National Consumer Protection Week
Are you taking full advantage of your consumer rights? 
As the 13th annual National Consumer Protection Week kicks into high gear it’s a good time to brush up on all the ways you can better protect your privacy, manage your credit and debt, and avoid fraud and scams.
To provide the knowledge you need to make better-informed decisions NCPW.gov provides five excellent ways to empower you.
Awareness
From the 6th through the 12th of March a national campaign is devoted to promote consumer protection through various outreach activities at the state, county, and local government levels.
All of these activities are focused on empowerment through education and the more you learn about your rights and the dangers facing you regarding scams, fraud, and identity theft the better prepared you will.
Education
In addition to raising awareness you can also find valuable information on the NCPW blog. They continually add ongoing discussions on the emerging issues facing consumers today and it can prove to be a helpful resource for getting the support and answers you need.
Free Resources
The materials you can order, download, and print are extremely helpful and cover just about every consumer protection topic you can think of. They even have videos you can watch as well as newsletters you can subscribe to.
Here are five resource sites they provide:
- FTC Bulk Order Site
- FTC Consumer Newsletter
- FTC Consumer Education Videos
- Direct Selling Advice for Buyers and Sellers
- BBB Trust Brief Newsletter
Events
Another way you can educate yourself is by attending a live event or workshop. These events are held all across the country and each one covers a specific topic. To check out the events that are happening all across the country check out the consumer protection events section on the NCPW.gov website.
Toolkit
Now if you want to be a part of National Consumer Protection Week you can access the NCPW Toolkit and get all the support materials you need such as sample press releases, sample social networking blurbs, event flyers, web buttons and banners.
On a final note if you haven’t taken advantage of obtaining your free annual credit report that you are entitled to by law then it’s a great place to start. Remember, know your rights as a consumer and do everything you can to protect those rights.
What steps are you going to take to learn your consumer rights?
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About the author
Marco Carbajo is a business credit expert, author, speaker, and founder of the Business Credit Insiders Circle. He is a business credit blogger for AllBusiness.com, a subsidiary of Dun and Bradstreet and author of “Eight Steps to Ultimate Business Credit” and “How to Build Business Credit with No Personal Guarantee.” His articles and blogs have also been featured in American Express Small Business, Business Week, The Washington Post, The San Francisco Tribune, Scotsman Guide, Alltop, Entrepreneur Connect, and Active Rain.