Once, on a very cold, snowy day, I decided to leave my car running as I ran into the post-office. Unfortunately, I locked the door as I was stepping out of the car. I stood there thinking, "What could be worse than this?"

This morning, a lot of Missourians know what could be worse, after being duped by Dependable Locks, Inc. Instead of coming to the rescue, this locksmith company -- charged consumers 2-3 times more than the price quoted them to consumers to unlock their cars.

AG Koster has sued the locksmith company, who has illegally operated in the KC area under at least 16 different names. If you feel like you've been the victim of this company, contact the AGO immediately!

A major announcement came this week from Attorney General's Offices across the country, including ours. Toy maker Mattell reached a settlement with several different states including Missouri, agreeing to pay fines and reduce the amount of lead in their toys.

For years the acceptable standard under federal law has been 600 parts per million of lead - and that only applied to the paint. Lead prevention advocates have long insisted that no amount of lead is safe and therefore that number should be much lower. Federal law will kick in next year that lowers that standard to 90 parts per million. In the settlement with the AGs, Mattel has agreed to start complying with the 90 ppm standard immediately - that's a couple of months ahead of the federal law kicking in.

The new federal law is a significant victory. It of course will apply to all manufacturers of children's products. And besides the paint content, it for the first time regulates the lead content of the metal, plastic or whatever else might be underneath - that's known as substrate. Starting in mid-February, toy makers will have to limit lead in the substrate to 600 ppm, and get it down to 100 ppm by 2011.

Our office conducted two lead testing events for the public in 2007, and it was shocking to see the amount of lead in some of the toys people brought to us. Some new toys were in the thousands of ppm. The most memorable was an old toy tractor that had 85,000 ppm - 140 times the federal threshold.

 PS: Check out our online clearinghouse that lists recalls of toys, food, drugs and other products.

You may have heard of Angie's List - the service you pay for that recommends and gives reviews of companies. Everything from plumbers to dog-walkers is listed in there, and real customers tell you what it was like to work with those companies. The service is available in a lot of big cities, and it's localized to each city. But if you're not in one of those areas, it won't do you any good.

A small town near the Lake of the Ozarks has come up with its own free version. The town of Laurie created the Helpers for Hire program years ago, so that the local folks would know the reputable contractors and service providers. Wouldn't it be cool if other cities big and small could do something like this?

After all, one of our four consumer rules to live by is: work with companies that are known to you or recommended by someone you trust.

This week we put out our annual warning with dos and don'ts when buying on the Internet during the holidays. Of course, these rules apply to other times of the year too. The biggest rule might surprise you: pay with a credit card.

That's the case, according to this USA Today story. Apparently when gas prices are high, gas stations keep their profits to a minimum, hoping not to get customers any more riled up than they already are.

But when prices are low, retailers have the opportunity to make a little more profit. And the customers don't mind because they're just relieved that prices have come down so far. Interesting read.

Will gift cards be the popular gift they've been in previous years? Last year it's estimated Americans bought more than $25 billion in gift cards just during the holidays.

You might give cash or checks to your loved ones this year - because, as you may have noticed, some stores are either going out of business entirely, closing some locations or filing for bankruptcy. In any of those things happens with a gift card you've given, it may not be usable. KMBC-TV out of Kansas City did a story that expains more about this.

No. We don't have "debtor's prisons" in the United States. We get this question a lot

If you fail to pay money that you've agreed to pay through a contract (that's what debt is), that is a civil matter between you and the lender. That goes for credit cards, payday loans, mortgages, car loans, medical bills, etc. You have agreed to pay those companies, and they attempt to collect from you, either themselves, through a debt collector or by suing you. So the answer is no: debt collectors don't have the power to send you to jail.

Let's say your lender or collector sues you and wins and you still don't pay. Even then, it's not a criminal matter. They could go back to the court and try to seize your possessions - cars, house, garnish wages, etc. But criminal charges are not an option.

The only time you might be charged with a crime related to debt is if you commit fraud. For example, if you write a check to a payday lender, then immediately close your bank account, you can be charged with passing a bad check. Or if you knowingly falsify documents, etc.

Federal law gives you certain rights in dealing with debt collectors. Here is a summary.

Some legislators from the Branson area are talking about adding to the state law that regulates travel clubs in Missouri.

