A viewer says her credit report is spotless, but she keeps getting calls from collection agencies trying to collect a debt. She wants to know why the calls are happening and how to stop them. Consumer Attorney Sonya Smith-Valentine says:
- There could be more than one reason for the calls. If the consumer has a common name, the debt collectors might be confusing her with another person of the same name. If this is the case, unfortunately, there is no way to stop the calls.
- The calls could also be a sign of identity theft. Smith-Valentine recommends checking all three credit reports to make sure there isn’t fraudulent activity.
- And if suspicious activity is found, consumers should contact the creditors right away to close the fraudulent accounts. Also, place a credit freeze on all credit reports to prevent further damage from being done.
The next viewer wants to know, what’s the difference between brown eggs and white eggs? The American Egg Board told us:
- The color of the egg is based on the color of the chicken. So brown chickens lay brown eggs, and white chickens lay white eggs.
- There is no nutritional difference between the two.
- Although white eggs are more popular in most of the U.S., brown eggs are more prominent in the Northeast.
Several viewers are wondering about the differences among stock markets such as NASDAQ, Dow Jones and the New York Stock Exchange? We asked The Rosen Group to help us sort through the different markets.
- The New York Stock Exchange includes all common stocks and foreign stocks. Common stocks give you part ownership in a U.S. company and foreign stocks are from outside the United States.
- The Dow Jones is not an exchange at all. It's an average of 30 major U.S.-based companies which are handpicked by the employees of Dow Jones.
- The NASDAQ contains about 2,900 stocks and has one of the largest trading volumes in the world.
- It’s also important to note that stocks can be on more than one index, but not all stocks can be traded on all markets.
Got a question for "Ask Liz"? Send any consumer questions to askliz@nbcwashington.com.
