Opinions below are provided by Sheryl Bilbrey, President & CEO of the San Diego BBB. Sheryl’s blog will be updated weekly and will contain her thoughts on the latest issues affecting our community.

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"F" Stands for Fire

Posted Monday, April 19, 2010
by Sheryl Bilbrey

Pure Med is out of business in San Diego.  They locked their doors and snuck away, taking a whole lot of money with them that consumers had pre-paid for services.  Now, people are calling a disconnected number, or showing up for an appointment to find the doors locked.  They are surprised, but the BBB isn’t particularly surprised.  You know why?  Because this company had an F rating with us long before shutting down.

In the past three years, the BBB in San Diego received 11 complaints on this company.  Of those complaints, 9 of them went unresolved.  That basically means the company ignored us.  And let me tell you, if the company ignores the BBB, it certainly isn’t likely to pay you much attention when you have a concern.  So here is my point.  Why do people continue to do business with a company that has a proven uncaring track record?  The only reason I can think of is that they don’t know any better.  Hopefully you do, and hopefully you will share your secret with the people you care about.

This “secret” I speak of is the FREE information on all companies provided by your BBB.  We are keeping tabs on ALL businesses, and we are just too happy to share all of that information with you.  You can call us or access www.bbb.org 24/7.  When you see a company with a big fat “F” rating, do me a favor and stay away.  If people had done that, Pure Med may have closed sooner, but they wouldn’t have been able to take as much of your good money with them.  Keep in mind, all ratings are earned.  Truth be told, it’s easy to get a B+ from the BBB.  It’s difficult to get an A+, and you really have to go out of your way to EARN an F.  Just remember, F stands for FIRE, so run away from it.

Comments

I am a small business and I agree with what the BBB is doing to prevent headaches for the consumers. By reading some of your articles and from past experiences I will make sure that I try and run my business for my customers. They are my priority and I will follow your guidelines for reliability by doing so I will try and become a BBB member if I stay in business. I am also experiencing difficulty and I was putting a sign for breaks, no more of that I will hurt the reliability of my business. Thank you for the awareness to small businesses like myself. Reliability is conducting fair business practice.
Comment By Maria Andrade At 5/17/2010 4:34 PM
Great article, Sheryl! The comment about how you have to work at getting an A+ or at getting an F from the BBB is insightful. In our business, where remodeling companies offer warranties on their labor, a company's longevity is really important. The BBB does a great job of helping a consumer see how long someone has been in business and thereby make a judgment about that company's reliability. We appreciate our San Diego BBB!
Comment By Jay Riordan, San Diego Remodeler At 5/13/2010 12:44 PM

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