Arlington, VA, May 20, 2005 -- Better Business Bureaus (BBBs) in the United States and Canada provided nearly 60 million instances of service to consumers and businesses in 2004, a seven percent increase over the 56 million instances of service provided in 2003. There are 180 BBB locations serving the U.S. and Canada.
"The 2004 statistics show that more and more people are checking with the BBB for information on specific businesses, for general advice on what to consider when making a purchasing decision and for reports on charitable organizations," said Ken Hunter, president and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB). "Our data also indicates a growth in the number of shoppers seeking assistance from the BBB in resolving marketplace disputes."
U.S. DATA
Pre-purchase Information: Requests for information from consumers and businesses in the United States increased to 54.6 million in 2004, up nearly 12 percent from 48.8 million in 2003. These inquiries included 34.5 million requests for BBB reliability reports on businesses located in the U.S. - member companies as well as businesses that are not BBB members but that have generated inquiries or complaints from the public.
"As in prior years, people think to contact the BBB before parting with their hard-earning money, particularly for purchases related to their personal property, like their home or family car. We want to encourage this behavior. BBB reports on home remodeling contractors, mortgage companies, roofers, movers, auto repair shops and auto dealerships, for instance, can forewarn consumers about those companies that generate complaints or are not responsive to their customers. By selecting a reputable business upfront, you can help avoid problems down the line," Hunter said.
BBB reports are available 24-7 on BBB Web sites to assist shoppers wherever they care to shop, whether it is in the traditional marketplace or the online marketplace. The number of instances of shoppers checking for confirmation that an online merchant participated in BBBOnLine Reliability and Privacy programs grew to 6.2 million in 2004, up more than 34 percent from 4.6 million in 2003. Requests for general information on shopping wisely and avoiding questionable promotions exceeded 14 million in 2004.
Complaints: In 2004, there were 798,723 complaints processed by U.S. BBBs, a 3.3 percent increase over the 773,042 complaints processed in 2003. The BBB AUTO LINE program, which assists car buyers with warranty-related disputes, handled 28,702 complaints.
The 2004 data shows that almost 70 percent of the processed complaints were resolved either to the satisfaction of the customer or the BBB determined that the business did everything it could do to resolve the matter. Most complaints are resolved with a simple telephone call to the business. If that is not effective, the BBB can offer mediation and arbitration to assist the two parties in resolving their differences.
The BBB considers the growth in complaints for 2004 to be a positive indication that it is expanding the level and value of its dispute resolution services.
"We want every consumer and every business to know that the BBB is there to assist them in a proactive fashion to resolve their marketplace disputes. The more complaints that come to our attention, the more positive an impact BBBs can have on the marketplace," Hunter said.
Examining complaint data by categories of services and products, for instance, enables the BBB system to offer assistance to specific business segments that seek to identify recurring customer dissatisfaction issues and to devise solutions.
The BBB system implemented several new initiatives in the past year that impacted the volume of complaints it received, including an ongoing effort to gather more specific data regarding telephone industry complaints.
The BBB ARMY LINE program, launched last fall, is gathering complaint data from military families to help focus educational programs to assist them in making wise purchasing decisions. The data will also be used to identify problem businesses that are preying on military families.
Partnerships with the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Federal Trade Commission, as well as business organizations abroad, are helping the BBB to reach consumers who live outside North America and want to report complaints concerning transactions with U.S.-based businesses. Similarly, the BBB system provides a means for consumers and businesses in the U.S. to resolve specific types of disputes with companies based in Japan and the United Kingdom.
Information on Charitable Organizations: The BBB system continues to expand its charity reporting services to assist donors seeking information on the accountability of charities. The BBB Wise Giving Alliance produces reports on national charities, which are available at www.give.org. In 2004, the public accessed national charity reports on the give.org Web site 2.39 million times, a nine percent increase over the 2.19 million charity report requests in 2003.
Advertising Review: 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 2004, BBB ad experts at the national and local levels challenged the truth or accuracy of 12,527 advertisements, a 66 percent jump from the 7,535 ad challenges reported in 2003.
Note to Editors: The BBB System's 2004 Annual Inquiry and Complaint Summaries offer data on 3,435 business categories, which are ranked by number of BBB reports requested and complaints processed by BBBs. The U.S. statistical summary and Canadian statistical summary are available for download and printing from the Internet at www.bbb.org/about/stat2004.asp. To purchase printed copies, send a check or money order to CBBB, Dept. 023, Washington, DC 20042-0023 requesting a printed copy of the Canadian 2004 Statistics for $10; the U.S. 2004 Statistics for $20; or both publications for $25.00.