The Office of Fair Trading believes scams cost UK consumers at least 3.5 billion pounds in 2008 and three million UK consumers a year fall victim to scams sent via post, email, text message and over the phone. Chances are you have been targeted at some point, be it via bogus lotteries, ‘free’ holidays, premium-rate calls and fraudulent individuals posing as bona fide salespersons.

So what can you do to avoid being caught out by scammers? How can you tell the difference between a scam and a genuine prize? You first line of defense should always be, if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. Beyond that, there are a number of useful tools that will help you spot a scam before your pride, and your pocket, takes a knock.

If you are contacted by phone, then you can check the origin of the call on the website whocallsme.com. The site is a user supplied database of numbers of telemarketers, non-profit organisations, charities, scam artists and other companies. Searching for a number will reveal user feedback on the caller. If it is a fraudster, then you certainly won’t have been the only one they have tried to contact.

To help you protect your computer and to stop spam mail and other attempts at online fraud, Get Safe Online is full of information about anti-virus software, firewalls, dealing with suspicious emails and safeguarding your personal details from identity theft. Take these precautions and you are far less likely to be contacted by scammers in the first place.

Online shopping is safe and secure if you are know how to spot a dodgy seller. You need to know you are buying from a reputable company and that your payment details are safe. Follow this guide to avoiding online rip-offs.

Most people are aware of the dangers of phishing (a type of spam email that goes after your passwords and bank codes), but you should still read Moneysavingexpert.com’s guide to avoiding them. The site also has tips on stopping junk mail, calls, texts and other forms of spam.

You can block unsolicited sales and marketing calls to your home or mobile phone by joining the Telephone Preference Service. Once you have registered for free, it is illegal for organisations to call you. The Mailing Preference Service works in the same way and will stop junk mail from falling through your letter box.

Being billed for receiving text messages you did not want in the first place is just as annoying. Regulator PhonePayPlus allows you to check strange numbers that appear on your bill and will investigate complaints about companies that refuse to stop sending you messages.

One of the best sources of advice and information in our battle against fraudsters and scammers is Consumer Direct. Set up by the Department of Trade and Industry, the website is there to help anyone who fears they may be the victim of rogue money-making schemes. The site offers a guide to recognising scams as well as advice on preventing unwanted sales calls, emails and texts. It also allows you to report a scam and learn how to take action against those who go after your hard earned cash.

Financial website Unbiased.co.uk announced this week that as a nation we spent the first 83 days of the year working just to pay the interest on our debts. Personal loan levels increased to 11.4 billion pounds in 2008, up by over 1.6 billion pounds on the previous year and mortgage debt from equity release loans also increased by 6.5 billion pounds. Credit card debt, on the other hand, decreased by just over 4.9 billion pounds.

If you are struggling to pay off your debts, here are some useful online resources to help you out.

You can start by reading our top tips to help you beat debt problems. Budgeting properly is essential and you can use Unbiased.co.uk’s budget calculator to rein in your spending and borrowing and work out how much you will be left with each month to service your debt.

If you feel like you need expert financial advice then Unbiased’s website is the best place to find an independent financial adviser you can trust. You can also talk to the Consumer Credit Counselling Service, a charity which offers free and confidential advice and support to anyone dealing with debt problems.

Moving the balance on your credit card can save you hundreds of pounds a year in interest. You can find and compare the best deals Moneysavingexpert.com’s credit card and loans section. Its guide to improving your credit score will make life easier for you once you get back on your feet and the debt problems section is an invaluable resource for those of you who think your debt crisis is unsolvable.

Switching utility provider can also lead to savings that you can use to pay off debt. Compare gas and electricity suppliers at moneysupermarket.com as well as other providers such as mobile phones, broadband and insurance.

Cutting back on little luxuries like coffee, newspapers and cinema tickets soon adds up. Find out how much you can save each year by using Barclay’s little extras calculator.

-- David Kuo is a director at the financial Web site The Motley Fool. The views expressed are his own. --

What are consumers supposed to make of the latest inflation numbers? Do we have inflation, deflation or a bit of stagflation?

