Most Recent Statistics of Consumer Complaints of Frauds, Scams, Identity Theft and Other Consumer Problems

National, State/Province and Local Top Ten Consumer Complaints of Scams

This page lists the most recent fraud, scam, identity theft and other consumer complaints available for each area (country, state, province, etc) that compiles the statistics. If your area's stats are not listed here, and you know where to find them, click here to let us know where they can be found.

Identity theft is once more the top complaint received by the Federal Trade Commission, which has released its 2012 annual report of complaints. 2012 is the most recent year for the list; none was produced in 2013, and this marks the first year in which the FTC received more than 2 million complaints overall, and 369,132, or 18 percent, were related to identity theft. Of those, more than 43 percent related to tax- or wage-related fraud.

The report gives national data, as well as a state-by-state accounting of top complaint categories and a listing of the metropolitan areas that generated the most complaints. This includes the top 50 metropolitan areas for both fraud complaints and identity theft complaints.

The remainder of complaint categories making up the top 10 are:

US Rank	Federal	Federal	Federal	Missouri's 2012 Top 10 Complaints	CNN Money Magazine 2012	Ohio 2013
Rank	Category	Number	Percent	Attorney General Chris Koster has released the top 10 consumer complaints reported to his office in 2012.  Below are the top 10 complaints filed with the Missouri Attorney General's Office in 2012 (including the number of complaints received):		Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine today announced the top ten list of consumer complaints filed in 2013.
1	Debt collection	199,721	10 percent	No-Call Complaints (39,990) - On average, consumers filed 212 complaints each working day, double the amount from two years ago.	1. Auto Issues with auto sales once again topped the list. Car shoppers reported misleading advertising for new and used cars, faulty repairs, leasing and towing disputes and getting suckered into buying lemons. One California consumer noticed mechanical problems with her used car within a week of purchasing it, while an elderly Florida woman paid more than $1,000 for repairs that left her car undriveable, according to the report.	Motor Vehicles
2	Banks and Lenders	132,340	6 percent	Debt Collectors (1,769) - Consumers who believe they are being harassed should report the behavior to the Attorney General's Office.	2. Home Improvement/Construction Home owners griped of shoddy work, as well as failure to start or finish thework altogether. A New Jersey awning company cited by the report would disappear after signing a contract and pocketing a $1,300 deposit. Related: Debt collection horror stories	Collections, Credit Reporting, or Financial Services
3	Shop-at-Home and Catalog Sales	115,184	6 percent	Mortgage/Foreclosure/Loan Modifications (1,648)	3. Credit/Debt Borrowers complained of billing and fee disputes, mortgage-related fraud, predatory lending, illegal or abusive debt-collection tactics and questionable credit repair services. Mortgage-related complaints were common in many states: In Florida, consumers were tricked out of thousands of dollars by loan modification and foreclosure scams.	Do Not Call
4	Prizes, Sweepstakes and Lotteries	98,479	5 percent	Mail and Phone Solicitations (1,432) - Consumers continue to be inundated with mail, emails and telephone calls offering them 'valuable prizes.' Often, the mail looks official, as if it is from a government agency. Instead, these are scams designed to entice consumers to give out their financial information or to send money. Foreign lottery promotions are the largest type of sweepstakes scams that affect consumers nationwide. Consumers should not give financial information to people they do not know or wire money to strangers. Any consumer who is not sure whether an offer is legitimate should call the Attorney General's Office before taking action.	4. Utilities Consumers singled out service and billing disputes with a variety of providers, including phone, cable, satellite, Internet, electric and gas companies. The report cited a Wisconsin investigation, which found 6,500 unauthorized cell phone charges for third-party services users never signed up for. Related: Veterans losing savings to 'pension advance' firms	Internet, Phone, or TV Services
5	Impostor Scams	82,896	4 percent	Telephone Cramming and Billing (1,165) - Cramming happens when a consumer receives charges on phone bills for services not ordered; often the charges are by third parties. To detect cramming, consumers should thoroughly review their phone bills. Consumers who notice unwarranted charges should contact their phone service carrier to request that unauthorized charges be removed and that they receive a refund.	5. Retail Sales Shoppers listed a range of complaints, including false or deceptive advertising, defective merchandise and problems with rebates, coupons and gift cards. In Pennsylvania, hundreds of customers sought help after a dry cleaner closed with their belongings locked inside, according to the report.	Household Goods or Property Improvement
