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AG Cordray unveils plan to help small businesses battle scams
Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray has opened his office’s hotline for consumer complaints to small businesses and so far has recovered more than $60,000 on their behalf.
Cordray unveiled the operation at a press conference on Tuesday, Feb. 2, and got a ringing endorsement from Laura Dickinson, office manager for the Spurlock Insurance Group in West Chester in Butler County.
Dickinson said she ordered new cell phones for the company in December 2008 after a promise that the new service would reduce costs. When that didn’t happen, she tried to return the phones but kept getting billed by the seller - finally $2,455 - before contacting Cordray’s office in November 2009.
The issue was resolved the next month, Dickinson said. Before the AG’s office got involved, “it was a nightmare,” she said.
Don Spurlock, company president, said that it would have been too expensive to hire a lawyer on his own.
Cordray said the AG’s office in the past has helped individuals with consumer complaints but now has determined that the state’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act gives him the authority to also fight scammers, deceptive vendors and others on behalf of small businesses.
His office started a pilot project in July working through trade organizations such as the Ohio branch of the National Federation of Independent Business and now is trying to spread the word to small businesses throughout the state, he said.
Businesses with fewer than 20 employees create half the jobs in the state and “we need to do everything we can to insure the success of Ohio small business owners,” Cordray said.
Roger Geiger, Ohio executive director and vice president of the NFIB, applauded Cordray’s effort.
“He is really helping foster the economic recovery,” said Geiger.
To file a small business complaint,call 1-800-282-0515 or visit www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/Business.
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By HowRad
February 2, 2010 4:53 PM | Link to this
Good luck with that, you will have to Obama proof it.