We get a number of complaints to our office from consumers who say they signed up for a travel club (usually in Branson) then tried to cancel within the three days allowed by Missouri law, but the travel club wouldn't accept the cancellation. Why? Because they used the dinner certificate, hotel coupon or other freebie they got for listening to the sales presentation. In that case, the travel club tells them they used their club benefit, which triggered an active membership, which removes their right to cancel.

The proposed law would change that: it would still allow consumers to cancel within three days even if they use the freebies.

You can file a consumer complaint with our office if you have a problem with a travel club.

First a major insurance company, then the financial industry got big federal bucks for a bailout. Now there is talk of federal money possibly being used to help forgive some consumer credit card debt. The interesting thing is that banks and consumer advocates are teaming up in pushing for this. What are the chances? USA Today story has more.

State and federal money is available to help low-income Missourians pay their heating bills this winter. Federal money is part of the LIHEAP program, and state money comes from the Utilicare program. The Missouri Department of Social Services Web site has more information on these programs.

Also, remember Missouri has a Cold Weather Rule, which protects consumers from having their heat shut off by utility companies on cold days. The Missouri Public Service Commission has tips for keeping your heating costs down here.

Could this be the next tidal wave of consumer anger spilling over at the cell phone companies? A Florida woman is suing the big 4 providers - Sprint, Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile, alleging they have conspired to raise their text-messaging rates at the same time. A US Senator is also irked at the wireless companies over this issue.

The last tidal wave was regarding early termination fees. Consumer lawsuits and government action have caused the wireless companies to lower those fees in a lot of cases. We have blogged in the past about how consumers are starting to win battles against the formerly unbendable wireless carriers.

The Kansas City Star has a nice article today on ways to save money on your medications - and you may be surprised by how much price competition there is among pharmacies. The Star article gives a link to a Consumer Reports page with good suggestions, as well as a state-government Web site that tracks prices at local pharmacies.

If you have health insurance with a drug plan, the price variations probably won't affect your copay. But if you pay full price, it could make a big difference. Observe:

I entered the name of a medicine and found as much as $20 difference for a one-month supply at drug stores here in Jeff City. So that's a $20/month savings on just one medication.

We've had lots of comments after our post about AG Nixon's lawsuit against those companies that send you urgent notices that your car warranty is about to expire. Our action was called Operation Taken for a Ride. Good news: we have settled one of those lawsuits, and the company has agreed to make a lot of changes to the way it does business. Hopefully this will be the first of many changes in this industry.

In our agreement, National Dealers Warranty Inc. will:

• Stop implying that their factory warranty has expired unless that's true (often it's not true)
• Stop implying that they are associated with the car manufacturer
• Comply with the Missouri No Call list and the federal Do Not Call Registry

We still want consumers getting these mailings or phone calls to file complaints if they think they're misleading.

BTW, the word warranty is in quotes because these should actually be called extended service contracts. This blog post explains the difference.

Missouri consumer writes:

Help!! I have paid my wedding photographer in full and she has not delivered my order after 5 long months. She said she has filed bankruptcy and there is nothing I can do to recover my order or money. Is there anything I can do to recover the $1700+ dollars I have already paid to her?

You can file a consumer complaint with our office. This is a widespread problem. We settled a similar case against a photography studio earlier this year. And a check of our consumer complaint database for the word "wedding" shows 700 complaints - and about half of them are on this very topic.

One of our consumer rules to live by is not paying in advance for things you haven't received yet.

If you're relocating soon and looking for a moving company, here are some tips:

• As with any business, work with companies known to you or recommended by someone you trust. Don't do business with a stranger, based on a good price quote, Web site or nice-looking ad in the phone book. You can check for complaints against a company using our KnowMO database or with your local Better Business Bureau.
• Get at least two estimates and three if possible.
• Consider a binding estimate. That means you and the moving company agree in writing on a price, and that's what you pay. If it's non-binding, you will likely be hit with a bill that's larger than the estimate.
• Ask what kind of payment the mover requires. Some consumers find that after their belongings have arrived at the new home, the moving company tells them they have to have a cashier's check or else they won't unload the stuff. If it's 6 p.m., you won't find a bank open to give you a cashier's check.

You may have heard horror stories about movers who hold belongings hostage while they ask for more money. Researching their background and getting a binding estimate should help prevent this.

The federal government has a Web site with tips and consumer rights. Also, the industry has a Web site with tips.