Consumer Protection Complaints Released
Tuesday, July 31st, 2012 -- 6:14 PM
Bedbugs, penny auctions, gold buying-companies and solicitations for home improvement work disguised as ?free? energy audits are among the newest complaints that local and state consumer protection agencies dealt with during the past 12 months, according to a survey released Tuesday.The fastest-growing complaints in the survey involved debt collection abuses, Do Not Call list violations, mortgage-related problems and home improvement scams. The report?s top 10 complaints include familiar issues, such as auto sales and repair and credit/debt issues.
The agencies' report was generated by a survey of 38 state, county and city consumer protection agencies from 22 states from March 2011 through May 2012.
Top 10 Complaints:
1. Auto : Misrepresentations in advertising or sales of new and used cars, lemons, faulty repairs, leasing and towing disputes.
2. Credit/Debt : Billing and fee disputes, mortgage modifications and mortgage-related fraud, credit repair, debt relief services, predatory lending, illegal or abusive debt collection tactics.
3. Home Improvement/Construction : Shoddy work, failure to start or complete the job.
4. Retail Sales : False advertising and other deceptive practices, defective merchandise, problems with rebates, coupons, gift cards and gift certificates, failure to deliver.
5. Utilities ; Service problems or billing disputes with phone, cable, satellite, Internet, electric and gas service.
6. Services : Misrepresentations, shoddy work, failure to have required licenses, failure to perform.
7. (Tie) Internet Sales : Misrepresentations or other deceptive practice, failure to deliver online purchases.
7. (Tie): Landlord/Tenant : Unhealthy or unsafe conditions, failure to make repairs or provide promised amenities, deposit and rent disputes, illegal eviction tactics.
8. Fraud : Bogus sweepstakes and lotteries, work-at-home schemes, grant offers, fake check scams, the ?grandparent scam? and other common frauds.
9. Real Estate : Timeshare sales and resales, retirement communities and assisted living facilities, real estate fraud.
10. Household Goods : Misrepresentations, failure to deliver, faulty repairs in connection with furniture or appliances; Home Solicitations:
10. (Tie) Misrepresentations : Failure to deliver in door-to-door, telemarketing or mail solicitations, do-not-call violations.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.