Better Business Bureau

I love the BBB. They’ve helped us solve so many issues with corporations and even when things didn’t get resolved we were able to use other resources who did help. You fill out the form online and they review it before sending it off to the corporation. Sure, there is a time constraint however with anything patience is a virtue. There is also an opportunity for you to view what claims have been placed against corporations so you can decide if you would like to do business with them. Not sure why this place has such poor reviews, but if you have determination and motivation there isn’t anything you can’t accomplish on your own even if you use BBB as a stepping stone. Stephanie smiles big for BBB!
2016 Review #9

The BBB is a farce. You post a complaint, they ask a few questions, make you wait a little, and then get back to you to claim that the company you complained about is complying with their inquiry. You then never hear anything again. And that is that. They handle everything the same way. They are in existence because people believe to find support there. Don’t bother; they are worthless.

The BBB is a sham. They parade around like they are there to help protect the consumer and that you can depend on their ratings to choose a good company. Don’t trust any of their ratings because all the company that you have filed a complaint has to do to avoid having the complaint published about them, is to state that they are the wrong company and then they close your case. If you file a complaint against the BBB with the BBB they just pick and choose words from your complaint to make it say things you didn’t say. They are as fradulent as the companies people are going there to complain about. Never trust the BBB. I had the displeasure of dealing with Leslie Baughn, Mgr, Operational Standards & Assessment from the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc. Absolutly useless and she also manipulated my words. Now there’s a company i like to take before the DA for fraud.

I filed a complaint with BBB in San Jose against Ebay (no merchandise, no refund and a farce of a «Buyer Protection Program»). My case was assigned to Verna M. Alberti. She requested additional information and I immediately responded and complied. She immediately closed my case without notifying me (I looked at my complaint on their website and it stated, «complaint closed»). Huh?
How do you close a consumer complaint and request additional information at the same time? Simple: File a complaint with the BBB AND get Verna assigned to your case.
Here’s my take away as a consumer: 1). A loss of $ 70.00 from Ebay 2). Over a month of pointless email exchanges to Verna M. Alberti at the BBB 3). A total hatred of Ebay (I closed my account and I advise anyone that I care about to do the same) and 4). A complete distrust of the BBB and their business friendly relationships and 5). A psychological trauma disassociation for name of «Verna».
If I could give the BBB a F+ for the consumer complaint resolution process, they would certainly get my vote.

Think this shows just how one sided BBB is, This San Jose BBB, who represents Silicon Valley, am wondering how, they handle complaints filed against SCE, in Rosemead, ca, LA County?
BBB of San Jose appears to side with Bsiness! THIS is not what BBB is about. MS Negrette handles complaint in same manner, doing nothing! I wonder why the outcome is always the same? Nothing done, and a waste of time.

The corrupt and worthless BBB gives Unilocal an A+ rating. As of today, they have failed to adequately handle 1323 complaints against Unilocal.They must have an employee who is dedicated to dismissing complaints against this evil corporation.
I will NEVER join or consult this site for business ratings. Never.

I’ll keep this brief. Brief, but true.
I’ve filed three very legitimate complaints via the BBB, and did so out of sheer desperation and frustration. They all followed this format:
Me: Halp!
Business: Sobbing and lying.
BBB: Did you get the thing they said they gave you?
Me: No, not at all. Also, they lied.
BBB: Excellent! Case closed. Go away.
Huh?

BBB is a complete joke. Any agency that does not belong to the Feds is just plain garbage.
Example: IGS Energy aka Accent Energy
They claim A+ rating on BBB but you know that being a paid member gives you accreditation and a high rating. «Pay to play» scheme… hence why I could care less about BBB. 121+ complaints over the last 3 years and 55 closed last 12 months??? Really??? A+ rating huh?
I wasted energy just doing all this but I did save a headache down the road :)

I had a tough time getting my reimbursement from Sensible Home Warranty, and having no other choice, I approached BBB about my problem. And within a few days, the issue was solved and they were very prompt in replying to all my inquiries.
Thank you BBB!

