The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is back in business in Northwest Indiana, with a new office in Merrillville.

Norman Strangland, executive director of the BBB for Lake and Porter Counties, told the Chesterton Tribune that the previous office was closed by the national association in the fall and the new one subsumed by the Northern Indiana BBB, which also operates offices in South Bend and Fort Wayne.

“We’ve been open a little more than two weeks,” Strangland said. “And within minutes of the phone system being connected the phone started ringing with complaints and inquiries. We’ve been getting quite a few.”

You too can call the BBB for Lake and Porter Counties at (219) 791-9550. Or you can lodge a complaint at (800) 552-4631.

The vision of the BBB, according to its website, accessed at www.bbb.org, is an “ethical marketplace where buyers and sellers can trust each other”; its mission, to “be the leader in advancing marketplace trust.” Among its services, the BBB allows consumers to review a company’s record before buying, file a complaint against a specific company, and investigate a national charity’s spending before making a donation.

The website also features numerous articles on all sorts of markets, including automotive, computer and Internet, family, finance and credit, health, home, products, travel, and scams. Consumers can also avail themselves of the BBB‚s video series, with titles like “Buying a Recreational Vehicle,” “Hiring a Home Contractor,” “Identity Theft,” and “Who’s Minding the Children? Choosing Quality Child Care.”

“We want to make sure people are spending their money wisely,” Strangland said. “We want to provide them with the opportunity to make inquiries and lodge complaints.”

“The BBB does mediate complaints and tries to arbitrate a settlement if it gets to that point between the business and the consumer,” Strangland added.

Strangland noted that no one kind of business tends to prompt the most complaints. “It runs the gamut,” he says. “There’s no set pattern.” Consumers are asking questions about everything from lawn care to auto shops. “Is it legitimate? What kind of record do they have?”

The BBB also conducts outreach campaigns, speaks to different groups and associations, and educates consumers on “what to watch out for.”

The BBB is interested in both outright fraud and shoddy business practices, Strang said, although if a reported fraud is “something so egregious that it involves law enforcement, they’re going to hear about it before we do.”

“We wanted to get an office back open in Northwest Indiana,” Strangland said. “We knew there was a need for one. We’re a brand-new bureau under new management and we’re open for business.”

Posted 3/20/2007