Today, many Americans are victims of financial crimes perpetrated by disreputable businesspeople. Consumers are swindled by those who engage in identity theft, through car dealer rip-offs, by credit agencies that incorporate inaccurate data into credit reports, and through a variety of inflated fees charged by mortgage brokers. Unfortunately, consumer protection laws often fall short of helping consumers. Even when consumer protection laws are in place, they are often inadequately enforced. Worse, consumers are often unaware of the consumer protection laws that are available to help them, or do not have the knowledge to use consumer protection laws to their advantage. In addition, Americans often do not have the financial resources to hire an attorney in order to gain redress for financial shenanigans perpetrated by companies and individuals who have taken advantage of them. For example, many consumers do not stay abreast of their credit reports, and do not know how to improve credit. It is estimated that, together, American companies issues over three million reports to credit bureaus each day. Studies have found that, unfortunately, between 20 and 40 percent of credit reports contain errors. Although a federal consumer protection law was enacted forcing credit bureaus to each provide one credit report to each consumer annually, most Americans do not take advantage of this opportunity, even though doing to would be the first step they could take to improve credit. Likewise, consumers often don't know how to stop bill collectors from contacting them. As a result, Americans are unnecessarily harassed by bill collectors. Consumers are also taken advantage of

by car dealers and mortgage brokers. Although there are several ways to avoid car dealer rip-offs, many Americans are unaware of some of the most common car dealer scams, and that safe buying methods exist that could save them thousands of dollars. Likewise, mortgage brokers can make a considerable profit by padding fees and closing costs. Although homebuyers can shop around for brokers and compare fees, there are few federal consumer protection laws in place to prevent fee gouging. Fortunately, consumers do have some low-cost alternatives to educate themselves and protect themselves from becoming victims of financial crimes. For example, Ray Perry, the "Consumer Bulldog," offers a Consumer Protection and Action Service Kit that contains a myriad of reports, action letters, and legal documents that can help consumers prevent identity theft, stop bill collectors, avoid car dealer rip-offs, and improve credit. These types of tools go far to enable consumers to protect themselves and to resolve any issue they encounter.

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