FTC Ranks The Top 9 Consumer Complaints Of 2010

The Federal Trade Commission has released its annual list of the top consumer complaints received in 2010.

At the end of the year, the total of complaints filed totaled 1,339,265. Examining these data, the FTC noted that four percent of all reports filed in 2010 involved imposters obtaining money or personal data from individuals by posing as trusted associates or authority figures. This marks the first time so-called "imposter scams" cracked the list of top complaints. As a result, the FTC has published guidelines to help consumers spot imposters and avoid scams.

Other categories on the FTC's list-- including debt collection and lottery scams--were more typical of years past. We won't give away the grievance consumers cited most often (see it below), but we will say that it accounts for a whopping 19 percent of the year's total complaints.

View the FTC's top 9 consumer complaints for 2010, and check out the full list here. Then, check out our slideshow of the most scammed states in America.

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#9 - Telephone And Mobile Services

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Number of complaints: 37,388 Percentage: 3%

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Number of complaints: 37,388
Percentage: 3%

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Total comments: 14 | Post a Comment

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This Complaint

Rank #2  |  Average: 4

Not a surprise Shocking

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Comments

[janice33rpm]

03:34 PM on 03/12/2011

Hmmm... Every organization and agency needs to read the book "I.T. Wars" now - before you and I are the next victims of data/identity theft. You know the panic you feel when you misplace your wallet? Now amplify that about a thousand times once your identity is stolen...

[BlueKansas]

12:15 PM on 03/11/2011

Too bad all the "Sarah from Card Services" prerecorded phishing phone phishing scams wasn't on this list. Dozens of complaints to DoNotCall over the years...the scam continues unabated.

[GeneralJustice]

02:12 PM on 03/09/2011

Debt Collection..hmmmmm. I'm sure this includes allegations of loan servicing fraud. Could the FTC release the names of the banks with the most complaints?

You know what happens when a medical doctor has hundreds of complaints against him...they take his license....why are these banks allowed to stay in operation when the OCC has acknowledged wrongful foreclosures?

[tracerhaha1]

05:25 PM on 03/09/2011

Sorry, that's on a need to know basis and the American public has no need to know.

[Punchy the Angry Clown]

06:26 AM on 03/19/2011

Because said banks own the media, lawmakers, and everything else?

[fozzi58]

02:06 PM on 03/09/2011

Odd that #3, Internet Services, has a number of complaints closely resembling a well computer error and limit.

Complaints:65565

The highest number which can be represented by an unsigned 16 bit binary number: 65535

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/65535_%28number%29

[James120756]

01:20 PM on 03/09/2011

I have a "consumer complaint." Wells Fargo is doing everything in its power to make sure my short-sale won't work. From losing documents, failing to send necessary documents, harassing phone calls, outright fabrication and complete incompetance- the bank has gone to great lengths to prevent the short-sale. I've spent the last of my life savings to keep the house on the market and pay back my loan and I'm afraid its all for nothing. The taxpayers bailed out the banks for irresponsible and unethical behavior and nothing is done for the millions of home owners screwed in the fallout. Someone hand me a pitchfork, its past time to take this country back.

[goodmarina]

01:31 PM on 03/09/2011

Please send your correspondence to Wells Fargo via certified mail.  There are specific RESPA rules that require their timely communication and your rights.

Also - do contact your State Attorney General's office and see if there's someone who can help you ... even contact your local "investigative" type TV News Station.

Maybe, there's a time and a place for a pitchfork ... but the pen is mightier than the sword.

[Mechelle Gray]

01:37 PM on 03/09/2011

Also seek help from your local "NID". Google it.

[James120756]

01:16 PM on 03/11/2011

Now their collections department are calling me several times a day. They call regardless if I answer and talk to them or not. I asked them today why they were harassing me despite the people in the short sale department telling me no one would call about the mortgage if I pursued a short sale. The letters I received in the mail from Wells Fargo say the same thinmg that I wouldn't be contacted if I attempted a short sale. When I pointed this out, the man said "well they lied to you." I asked how calling me every day, several times a day will help me pay off the loan. He said "maybe we can encourage you." I have complied with everything they've asked for and I've spent everything I had saved. I don't know what more I can do

[IDT911]

12:32 PM on 03/09/2011

The 2010 Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book outlines 250,854 reports of identity theft with the most common type of identity theft, tax- or wage-related fraud, accounting for 15.5 percent of those complaints. That’s up from 12.7 percent in 2009. The Sentinel report chronicles a total of 1.3 million complaints made by consumers in 2010, and for the 11th straight year, identity theft led all categories, at 19 percent.

There are indications from the report that low-hanging fruit—easy crimes like Dumpster-diving—may be waning as banks impose tighter account security and more people check their accounts online. The trend is toward more sophisticated kinds of fraud such as tax and employment documents.

There are a few dashes of good news in the report: Among them, victims are calling in the cavalry more often. In 2008, only 36 percent of victims notified police; the following year, the figure jumped to 73 percent, and in 2010 it held steady at 72 percent. This reflects greater awareness of the right things to do and being more aggressive in addressing identity theft.

[OutAtFirst]

10:27 AM on 03/09/2011

I'll never understand why they can't make a cell phone that won't die when you spill a glass of water on it. I seriously believe that they intentionally design moisture intolerance into phones.

[fozzi58]

02:08 PM on 03/09/2011

You just figured this out?

[Highlulu]

03:06 PM on 03/15/2011

yeah! how dare electronic devices get damaged by water...

do you even register what your saying before you speak? name one singular high-tech device that you CAN spill water on and wont break please.