1 Coupon Stop (coupon
codes for online merchants)
www.1couponstop.com/
AllWatchers (opinion
site for books and films -- over 670,000 in the database
to help you refine your entertainment choices)
www.allwatchers.com/
Anything Left-Handed
(for lefties everywhere)
www.anythingleft-handed.co.uk/
The Anti-Telemarketers
(find out how to keep the telemarketers from ruining
your dinner or your credit rating)
www.antitelemarketer.com/
Appliance 411 (go here
when your appliances break down if you want to know how
to fix them yourself)
www.appliance411.com/
Baddealings (post
complaints about businesses)
www.bbbonline.com/
Better Business Bureau
(online presence of the famous consumer watchdog
organization)
www.bbb.org/
and
www.bbbonline.com/
Better Business
Bureau's Wise Giving Alliance (watchdog site for info on
business practices of charities)
www.give.org/
BizRate
(comparison-shopping tool)
www.bizrate.com/
Car Talk (online
presence of the Tom and Ray Magliozzi radio show -- lots
of information and entertainment about buying autos)
cartalk.cars.com/
CarClub (find out info
about new automobiles)
www.carclub.com/
Carfax (fee-based
service providing info about used cars -- you'll need
the VIN)
www.carfax.com/
Crash Test (find out
crash-test info on most automobiles on the market)
www.crashtest.com/
Complaint Book
(forwards complaints to businesses)
www.complaintbook.com/
Complaints.com
(maintains a large archive of consumer gripes, from
balky PCs to cruise ships from hell)
www.complaints.com/
Consumer Products
Safety Commission
www.cpsc.gov/index.html
Consumer Reports
Online (the Cadillac of consumer advocacy groups, but
you have to subscribe at $4/month to use its services)
www.consumerreports.org/
Consumer Search (lots
of product comparisons)
www.consumersearch.com/
Consumer Sentinel (FTC
site offering statistics on consumer satisfaction)
www.consumer.gov/sentinel/
Consumer World's
Consumer Agencies and Organizations (many links to
private and public watchdog groups)
www.consumerworld.org/pages/agencies.htm
ConsumerReview
(portal-like site that links "communities" of
enthusiasts of amateur reviewers)
www.consumerreview.com/
Current Codes (good
place to find coupon codes for online stores)
www.currentcodes.com/
Edmunds (very good
site for comparison shopping for automobiles; get wise
before you visit your local car lot)
www.edmunds.com/
ePinions (again, a
site mentioned elsewhere, but featuring a strong base of
consumer reviews)
www.epinions.com/
EShop (compare product
specs and prices online)
www.eshop.com/
Fantasy Stock Market
(practice your investment skills before venturing out
into the real market)
www.fantasystockmarket.com/
Federal Communications
Commission (go here to report phone-based scams)
www.fcc.gov/cib/ccformpage.html
Federal Consumer
Information Center (home of the Consumer Action
Handbook)
www.pueblo.gsa.gov/crh/respref.htm
Federal Trade
Commission Consumer Protection (lots of info and an
online complaint form)
www.ftc.gov/ftc/consumer.htm
FinanCenter (good
place to plan out your finances)
www.financenter.com/
Find-It! Consumer Site
(consumer info from a variety of sites)
finditconsumer.wa.gov/
Foundation for
Consumer Rights
www.consumerwatchdog.org/
Froogle (Google's new
shopping service)
froogle.google.com/
Gas Price Watch (enter
your ZIP code and find out how much fuel prices are in
your area, as well as best and worst price comparisons)
www.gaspricewatch.com/
GE Center for
Financial Learning (site devoted to "promoting financial
literacy;" it claims not to be a commercial offshoot of
its sponsor, GE)
www.financiallearning.com/
HomeScape (rental and
buying info on apartments and houses across the US)
www.homescape.com/
Hot Deals Club (online
deals)
www.hotdlz.com/
Insurance Institute
for Highway Safety (good source for stats and info on
car safety)
www.hwysafety.org/
Internet Fraud
Complaint Center (joint venture of the FBI and the
National White Collar Crime Center to get complaints
about online fraud and follow them up)
www.ifccfbi.gov/
J.D. Power Consumer
Center (great place to get info about buying your next
automobile, buying a new home, deciding what health care
provider to use, etc.)
www.jdpower.com/cc/index.html
Junk Faxes (what to do
to prevent them, how to complain about them, etc.)
www.junkfaxes.org/
Kelley Blue Book (find
the value of your used car)
www.kbb.com/
Lasoo (map-based
search for businesses by category)
www.lasoo.com/
Make The Move (when
you move, let this site handle all of your mail
forwarding, utility transfers, and so forth)
www.makethemove.com/
My 3 Cents (forwards
complaints to vendors)
www.my3cents.com/
National Consumers
League (consumer action megasite)
www.nclnet.org/
National Fraud Center
(fraud-avoidance tips and timely alerts)
www.fraud.org/
National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (great source for info on
car safety, including specifics on individual models)
www.nhtsa.dot.gov/
Original Tipping Page
(go here for tables and info on tipping)
www.tipping.org/
Planet Feedback (if
you post a complaint on their site, they'll forward it
to the offending company)
www.planetfeedback.com/
Productopia (consumer
reviews from both experts and users)
www.productopia.com/
Realtor (nationwide
home listings)
www.realtor.com/
ReviewFinder (lots of
online reviews of various products)
www.reviewfinder.com/
Savings Bond
Calculator (find out the current worth of those savings
bonds)
www.publicdebt.treas.gov/sav/savcalc.htm
Search Bug (track
parcels from FedEx, UPS, etc)
www.searchbug.com/packages/
SpringStreet (find
apartments nationwide)
www.springstreet.com/
The Squeaky Wheel
(consumer complaint site)
www.thesqueakywheel.com/
UGetHeard (similar to
ECaveat)
www.ugetheard.com/
Web Police (targeting
international Internet crime)
www.web-police.org/
WebGuardian (good
place to file a complaint on an ISP or an online vendor)
www.webguardian.com/