Attorney General Clark Marks Consumer Protection Week with Top Ten Consumer Complaints of 2023

Office Saves and Recovers More Than $1.89 million for Vermont Consumers

In recognition of National Consumer Protection Week, Attorney General Charity Clark announced the top 10 consumer complaints received by her office’s Consumer Assistance Program (CAP) in 2023. Claiming the list’s top spots are consumer complaints involving vehicles, home improvement, and retail, which collectively represent 43 percent of all complaints filed in 2023. Attorney General Clark also today released CAP’s 2023 Annual Report in which the program details its record-high recoveries and savings for Vermont consumers, totaling more than $1.89 million.

CAP Annual Recoveries: $195K in 2018, $709K in 2019, $443K in 2020, $242K in 2021, $455K in 2022, $1.9M in 2023.

“Vermonters should know that they have rights as consumers. If you have a complaint to make, the Consumer Assistance Program is here to help,” said Attorney General Clark. “Every day, CAP helps consumers and businesses reach mutually beneficial resolutions without having to go to court. I am both proud of and inspired by their service.”

CAP is a 42-year-old program based at the University of Vermont in partnership with the Attorney General’s Office. The program’s primary goal is to address consumer problems in Vermont, which it does through its mediation service, outreach, and education. Staff, with the help of service-learning students, manage informal inquiries, provide referrals to resources, and engage in mediation of consumer complaints. In 2023, the program responded to 8,200 contacts, including reports of scams, and provided extensive mediation services on 1,251 consumer complaints.

While the top 10 consumer complaints of 2023 remained largely the same as those of 2022, there was a noticeable difference in fuel disputes reported last year. Fuel complaints slid down to the number 10 spot from number four in 2022. In 2023, CAP responded to 71 inquiries from fuel providers and consumers about the application of the “Propane Rule” – a consumer protection rule enforced by the Attorney General’s Office. The reduction in written complaints can be attributed to efficiencies implemented by CAP in 2023, which allowed staff to resolve complaints involving fuel more quickly and in real time thus removing the need for letter mediation. This improvement reduced the number of submitted complaints overall to 58 compared to 2022’s 120. A total of $34,813 was recovered in this area, resolving complaints about propane refund and tank removal delays, and nine consumers were able to have their heating services restored due to CAP’s intervention.

VT's Top 10 Consumer Complaints of 2023 - Motorized Vehicles 254, Home Improvement 173, Retail 120, Health/Medical 101, Home Furnishings 95, Entertainment 81, Banking/Credit/Finance 68, Services 65, Housing and Real Estate 60, Fuel 55.

This year, like last, the top complaints reported to CAP were auto and home improvement complaints. CAP has made great strides in addressing the issue of home improvement by hiring a home improvement specialist in July of 2023. In the first six months on the job, the home improvement specialist recovered or saved Vermont homeowners more than $400,000.

More businesses are utilizing CAP’s mediation service as well. In Vermont, businesses can be considered consumers too under the Consumer Protection Act. Complaints filed by businesses increased from 53 in 2022 to 77 in 2023 with a 45 percent increase occurring between 2022 and 2023.

Vermonters experiencing consumer problems should contact the Consumer Assistance Program for help. The program is a useful resource for resolution and complaints filed help to identify problem trends in consumer areas. The CAP data is reviewed by the Vermont Legislature when considering consumer protection laws, for enforcement by the Attorney General’s Office, and for consumer education and outreach. Reach CAP by calling 1-800-649-2424 or online at ago.vermont.gov/cap.

A chart and table containing the Top 10 Complaints of 2023 is available here.

Learn about the Top 10 Consumer Complaints and CAP’s Annual Report on Across the Fence:

Across the Fence – 03/04/2024 Consumer Protection Week with VT AG Charity Clark

Tips to Ensure Your New Home Has Reliable Internet and Cell Service 

By Elijah Ghia, CAP Service-Learning Intern 

Having a reliable internet and cell connection is essential nowadays, especially if you work from home or regularly video conference. If you’re moving to Vermont or moving within the state, it’s a good idea to check if your new home will have good internet and cell service. Here are some tips that can help you: 

Helpful Hints: Internet Reliability. 1. Research the area, 2. Check the coverage map, 3. Consider internet service type, 4. Talk to neighbors, 5. Test the service
  1. Research the area: Before moving, look up the internet and cell service providers available in the state. Currently, Vermont has 24 internet providers to choose from and is covered by the four largest mobile carriers in the nation. 
  1. Check the coverage map: Coverage across the state can differ depending on location. Visit the websites of each service provider and check their coverage map to see if your new home will be covered. For cell service, the Federal Communications Commission has a Mobile LTE Coverage Map that shows the coverage of the four largest mobile carriers. 
  1. Consider the type of internet service: If you’re moving to a rural area, check if you can get high-speed internet via cable or fiber optic service. The state of Vermont has an Interactive Broadband Map that shows fiber and cable routes and the speeds offered at residences across the state. In some cases, satellite internet or internet through a mobile carrier may be the only option. 
  1. Ask your neighbors: Asking your neighbors is a great way to hear about local experience with internet and cell service providers. They can provide you with valuable information about the quality and reliability of service in the area. 
  1. Test the service: Once you’ve chosen a plan, use your smartphone to test the cell service in and around your new home. This will help you determine if the plan you’ve chosen works as advertised. For internet service, you can use an online speed test to check the speed and reliability of the connection. Ookla is a free online service that can help you determine if the speeds provided are adequate. 

