Better Business Bureau and Ontario Small Claims Court

 

Better Business Bureau (BBB) Considerations.

 

 

 

 

 

"My complaint to the Better Business Bureau (BBB) was not resolved!"

The Better Business Bureau is an independent organization monitoring a business’ conduct and activity.  Upon encountering difficulty on a consumer transaction, particularly in small claims type of amounts in dispute, many turn to the Better Business Bureau with expectation that their dispute will be automatically resolved, but unfortunately this is often not the case.  This article discusses a number of factors one should consider prior to filing a complaint with the Better Business, and suggests that the more prudent approach is to speak to a lawyer before doing anything.

 

One can prejudice himself in court by following Better Business Bureau protocol

The Better Business Bureau will only handle complaints once one has contacted the business in question.  The difficulty with such an approach is that if the Better Business Bureau is unable to resolve a complaint and one ultimately has to turn to the Ontario small claim courts, then one may have prejudiced himself by contacting the debtor and saying something that can be used against him in a court of law.

 

Does the Better Business Bureau "show me the money"?

The Better Business Bureau is in many ways meant to act as a sort of cathartic experience, and not necessarily to ensure one is reimbursed for her loss.  That means that that the Better Business Bureau’s statistics with respect to the number of resolved complaints, does not necessarily mean those resolutions have wound up with monetary amounts.  Therefore, if one’s objective is to ensure she is reimbursed for money that she spent, she may be disappointed with the results of the Better Business Bureau.

 

Better Business Bureau is not a law firm.

The Better Business Bureau are not lawyers and will not advise a person as to his legal rights in Ontario.  This means that if even one can potentially recover, say, $5,000 in the Ontario small claims court, without speaking to a lawyer and relying on the Better Business Bureau, one may only wind up with a fraction of that as a result of a resolution of a complaint.

 

Furthermore, there are often limitation periods associated with starting a small claim, and often, just waiting for the Better Business Bureau complaint process to run its course, can cause one to miss a limitation period to sue.

 

Speak to a lawyer first, and then contact the Better Business Bureau if you wish.

It is therefore suggests that the first thing one should so when encountering a dispute with a business is to contact a lawyer.  One can avoid paying a consultation fee by seeking a free legal advice consultation and then get an idea of whether or not it is worth pursuing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau first or going straight to the Ontario small claims court.

 

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