BBB consultant visits Pope Published April 26, 2007 By Ashley Wade Airman & Family Readiness Center POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- Job security, guaranteed regular pay checks, allotments and public knowledge of military rank/pay scales make military members prime targets for unethical business practices, scams and fraud. Airmen must be cautious of where and with whom they do business. According to the Center for Responsible Lending, "predatory payday lending costs military families more than $80 million in abusive fees every year." April 18, Holly Petraeus, Senior Program Consultant for Better Business Bureau Military Line and a veteran Army spouse visited Pope Airman & Family Readiness Flight to discuss what resources are available to help military members protect themselves from unscrupulous business practices. She was accompanied by, Sgt. Maj. Rose Matthews, BBB Military Line and Kathy Graham, President and CEO BBB of costal Carolina INC with her assistant Samantha Hightower. The BBB has partnered with the Air Force to launch www.airforce.bbb.org, a tool to help Airmen and their families become informed consumers. The BBB Military Line provides business reliability reports which provide detailed information about a business' history of unsettled complaints, law enforcement actions, and advertising violations. In addition, the site provides charity evaluation reports which provide information about most charities and non-prophets who solicit donations. The site also includes news items of interest to military families, targeted news letters and a locator service for local BBB offices. At the local level, the BBB provides military members with assistance in resolving buyer/seller complaints. This assistance is in the form of conciliation, mediation, or arbitration and services are free of charge, in most cases. Prior to doing business with a new company or donating to charity, everyone should take advantage of the consumer resources provided by the BBB Military Line; it may provide the information that protects you from becoming the next victim of an unethical business practice.