. They understand
and can work with local laws and can provide you with referrals in your
own community. CCCS's also provide pre-purchase housing counseling
and foreclosure prevention counseling.
Consumer Credit Counseling Service
of Greater Denver, Inc. (303) 632-2100
http://www.cccsdenver.com
Includes the I-70 corridor west to Grand Junction, north to Longmont and
the Durango area
Consumer Credit Counseling service
of Northern Colorado & Southeast Wyoming (970) 229-0695
www.cccsnc.org
Includes Fort Collins, Greeley, Loveland, Sterling
Consumer Credit Counseling Service
of Southern Colorado
(719) 598-2227
Debtor's Anonymous
http://www.debtorsanonymous.org/
Debtor's Anonymous is a 12-step program helping people who feel they have
a "compulsive debting" problem.
Denver, Colorado
meetings
(303) 430-2811
On-line DA groups
http://www.solvency.org/online.html
"Spenders" on-line DA Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spenders/join
"Don't Debt e-mail DA Group
- Send an email to majordomo@toto.com
- Write In the body of your email write subscribe dontdebt
(your email address). For the digest version in
the body of your email write subscribe dontdebt-digest (your email
address).
- You will receive an authentication email that
will ask you to confirm your subscription.
Business Owners e-mail DA group
To subscribe send an email to: requests@offleash.com
with SUBSCRIBE BODA in the BODY of the message
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgendered
DA Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lgbtdebtors/join
Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Designed
to Protect Consumers
http://www.pnnonline.org/article.php?sid=497
Credit
Reports
Under Colorado Law, Colorado residents are entitled to receive
one free credit report per year. Each credit reporting
agency has specific methods of ordering credit reports for Colorado residents.
Be sure to locate Colorado resident specific information for each credit
bureau on the following sites. You must follow instructions to receive
your's free copy.
Equifax - National
http://www.equifax.com
Experian
http://www.experian.com/consumer/index.html
http://www.experian.com/customer/mail.html
Experian also features a column called "Ask
Max" where consumers can ask questions about credit reports and another
feature about fraud .
TransUnion
http://www.transunion.com/Personal/OrderCreditReport.jsp
TransUnion site includes information on consumer
fraud and a "how to" section on opting out of marketing lists.
Opt Out Number
888-5-OPT-OUT or (888-567-8688)
Call to ask credit bureaus not to sell your information to others.
Credit
Risk Scores
Each credit bureau utilizes different models for
determining a "score" that indicates to lenders what the risk
may be in lending to you. These scoring methods are called the Beacon,
Empirica or FICO scores. All of these scoring models were developed
by each credit bureau in conjunction with
Fair Issac
http://www.fairisaac.com/
(Colorado residents: if all you need is a credit
report, remember that you can receive one free report each year. Order
them directly from the credit bureau in the case).
Order an Equifax report with your score
https://www.econsumer.equifax.com/webapp/
ConsumerProducts/pgConsumerProducts
Fair Isaac
http://www.myfico.com/
Credit
Unions and Organizations
Colorado Credit Unions
www.colocu.com
National Credit Union Administration
www.ncua.gov
Credit Union National Association
www.cuna.org
Gambling
Problems
If you, or someone you love, has a gambling problem call the Colorado
Council on Compulsive Gambling helpline at (800) 522-4700
Gambler's Anonymous
http://www.gamblersanonymous.org
In Colorado call:
Denver meeting info: (303) 754-7119
Colorado Springs meeting info: (719) 632-8500
National Council on Problem Gambling
www.ncpgambling.org
The NCPG is a national problem gambling organization with over 30 affiliates
throughout the U.S.
Internet
Forums & News
While the Internet provides us a lot
of good information, there are also some pitfalls. Joining live chat
forums where people give each other advice can be dangerous.
Here is one site we recommend because
the forum manager is very responsible and knowledgeable in his management
of the site. But beware! Just because someone has an opinion,
doesn't mean it's right!
http://credit.about.com/money/credit/mbody.htm
Bankrate Monitor Online
The Bankrate Monitor Online is a good, centralized resource for
the latest news on finance.
http://www.bankrate.com
NFCC "Debt Talk"
http://www.nfcc.org
State
& Federal Government Information & Regulatory Agencies
Colorado Attorney General’s
Office, Consumer Information
http://www.ago.state.co.us/consumer_protection.cfm?MenuPage=True
The Colorado Uniform Consumer Credit Code, in short, is a document outlining
all of the policies and laws related to credit in Colorado.
Colorado Collection Agency Board
http://www.ago.state.co.us/Cab.htm
(303) 866-5304
The Colorado Collection Agency Board licenses and accepts complaints
about collection agencies. Information on this site also includes
the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act.
Colorado Government
www.state.co.us
Colorado Regulatory Agencies
http://www.dora.state.co.us/
Mission:
To serve the public through responsible regulation and the vigorous and
fair enforcement of Colorado law.
Election Information
www.70million.com
Internal Revenue Service
www.irs.ustreas.gov/
Other
Useful Info
Letter from the
Colorado Insurance Commissioner
Addressing changes in automobile insurance coverage effective July 1,
2003 (PDF)
Auto Insurance
Changes Q & A (PDF)
American Bankruptcy Institute
www.abiworld.org
The premier site for bankruptcy information on the web, the ABI contains
important information on backruptcy legislation, trends, etc .
Fannie Mae Home Loans
www.fanniemae.com
William Ford Foundation
http://loanconsolidation.ed.gov/
Consider this option if you need to consolidate your student loans.
Legal Information Institute
http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/debtor_creditor.html
Information about debtor-creditor law
National Endowment for Financial Education
www.nefe.org
Plan it, Save 4 it - from CUNA
Learn about saving more of your paycheck, planning for retirement,
financing options and much more!
http://www.creditunion.coop/planit/index.htm
Institute of Consumer Financial Education
http://www.icfe.info/
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