As the always sweltering Tucson summer arrives, homeowners may be considering hiring a service to rejuvenate lawns or take care of routine chores like mowing, fertilizing and trimming in the coming months.

Hiring a lawn service can ease the burdens of caring for your yard.  To avoid headaches or misunderstandings, the Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona advises consumers to make sure you and the lawn service have clear, written expectations for what the company will provide for the agreed-upon fees.

“A lush, green lawn can be a source of pride for homeowners,” said Kim States, BBB President. “But if a lawn service fails to mow regularly, leaves a mess or doesn’t do what the homeowner expected, disagreements and complaints often arise. Consumers should get a clear understanding of what services are provided and how much the service will cost in advance.”

One option many southern Arizona consumers may be considering is installing artificial turf in lieu of natural grass. Artificial turf has several advantages over natural grass, but there are also some things consumers should watch out for before having it installed.

“Most of my customers who request estimates from us say that they don’t have time to maintain grass,” said Gabriel Lobato, owner of La Cholla Landscaping in Oro Valley. “You also don’t have the same issues with allergies and wasted water that you get with natural turf.”

When receiving an estimate for artificial turf Lobato warns that some contractors may try to lower their bid by leaving out crucial aspects of the installation process.

“People should really be aware of proper installation,” Lobato told BBB. “Before installation you have to lay down a base of crushed gravel; it gives the turf a smoother feel, and rain passes through it much better.”

Lobato said to also watch out for toxic in-fills, which contractors place in the turf to give it a more realistic look and to safeguard it from the elements. Some in-fills may have chemicals that can seep into (more…)

Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona receives numerous calls from people who ask, “Why are so many companies calling me? How did they get my name and number?” The surprising answer is they gave it to them.

Many times when a consumer signs up for a drawing, a magazine subscription, or anything where a phone number is requested their phone number might be sold to a third party for use by telemarketers. The bottom line is consumers should be careful who you give your name and phone number to.

If you pay for a magazine subscription, tell the magazine company to not share your information with other companies. If you don’t tell them not to, you will receive unwanted calls and mailings.

What about the Do Not Call Registry for cell phones? There is not a separate registry.

The Federal Trade Commission says:

Federal regulations already prohibit most telemarketing targeted to cell phones. The truth about cell phones and the Do Not Call Registry is:  The government is not releasing cell phone numbers to telemarketers. There is no deadline for registering a cell phone number on the Do Not Call Registry… There is only one Do Not Call Registry, operated by the Federal Trade Commission, with information available at www.donotcall.gov or (888) 382-1222. There is no separate registry for cell phones.

Telemarketers/sellers are required to search the registry once every 31 days and drop from their call lists the phone number of consumers who are registered.

Consumers can register up to three phone numbers, including your cell phone. If they receive an unwanted call, consumers can tell them not to call back. If the telemarketer keeps calling back, file a complaint with the Do Not Call Registry through the FTC.

Unfortunately, political campaign offices can still call. The only way to handle them is to have caller ID and not answer those calls. Charities can also call but not third-party telemarketers for the charities.
Some companies will entice you with drawings for prizes — then sell your name and number. Keep off those lists.

The first tell-tale sign that a child has been the victim of identity theft could be a credit card solicitation in the child’s name arriving in the mailbox, the Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona warns.

Identity thieves comb the Internet to find inactive Social Security numbers, many of them assigned to children. Companies sell the numbers under different names. Thieves then use the numbers to establish fake credit and rack up significant debts. The debts could mar a child’s credit record later in life. Creditors may try to collect the debts, too.

“Identity theft is a serious problem for adults, but it’s even more frightening that it can affect young children,” said Kim States, BBB President. “Parents should take precautions to ensure the safety of their child’s identity and credit.”

Last year, 8.1 million American adults became victims of ID theft, with losses totaling $37 billion, according to a report from Javelin Strategy and Research. While information on child ID theft is scarce, Debix, an ID theft monitoring company, checked records for 40,000 children and found that 4,000 records had been tainted.

BBB advises parents to be on the lookout for signs of child ID theft:

• Find out how to check your child’s credit report. Many reports for children under 13 are unavailable from the free credit report website, www.annualcreditreport.com. The easiest way to check is to ask TransUnion, one of the three credit reporting agencies, for your child’s report. If there is no report, then odds are good that your child is in the clear. If not – or if you have other (more…)