Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody was in town this week to debut and promote the 2021 Holiday Consumer Protection Guide.
This holiday shopping season is expected to come with unique challenges, and so the state is staying ahead of them with a guide to protecting Floridians from online scams, recalled products, charity fraud and more.
The guide can be found in both English and Spanish at www.myfloridalegal.com.
“With national supply chains reported to be tight this year, many folks are frantically rushing to begin holiday shopping early,” Moody said from Kissimmee Monday. “Our office is always concerned when there’s a rush, it creates the ripe conditions for scammers and bad actors to take advantage of unsuspecting Floridians. Don’t let the rush blind you to scams or deceptive trade practices.”
Online holiday spending is expected to increase 10 percent over last year, so part of what the guide does is to highlight recalled products. The guide features tips for online and in-person shopping, as well as tips to avoid charity scams, such as:
Using a credit card instead of a debit card when shopping online, for the extra protection in disputing fraudulent charges;
Keeping receipts and be sure to understand retailers’ return polices and periods;
Research before donating to a charity, and use Charitynavigator.org as a resource to weed out legitimate charities from fakes;
Don’t click unsolicited links or texts.
The state’s hotline for reporting holiday shopping scams is 866-9-NO-SCAM.
“Our investigators will work tirelessly during the holidays to make sure we protect Floridians,” Moody said. “The success we see in going after frauds aggressively is when Floridians help us, staying cautious, and reporting and activity to our office.”
Sheriff Marcos Lopez, who hosted Moody on Monday, and advised residents to do what they can to keep from becoming holiday victims.
“This is the time of year when packages are taken, cars are burglarized and scams arise,” he said.