The BBB is basically a joke. They appear to not be impartial when handling disputes. Kind of a weak set up (initial consumer complaint/​company response/​rebuttal/​company response/​close file). What is truly accomplished by this? Complaints generally do not seem to be handled professionally. They seem to hire individuals that are not the swiftest, and are essentially ‘paper-​pushers’ (based upon my experiences). basically-​the bar is not set very high for potential job applicants. You have better luck going to the Ca Dept of Consumer Affairs (if your complaint is in an industry that is covered). My latest complaint was a myriad of jokes (company response had incorrect dates). Sadly, this is a reflection of where our country seems to be headed in many industries. Who regulates/​oversees the BBB? Are they immune, because, they’re essentially a non effective non-​profit? They advertise some form of alternate dispute resolution, but, never allow the consumer to utilize this. Basically, their *BBB) employees appear to just occupy space, forward complaints and responses, and probably leave 5 minutes before their scheduled shift ends. A 12 year old basically could get a job with the BBB.

This «charity» has exutives making over $ 150,000 per year! This is ridiculous and the fact that the head guy in the L.A. branch makes over $ 400,000 per year is even worse. This is modern mafia shakedowns and they practice criminal extortion legally.
How can the BBB be allowed to call a business and offer them protection for some absurd amount of money when the only thing that they can protect your company from is getting a bad grade on their site.
It’s like someone coming to your store and saying «hey, pay us for protection or we are going to punch you in the face».
Isn’t that what the mob does?
Naturally that scenario is hypothetical but it just seems like the exageration isn’t actually too far off from the truth of what the BBB is doing.
P.S.
They have no legal authority and no real way to help you if a business has wrongfully gotten the best of you. All they can do is lower their grade which they will not do if the business pays into them because if they pay the BBB then they are supposedly «accredited» and an upstanding company. Total extortion and they are not actually interested in the protection of the general public from malicious businesses. They are only interested in getting all businesses to pay them for the right to operate successfully in or around the cities, counties, and states from which they operate. Plus, they operate under the pretense that they are government sanctioned, which they are not.
Anyone and everyone «accredited» or affiliated with the BBB will lose my business by default. I am boycotting the BBB and all of it’s affiliates.

I was incredibly hesitant to work with the BBB after all of the pay-​to-​play stories (e.g., ²⁰⁄₂₀ report) about how they extorted money from companies in exchange for higher grades. But, I wanted to respond to my company’s customers and help them if they truly were having trouble.
What I found was that some of those complaints weren’t from actual customers — or even former customers. I also found that the BBB would simply decide my answers weren’t good enough. A grade I had diligently shepherded to B suddenly dropped to D– after someone at the BBB decided one response I had given wasn’t satisfactory. One response!
Long story short: It appears that all of the bad things you’ve heard about the BBB are quite true. Without transparency or workable tools for company representatives to use, the BBB will fail. I’ve begun boycotting businesses that are affiliated with them.

Yeah this company is pretty useless. If they don’t fix their problem with my company I’m talking to my attorney to sue them for fraud. They give a company an A+ if they are a member and pays them $ 400 a year, and it’s regardless on how bad they are and how many complaints they have. If you are not a member and don’t have any complaint, they will give you B-​. My attorney is looking into this.

Ditto, a useless organization. If anyone has ever been helped by this organization, please explain what they did. Consumer Reports and Unilocal are much more helpful than the BBB could ever be. Just try to submit a complaint and see if any good results from it.

A useless organization. Their symbol means nothing.
See my review of Madeline’s Pet Grooming:
After the owner yelled at me, got in my face, and lied, they consider the matter resolved with his lame offer of a free groom. Are they out of their minds? Like I would trust this person with my dog for 30 seconds.
And the worst part is that if anyone happens to look up the business on the BBB site, they’ll see the complaint as resolved.
— — — — -
Just for the hell of it, I filed a complaint with the BBB against the BBB.
«What is the point of using a member of the BBB when, in my case, the BBB member made libelous statements against me in his response to my complaint.
This is after he physically tried to intimidate me and reneged on a promised refund. To add insult to injury he claims that I intimidate female grooming owners? Had I the time and funds I would take him to court over that.
Complaint ID#: 284 761
Business Name: Madeline’s Pet Grooming
I want to demonstrate my dissatisfactions with the BBB’s process. There is NO way I would trust my pet with the owner of the grooming store, but the arbiter of the case seems to not understand that. That is the whole basis of my complaint, he mistreated me, and my animal yet he still keeps my money and his BBB rating.
And on your website, there is no way to notate this issue.
What’s the point of the BBB if it’s members still act like this, and the BBB has no power? I guess I’ll start boycotting BBB approved businesses and letting them know why. »