Home Improvement Complaints Top NACAA/CFA's Annual Consumer Complaint List
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 10, 2005
CONTACT:
Elizabeth Owen, NACAA, 615-371-6125
Jean Ann Fox, CFA, 202-387-6121
Washington, DC - Home improvement contracting, automobile sales and
leasing, and telecommunications scams top the 2003-2004 list of
consumer complaints released today by the National Association of
Consumer Agency Administrators (NACAA) and Consumer Federation of
America (CFA) in their 13th annual consumer complaint survey.
In regard to the Internet, online auctions are the leading cause of
complaints, followed by merchandise ordered via the Internet. Internet
service providers generated complaints, as did scam "Nigerian letters"
and other thinly disguised ruses to gain access to consumers' bank
accounts. Business opportunities and other "get-rich-quick" schemes
round out the top five Internet related complaints.
In addition, complaints filed by consumers with state and local
consumer protection agencies revealed serious consumer grievances with
auto repairs, credit and credit repair, and telephone, cell phone and
cable companies. Rounding out the top ten most frequent causes of
complaints were billing and debt collection, identity theft and
deceptive practices, Internet and online purchases, big-ticket
household goods, and telemarketing complaints. "It's an uphill battle
for consumers," said Steve Hannan, President of NACAA and Administrator
for Howard County (MD) Consumer Affairs. "Not only do they have to
worry about new technology complaints such as phishing and identity
theft, but they also have to contend with problems that have been
around for years, such as home repair contracting and automotive
agreements.
"Consumer protection agencies are the first line of defense against
fraud and deception," stated Jean Ann Fox, CFA's Director of Consumer
Protection. Fox encouraged consumers to voice their concerns with their
local and state consumer protection agencies so that the public and
those who make decisions affecting consumer protection are better
informed. For a list of consumer protection offices, visit
www.consumeraction.gov/state.shtml.
The NACAA/CFA report includes examples of worst scams and big cases,
complaints from targeted vulnerable consumers, and examples of
complaints caused by natural disasters and emergencies. Surveyed
agencies listed new and improved consumer protections needed to prevent
abuses that lead to complaints as well as enhanced enforcement powers
and more resources needed to strengthen agencies' ability to protect
consumers.
The consumer agencies sampled in this survey handled almost 450,000
individual complaints in 2003/2004, and were able to successfully
return to consumers nearly $90 million during that reporting year. The
complete NACAA/CFA report is available online at www.consumerfed.org/pdfs/NACAAComplaintreport.pdf and at www.nacaa.net.
NACAA is a membership organization of consumer protection agencies at
all levels of government. This survey report is based on NACAA members'
responses to questions about their 2003-2004 complaint records.
CFA is a non-profit association of 300 consumer groups, with a combined
membership of more than 50 million people. CFA was founded in 1968 to
advance the consumers' interest through advocacy and education.