Recently I was furniture shopping and found a perfect dining room suite. I thought to myself that even though it was expensive, if I purchased it on credit I wouldn't have to pay interest for a whole year. It sounded like a great deal but was there a catch? What did the interest start adding up and what was I responsible for?

We received a suggestion to write a blog about over-charging for car repairs from our Facebook friend Justin. This is an issue our inquiry unit receives quite often so we thought this was a great blog topic!

As this is the time of year that people begin working on their new year’s resolutions, we thought it would be useful to provide some more information around gym membership contracts. Gym memberships as well as other types of memberships for fitness purposes (i.e. yoga, or swimming lessons) all fall under the category of continuing services contracts.

Our Inquiry team often receives calls from consumers who have just purchased a car from a BC dealership. The most common question we are asked is whether or not they can return the car if they are not satisfied. Often consumers think there is a grace period where they can return the car but this is not the case.  Once you purchase the car, most often you can’t return it.

Do you know what a continuing service contract is? Do you think it is a contract which:

a) Provides for instruction, training, or assistance in body building and exercising
b) Applies to weight loss facilities and self defense lessons
c) Includes dance lessons
d) Gives the consumer access to membership to a health studio or gym
e) All of the above

We were recently contacted by a BC media outlet to speak about time shares and offer tips to consumers.  We wanted to share that interview with you as we think it has some good information.

Dealing with the death of a loved one can be very difficult emotionally.  Amid the grief, family members may also have to deal with making choices around issues such as funeral or memorial services.  With this in mind, some people prefer to make their own arrangements ahead of time.

Did you know that March is Fraud Prevention Month?  Last year, Consumer Protection BC wrote four columns for this national initiative.  The columns were all based on situations experienced by BC consumers who had contacted our organization for help.

What are debt poolers you ask?  Read our most recent news release to find out!  The news release has some great information about what debt poolers are, and the responsibilities they have under British Columbia Law.

Yesterday my dad finally got a cell phone.  The reason it took so long?  After hearing people talk about their cell phone contracts he was reluctant to get tied down for two or three years.  He decided to go with a pay as you go type arrangement.  I use my phone all the time and prefer to have a contract. No matter what you decide, be familiar with the agreement you are entering into.