By following these tips, you can ensure that your new home has good internet and cell service, so that you stay connected and productive after moving. 

This piece is one in a series of Helpful Hints brought to you by the Consumer Assistance Program’s (CAP) service-learning interns. UVM undergraduate students make significant contributions to our program and Vermont through their participation in our service-learning lab, where they learn about consumer protection while honing their professional skills.  

Please note, the information herein is provided for educational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Consumers with general consumer questions should contact CAP for more information, or seek private counsel from an attorney for legal advice.  

References:

Federal Communications Commission – Broadband Map

HighSpeedInternet.com

SPEEDTEST

Vermont Department of Public Service – Broadband Map

Vermont Department of Public Service – Ookla

Vermonter of the Month: Kathy Fox

Kathy Fox and T.J. Donovan

This is a monthly series in which the Attorney General will feature a Vermonter doing exemplary work in their community. Have someone you think should be featured? Email AGO.CAP@vermont.gov.

Driven by her belief that “people can change, and that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect,” Kathy Fox, our October Vermonter of the Month, created Vermont’s first college-in-prison program to provide people who are incarcerated with a second chance at education.

As a University of Vermont (UVM) professor of sociology, conducting research in recidivism, Kathy saw the effectiveness of higher education as a pathway for reintegration for people who were formerly incarcerated. In the spring of 2018, she along with a group of dedicated educators launched UVM’s Liberal Arts in Prison Program (LAPP). LAPP, in partnership with the Department of Corrections, provides introductory college courses to people who are incarcerated at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility and Northwest Regional Correctional Facility. According to LAPP, “The recidivism rate in the state, while better than the national average of 60%, has hovered at about 45% for the last decade. Incarcerated citizens who are released with a high school education have a recidivism rate of 24%. The rate drops to 10% with two years of college, and to about 5% with four years of college.” By providing college courses to people while incarcerated, LAPP, under Kathy’s direction, hopes to reduce the rate of recidivism while also “while improving the odds of returning citizens becoming successful, crime-free, tax-paying members of society.”

A native of Oklahoma, Kathy found her way to Vermont when she accepted a position with UVM in 1994 immediately after completing graduate school. Since then, she has been impacting the lives of her students and people who are incarcerated through her volunteerism, research, and teaching. We had the pleasure of sitting down with Kathy to learn more about the work that she is doing and what drives her passion for social justice.

 How did you become interested in offender reentry/reintegration?

 I would attend criminology conferences and we would all be marveling at the incredible increase in the prison population and speculating about the issues that would be forthcoming when people got released. I had been studying Corrections for a long time and heard about the new reentry programs that Vermont was trying, and they sounded interesting to me. I learned about the unique system Vermont has with its community-based justice centers and was fascinated by the idea of considering reentry and reintegration as a community-level problem to address.

Also, from my research inside prisons, I could see how incarceration creates a lot of deficits for people, such as being able to get a job with a felony record, etc. I felt and still feel that our system isn’t designed for success upon release.

 What inspires your work, both at UVM and in the community?

 I have been aware for a long time about the role that privilege plays in the trajectory of one’s life. I came from a privileged background and know that, but for grace, there go I. I am interested in doing research and activities, like the Liberal Arts in Prison Program, that contribute to the public good, so that drives my decisions about what to devote energy and time to. It stems from a firm belief that people can change, and that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity, respect, and a second chance.

 What have you learned from your work with incarcerated individuals?

 So much! I have learned that people are remarkably resilient. The accomplishments of incarcerated individuals are more impressive to me than those by people with privilege, because many of them have significant challenges. I have met some very intelligent people who would have gone on a different path had their circumstances been different. I have also learned the value of letting people inside know that there are people who see them, and hear them, and care about their futures.

In addition, I have brought my on-campus students from UVM into the prisons for various activities, and I see tremendous benefit to that, for many reasons, but mostly to bring some humanity to their sense of the system.

 You have so many accomplishments, which, if any, are you most proud of?

 Well thanks! Personally, I am most proud that my spouse and I have raised two kids who are committed to social justice. But professionally, I think I am most proud of the Liberal Arts in Prison Program that I started (with lots of help from others!) because my hope is that it will be sustainable once I retire. We have only two semesters under our belt, but already a few incarcerated students, who were released, are pursuing higher education. Students have reported that they never thought they would be “college material” but now see themselves as students. That is deeply gratifying.

 What are you most hopeful for in the future with regard to offender reentry/reintegration in Vermont?

 I have been doing research on the Circles of Support & Accountability (CoSA) program for a decade and am heartened by the fact that Vermont has run more CoSA groups than any state in the nation; this is all the more impressive given how small our prison population is. I think this program will continue to grow, with positive results. With the advantage of having the community justice structure, and the web of volunteers growing, I believe we can change the culture and narrative about the responsibility to help people reintegrate after prison. I would like to see us reduce the number of people going into prison, but I think that change is coming.

Kathy Fox and T.J. Donovan sitting at table