6	Internet Services	81,438	4 percent	Credit and Debit Card (1,165) - Complaints involved both charges that the consumer never authorized and double-billing on the card or account after making a purchase. The Attorney General recommends that consumers be wary of authorizing direct bank account debiting and not to provide bank account numbers over the phone. Using a credit card does provide some protection under federal law granting consumers the right to challenge unauthorized charges, but this must generally be done in writing within 60 days of the charge appearing on the consumer's monthly statement. Even so, consumers are encouraged to provide credit card information only to familiar merchants contacted by the consumer.	6. Services Consumers said they had fallen prey to misrepresentations and subpar and unlicensed work from a variety of service providers, like moving and transportation companies. Connecticut scammers, for instance, targeted immigrants with phony legal services	Professional Services
7	Auto-Related Complaints	78,062	4 percent	Home Repair and Remodeling (928) - Typical home-repair scammers go door-to-door, offering to do work but asking for money up-front. The majority of door-to-door schemes involved asphalt driveway scams, roof and chimney repairs, and remodeling work inside the home, often following storms. Many home-repair scam artists are not licensed, are not from the area, do not provide a detailed contract, and usually demand cash payments.	7. Home Solicitations Problems with home solicitations moved up the listin 2012. Consumers griped about misrepresentations from door-to-door salespeople, telemarketers and mail solicitations, as well as violations of the "do not call" registry. The report noted that door-to-door meat sellers in Maryland pushed consumers with high-pressure tactics and did not have proper licenses to sell food products.	Shopping, Food, or Beverages
8	Telephone and Mobile Services	76,783	4 percent	Publications and Magazine Sales (823) - In 2012, the Attorney General's Office saw an increase in this category of consumer complaints. In some complaints, telemarketing companies offered new subscriptions or renewals at discounted rates, or with the promise of a prize, but once the telemarketer had the consumer's credit card information it charged inflated rates or failed to provide the magazines. Other complaints involved door-to-door sales people who claimed to be raising money for college, camp, or charity, but then never received the publication. Concerned consumers should check directly with the school or charity to see if sales are being conducted in the area at that time.	8. Landlord/Tenant When complaining about their landlords, renters reported unhealthy or unsafe housing conditions, deposit and rent disputes, illegal eviction tactics and a failure to make repairs. The report noted a Los Angeles tenant who said her landlord was unresponsive to complaints about unworking toilets and pest issues. Related: 'Grandparent scams' steal thousands from seniors	Health and Beauty
9	Credit Cards	51,550	3 percent	Cable/Satellite Services (670) - Complaints to the Attorney General's Office ranged from complaints about installation and price discrepancies to channel selections. Consumers should be cautious when ordering a new service, and should always read the fine print.	9. Internet Sales Shoppers griped of deceptive practices from online retailers as well as failed deliveries. Some online shoppers fell prey to free trial offers that resulted in high charges, while others were duped by fraudulent magazine sales.	Sweepstakes or Prizes
10				Automobile Repair (641) - While most repair shops are honest, it is very easy for an unethical mechanic to convince car owners that unnecessary repairs are needed. The Attorney General advises consumers to get a written estimate before repairs are made, have repairs made by a certified mechanic, and verify that the business honors existing warranties and guarantees repairs.	10. Household Goods Consumers reported many issues related to household furniture and appliances, including misrepresentations about the goods and faulty repairs. In Cape Cod, a woman lost hundreds of dollars worth of food after her refrigerator and freezer broke down multiple times mere months after purchase.	Mortgage

A complete list of all complaint categories is available on page six of the report.

The FTC enters complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database that is available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies across the country. Agencies use the data to research cases, identify victims and track possible targets.

Illinois (2007)

The Top 10 consumer complaints for 2007 are as follows (the figures listed below do not reflect all of the complaints):

CATEGORY	# OF COMPLAINTS
1. Identity Theft	6,388
2. Credit/Financial Services	5,267
3. Promotions & Schemes	3,168
4. Construction/Home Improvement	2,714
5. Telecommunications	2,537
6. Motor Vehicles/Used Auto Sales	1,487
7. Mail Order	1,390
8. Utilities	908
9. Motor Vehicle/Non-Warranty Repair	748
10. Fraud Against Business	722

And please let us know about any suspicious calls or emails you receive.  We look for patterns so that we can alert the authorities and victims to new scams, before it is too late!

 

 

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For a comprehensive list of national and international agencies to report scams, see this page.