BBB making Corridor comeback

After an absence of more than a decade, the Better Business Bureau has opened an office in Cedar Rapids.

Barbara Green will be taking calls from consumers who want to know whether a business has been accredited, how to file a complaint and how to access the file on a local firm.

The BBB has always had an office in the Quad Cities and Des Moines, but the advent of the Internet prompted the organization to close its office in Cedar Rapids. Chris Coleman, president and CEO of the BBB in Iowa, said the decision to re-establish a presence in the Corridor was based on a desire to once again allow consumers to talk with a BBB staffer.

Incidentally, the BBB no longer refers to businesses as members, saying they are accredited and therefore cannot buy a ranking, as some people may have perceived a membership in past years.

As you might expect, complaints to the BBB are up this year as people are more likely to get exercised over $50 or $100 in tough economic times. Coleman said the 2008 flood in the Corridor also spurred a raft of complaints about workmanship and "fly-by-night" contractors.

The services of the BBB are free. The organization is financially supported by businesses in the community.

You can look up the BBB online at Iowa.BBB.org