What Consumers Should Know Before Contacting the Better Business Bureau

Earlier this year my husband and I contacted the Better Business Bureau for the first time. After repeated attempts to contact a certain company, we were given the brush off as we tried to claim a rebate for a computer purchase that we were entitled to. Thankfully for us, the situation was rectified quickly and with a satisfactory result. Consumers interested in contacting the Better Business Bureau, or BBB, should keep these tips in mind as they begin the complaint or claim process.

Try to rectify the situation with company on your own before contacting the Better Business Bureau.
According to theBetter Business Bureau website, they encourage individuals to try to resolve matters on their own with a company or organization before contacting them. However, they won't ignore or deny your complaint if you haven't done this. When we had our rebate denied without just cause, we contacted the two organizations involved in the denial before contacting the BBB. After emails and phone calls with promises that they didn't deliver on, we felt we had no other recourse but to contact the Better Business Bureau. In addition, we informed both organizations that we were preparing to contact the BBB if action wasn't taken by a certain date. The companies that we dealing with actually promised to comply by this date, but then failed to make good on their agreement. This was the point, for us, that we decided to contact the Better Business Bureau, feeling that we had done our best to handle the situation on our own and needed external assistance.