• clarkhoward.com - credit freeze states

The state of Massachusetts is the latest state to move toward instating a credit freeze law and Clark is excited that one more state is catching on. Georgia, however, is the largest state without a credit freeze law and Clark was disappointed by the legislature’s most recent discussion of the matter. Not one organization or company spoke in favor of the laws, which allow citizens to freeze their credit file and, thereby, protect themselves from identity thieves. At that hearing, no one but Clark testified in favor of the credit freeze law. Retailers, banks and even CheckFree – a company Clark has praised in the past – all spoke against credit freezes. Not one of them spoke about the risks consumers face and the harm that faces them without this law. About two-thirds of the states in the U.S. have credit freeze laws. Still, only 50,000 have done it. Find out if you can freeze your credit by clicking here. Also, Congress is talking about creating a national credit freeze law, which would be great for all American citizens. It would simplify the process and offer it to everyone.

Have you heard the story about the citizens near Ft. Dix, N.J. who helped stop the terrorist plot to kill American soldiers stationed there? Clark was so impressed by the actions of these citizens that he wanted to show his gratitude. He was surprised that the story didn’t get more publicity, though. The reality is that it is up to all of us to protect our citizens and our country. Many people think the FBI, the authorities and the government should take that role. People think someone else will take care of problems and issues. But we the people are the eyes and ears of our nation’s security.

The customer satisfaction index distributed quarterly by the University of Michigan is out again. This quarter, the survey ranked airlines, cell phone companies, cable and others. The results are amusing. Would you believe that the typical American airline got a lower score than the IRS? We really dislike the airlines. As you might have guessed, Southwest ranked the highest in the airline survey while United ranked lowest. In fact, United received the second lowest score of any airline in the 14-year history of the survey. Only Northwest Airlines got a lower score in 1999. In chain restaurants, Olive Garden got the top rating. The top-rated hotel was Marriott, followed by Hyatt and Hilton. As for cable and television, DirecTV and Dish got the highest scores. Charter Communications and Comcast ranked lowest. In the cell phone industry, Sprint got the worst score. Verizon and T-Mobile were tops. As for package delivery, FedEx got the best score. UPS and the USPS got fairly high rankings, as well. But FedEx has been on top for 10 years.

For the first time ever, people are buying more clothing than electronics. One of the most customer-friendly and popular sites is zappos.com. They offer shoes, accessories and other apparel and there is no shipping – even if you’re returning. They have a one-year return policy, which is unheard of the in shoe industry. Online clothing retailers have electronic sizing on their sites nowadays, so the potential for correct fitting is much better. Another popular site is bluenile.com, which is outselling Tiffany’s in engagement rings. Both of these companies keep the focus on the customer and that is why they’ve been so successful. Other companies should take a hint and try it.