Hotline volunteers help get justice for scam victims

CONCORD — If you ever suspect you've been taken advantage of in a business deal, you’d be well-served if your first call is to the Consumer Protection Bureau’s hotline. The person who picks up the phone will be a volunteer, and the service they provide is invaluable.

The volunteer-staffed hotline has been in place since 1992, and the state is currently looking for a few more volunteers to make sure there’s always someone at the other end of the line.

Brandon Garod, senior assistant attorney general with the state’s Department of Justice, said the program provides a welcome layer of humanity for people who might be feeling confused or even helpless.

“Having a hotline allows for anyone who doesn’t know where to go, but who believes they have been harmed through trader commerce” — which is legalese for “business” — Garod explained, “to talk to someone to learn what their options are.”

The job of the hotline volunteer is to understand the caller’s predicament, then bring that problem to a staff attorney, and inform the caller of what possible recourse they may have.

“It’s a critical service,” Garod said. “When we have volunteers for every day of the week, during business hours, you can call and talk to a real person if you are having a consumer protection-related problem.”

Volunteers are asked to commit to one day per week at the DOJ for a year. Garod said they tend to stick around for much longer.

“They can be here three hours, four hours, some people like to be here a full day or twice a week,” Garod said. One volunteer has been with the program for 20 years.

Some volunteers bring relevant experience to the role, but Garod said it’s personal characteristics, not professional background, that are sought.

The best hotline volunteers are people who enjoy working with people and helping them solve problems.

“Our volunteers tend to stay here for a long time. I think they do so because they find it to be genuinely rewarding work,” Garod said. “You can really make a quick and meaningful difference for the people you deal with. They can really make a difference in the lives of their fellow Granite Staters.”

‘Very gratifying’

One of the more recent additions to the volunteer staff is Lisa Porter, who moved to Laconia after retiring from a legal career that included decades as a criminal lawyer, then 10 years as a judge, in Florida.

Porter said she found the hotline opportunity via a website, volunteernh.org, which allowed her to sort results by subject area and geography.

“I was looking to give back and do some volunteer work, and I saw that the Department of Justice was posting a volunteer positions,” Porter said. “I thought, 'I’m well-suited for that.'”

Although Porter is about as well-qualified as one could be, she said her professional experience was not necessary to get the role.

“There’s no requirement that you be an attorney or have any experience in this type of work. Anyone who is interested can be trained and learn how to do it,” Porter said. Indeed, she mentioned her fellow volunteers come from several different backgrounds, and they are all able to help.

In fact, she’s the only one of the current batch of volunteers who has worked as an attorney.

“The most important thing about the position is that you’re good at talking to people, listening, making sure that you understand their problem, getting the correct training and you help people to solve their problems. That’s really what the job is about,” Porter said. “I spent my career trying to solve problems through the justice system. When you can help someone solve their problem, it’s very gratifying.”

Sometimes the problems are urgent, such as someone who pre-paid for heating fuel but can’t get the company to respond to requests for a delivery, or someone who had a contractor walk off the job with a structure half-built and precarious. Other times the problems might seem less dire, but, Porter noted, something motivated the caller to pick up the phone, “so it’s a problem to them.”

Porter said just a few minutes of legwork can provide a world of relief to the person on the phone.

“A lot of the people who call, they are just amazed that we answer, or we call them back that quickly. They are not expecting this type of service, it’s an extremely valuable resource for people who live in New Hampshire," or who were on the raw end of a bad deal in the state, “and they need the office to help them.”

Porter added she also enjoys the breadth and variety of problems she gets to help untangle through the hotline.

“It’s engaging, it’s interesting. You never know, when you answer the phone, what it’s going to be,” she said.

Signing up

Adults of all ages, who are able to come to Concord weekly for at least a year, are encouraged to apply. Training and mentorship will be provided, and successful candidates will be subject to a background check.

Those interested should inquire via 603-271-3641 or DOJ-CPB@doj.nh.gov.