Arlington, VA, September 9, 2002- The Better Business Bureau system released for the year 2001 its annual Top 15, a listing of business categories with the most inquiries and complaints to the nation's BBBs. In total, Better Business Bureaus (BBBs) in the United States and Puerto Rico provided more than 21 million instances of service to consumers and businesses around the world in 2001.
Information on Businesses & Charities
Most requests to the nation's 128 BBBs are pre-purchase inquiries from the public seeking to check out the reliability of specific businesses before making purchases or investments, or the accountability of soliciting charitable organizations before making a giving decision. In 2001, more than 17 million consumers and businesses contacted local BBBs or used the www.bbb.org web site to access reliability reports on businesses or charities. BBBs report on member companies, as well as businesses that are not BBB members but have generated inquiries or complaints from the public.
Other contacts to the BBB in 2001 were for counseling or general information to assist in making a purchasing, investment, or charity donation decision. Such general information requests - both online and offline -- totaled close to 2 million.
Complaints and Dispute Resolution
Customers of businesses across the country also rely on the BBB for assistance in resolving disputes. BBBs assisted with more than 1.67 million complaints in 2001 by offering complaint counseling or referrals that enabled consumers to pursue finding a resolution to a dispute. An additional 500,591 complaints, originating from either consumers or businesses, were formally processed by the BBB. The overall resolution rate for all processed complaints in 2001 was 55.6%. BBB AUTO LINE, a special warranty-related dispute program for the automobile industry, assisted 30,390 consumers in 2001.
Advertising Review and Trade Practice
Since its founding, the BBB has worked for "truth in advertising," asking businesses to voluntarily change or halt advertising or selling claims that appear to be false, misleading or deceptive, or that cannot be substantiated.
In 2001, BBBs advertising review experts at the national and local levels reviewed 12,237 advertisements.
BBB SYSTEM'S "TOP 15" FOR 2001
Following are rankings of the 15 types of businesses that generated the most inquiries and complaints to Better Business Bureaus in 2001.
2001 RANKING OF INQUIRIES
| Rank |
Type of Business |
Number of Reports |
| 1. |
Work-at-Home Promotions |
461,202 |
| 2 |
Roofing & Guttering Contractors |
443,065 |
| 3 |
General Contractors |
365,887 |
| 4 |
Mortgage & Escrow Companies |
338,666 |
| 5 |
Automobile Dealers-Franchised (new & used sales) |
294,580 |
| 6 |
Moving/Storage Companies |
274,388 |
| 7 |
Home Builders |
252,264 |
| 8 |
Home Remodeling Contractors |
222,476 |
| 9 |
Auto Repair Shops |
189,937 |
| 10 |
Plumbing Contractors |
152,037 |
| 11 |
Air Conditioning Contractors |
146,241 |
| 12 |
Credit Card Offers & Plans |
136,395 |
| 13 |
Computer Dealers |
132,437 |
| 14 |
Automobile Dealers-Used Cars Only |
132,116 |
| 15 |
Swimming Pool Contractors/Service & Supplies |
128,836 |
2001 RANKING OF COMPLAINTS
| Rank |
Type of Business |
Number of Complaints Processed |
| 1 |
Automobile Dealers-Franchised (new & used sales) |
19,404 |
| 2 |
Credit Card Offers & Plans |
12,717 |
| 3 |
Telephone Companies |
10,837 |
| 4 |
Home Furnishing Stores |
10,524 |
| 5 |
Internet Services Providers |
9,688 |
| 6 |
Computer Dealers |
9,367 |
| 7 |
Mail Order & Catalog Companies |
9,343 |
| 8 |
Long-Distance Telephone Companies |
8,711 |
| 9 |
Auto Repair Shops |
7,524 |
| 10 |
Credit Collection Agencies |
7,370 |
| 11 |
General Contractors |
7,140 |
| 12 |
Banks |
7,115 |
| 13 |
Moving & Storage Companies |
6,872 |
| 14 |
Auto Dealers-Used Cars Only |
6,600 |
| 15 |
Cable, CATV & Satellite Television Cos. |
6,505 |
The CBBB 2001 Annual Inquiry and Complaint Summary offers data on 1,100 business categories, which are ranked by number of report requests and complaints to BBBs. The statistical summary is available to the news media free of charge from the CBBB Public Affairs Department. Businesses, trade associations and members of the public may order the summary by sending a check or money order for $7.50 to CBBB, Dept. 023, Washington, DC 20042-0023.