Financial woes overshadow list of top 10 consumer complaints

Jorgen Wouters
Updated
Financial woes overshadow list of top 10 consumer complaints
Financial woes overshadow list of top 10 consumer complaints

A nationwide survey of consumer complaints underscores the destructive effects of the Great Recession, with an increase in complaints related to credit and debt services -- and especially fraudulent offers to help homeowners avoid foreclosure reflected in a just-released Top 10 list.

The 2009 Consumer Complaint Survey Report was conducted by the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) , the National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators (NACAA) and the North American Consumer Protection Investigators (NACPI).

The 15th annual report, which surveyed 33 state, county, and city agencies from 18 states across America over a one-year period, found:

  • More than half of the agencies reported receiving more complaints in 2009 than they did in 2008.

  • Consumer complaints about credit and debt rose from #3 to #2 in the top ten.

  • The fastest-growing complaints in 2009 concerned bogus offers to help save homeowners from foreclosure.

  • Of the 28 agencies that responded to questions about budget cuts, 71% experienced cuts last year, compared to 47% in 2008.

  • The agencies surveyed received more than 300,000 individual complaints and managed to collect nearly $110 million in restitution or savings for consumers.

Advertisement