Truth is, it depends on who you are and what you do with your money. The Retail Prices Index or RPI tells us that prices today are exactly the same as they were a year ago. The Office for National Statistics reported that RPI was unchanged at 0%.

But be very careful when bandying around the term “prices”. The RPI includes elements of housing costs. So it is better to talk about the cost of living rather than prices. Prices have risen compared to a year ago, but the total cost of living as measured by RPI has fallen because of the disproportionately large drop in mortgage costs as a result of lower interest rates.

The proof, if proof was needed, that prices have risen from a year ago, can be seen from the Consumer Prices Index (CPI). Instead of 0%, as measured by the RPI, prices as measured by the CPI are 3.2% higher. The CPI does not include housing costs, so it is a better measure for people on fixed-rate mortgage deals, and also for people in rented accommodation.

The upshot is that if you have taken on mortgage debt and chosen to spend rather than save, then you are worse off as a result.

However, it’s worth bearing in mind that both the RPI and CPI are broad measures of inflation. Consequently, the extremely large basket that is used to gauge inflation may not necessarily reflect the true changes in the cost of living that you may experience. Put another way, if we don’t buy exactly the same things that the ONS puts into its basket then we will experience a different rate of inflation.

To measure our personal inflation rates we need to compare our household budgets today with what we spent a year ago. Interestingly, a twice-yearly study by The Motley Fool has shown that personal inflation is consistently higher than the Government’s measure of inflation.

This should set alarm bells ringing for many of us.  If inflation refuses to die in a so-called deflationary economy, then the outlook for the cost of living could worsen when the Government finishes pouring money through quantitative easing or the printing of raw money.

The jury is still out as to whether quantitative easing will work. It is almost anyone's guess. But history tells us that boosting the supply of money can be inflationary. This is because when there is too much money sloshing around an economy, chasing a limited supply of goods,  prices will inevitably rise.

Investors therefore have two clear choices. They can sit on their hand and hope that their nest eggs will not shrink to the size of quails’ eggs through inflation or they can heed the lessons of history and invest in assets that have demonstrated an ability to combat inflation.

Only two asset classes have successfully beaten inflation in the long term. These have been property and shares. Most homeowners already have a large exposure to property. So, it may be prudent to increase their exposure to shares to rebalance their way their wealth is distributed.

Interestingly, the yield on UK shares is currently around 5%. That is almost ten times more than interest earned in a traditional savings account. Of course your capital is exposed to both ups and downs.

Even better yields may be available from individual shares. But it is vital to choose carefully. After all, dividend payouts are at the discretion of the company's directors. That said, companies are often reluctant to cut dividends unless they absolutely have to. And a careful selection of companies whose dividend payouts are strong could be just the panacea for embattled investors.

-- Read David Kuo's blog here or listen to the Motley Fool podcast.

The energy regulator has said that it is considering a ban on unjustified price differences in the energy market to address concerns that customers are being charged differing amounts according to their payment methods.

Ofgem also said that it was planning measures that will improve customer service, including simplified information about tariffs to help people decide whether they need to switch supplier.

All of which could lead to cheaper bills for energy customers. But until this happens, there are a number of simple steps you can take to reduce your household bills.

The website 0870buster.com, which has only just launched this week, will help you to cut down on your phone bill. The site is a free telephone directory that provides alternative numbers for companies at a standard rate instead of the usual premium rate numbers.

Switching your gas and electricity suppliers, meanwhile, can save you hundreds of pounds a year. Thisismoney.co.uk will help you work out how much you could save a year by switching to a cheaper supplier. The results will be more accurate if you have a bill to hand, but you can still use it if you do not.

The site, with the help of energyhelpline.com, will also help you to make the switch once you are ready.

Unravelit.com helps you to save money on household and personal bills by allowing you to compare prices on numerous products, including gas and electricity, insurance, phone bills, credit cards, broadband and loans. It also offers information about switching for business owners.

There are also savings to be made on water bills. This moneysavingexpert.com guide to cutting water bills compares meters and regular billing to help you work out what is best for you and possibly saving you a few hundred pounds a year in the process.