I've noticed that when BBB handles a complaint for an accredited business, BBB sides w/the business almost unconditionally & suppresses complaints from public view. So i'm thinking it's not a good idea to trust #BBB accredited A+ businesses when compared to non-accredited A+ businesses. Non-accredited implies that they actually have to work for their rating b/c they don't bribe the BBB.
@tilduke #Yelp is orders of magnitude more corrupt, richer in copious misinfo & embroiled in countless shenanigans, so I'm not sure exactly what you are suggesting. If you mean phpbb forums out in the wild, well there is perhaps good info there but it's too sparse and scattered to be practical. Requesting attorney general records of complaints yields good info, but it's often by snail mail.
@resist1984
Any single source of reviews is going to be susceptable to bias. My point was that I don't trust a company, such as the BBB, who's entire funding model is based around charging businesses for preferential listings. As with everything read a variety of sources and good and bad reviews and make up your own mind.
@resist1984 the public doesn’t see this unless they know to submit a FOIA request I suppose, but I was only able to resolve a dispute with a company that repeatedly refused to acknowledge that I already paid them for services rendered (& sent me to collections, who also refused to acknowledge paid receipts) via my state’s attorney general. Submitted to AG all receipts & USPS proof of delivery of my letters. 👍
@thedeltaflyer a FOIA request can only have effect on gov. agencies. BBB is an NGO. It wouldn't solve the censorship problem anyway because the effort that a FOIA request entails is more than what a majority of consumers would find worthwhile. Requesting AG records can be useful, but when so few do it there is little motivation for a business to care. Businesses care about what's plainly visible.
@thedeltaflyer i wish there were a practical way to request complaints from all 50 attorney generals nationwide. The way it is now, people only report problems to their own state's AG, so the records are scattered.
@resist1984 for real, imagine the kind of database with all the scummy businesses, total # of complaints, and different categories of the complaints. I wonder what the top most-complained about business is? 🧐 my case was with a home warranty company that came with the purchase of my house - definitely did not renew a year later with them!!
@resist1984
I think it has been long established that the BBB has passed its expiry. I'd much rather read some public reviews and make an informed and less biased opinion.