Be Scam Smart

Mobile Madness
With Australians set to send and receive an estimated 4 billion SMS messages this year, you can now take action if you're sick of unwelcome text messages. Fair Trading states, "While a text message is an effective way to reach potential customers, it's quite invasive and can turn consumers off a product and business altogether." Consumers can now have their phone number taken off mobile marketing lists by adding their name to the 'Do Not SMS' database on the Australian Direct Marketing Association website at www.adma.com.au.

Get real with your property
With Queensland's property boom in full swing, the Office of Fair Trading is urging sellers to shop around before choosing a real estate agent.

Heightened activity in the real estate industry has led to hot competition amongst agents. With this in mind sellers should be able to get the most from the sale, and have the upper hand when negotiating aspects such as fees and commissions.

Ask a number of agents to inspect your property and provide you with a listing presentation, including an overview of market conditions and a plan on the marketing of the property.

Don't be influenced by agents that provide high valuations without justification, as they may use this tactic to lock you into a deal, knowing all along that they can't deliver on their price.

$hop $mart
Whether it's for Christmas presents or just for groceries, shopping is a part of our every day lives. This makes keeping on top of our spending and shopping habits a constant challenge. To $hop $mart is to be responsible with your money, as well as fully aware of your rights and responsibilities as a consumer.

The Office of Fair Trading's recently launched $hop $mart campaign offers simple, practical advice to help consumers avoid common purchasing traps. It covers basic, but important issues such as refunds, practical shopping tips, budgeting, careful use of credit and the pitfalls of impulse purchasing.

You can $hop $mart by following these top 5 tips:

• Shop around, compare quality vs cost;
• Create a budget and $pend $ensibly;
• Know your refund rights and responsibilities;
• Read and save your paperwork; and
• Report problems to traders first, then OFT if not resolved.