{"id":1325,"date":"2022-03-10T18:25:00","date_gmt":"2022-03-10T23:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/?p=1325"},"modified":"2022-11-09T14:10:29","modified_gmt":"2022-11-09T19:10:29","slug":"ag-donovan-announces-top-10-consumer-complaints-of-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/ag-donovan-announces-top-10-consumer-complaints-of-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"AG DONOVAN ANNOUNCES TOP 10 CONSUMER COMPLAINTS OF 2021<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BURLINGTON \u2013 In recognition of National Consumer Protection Week, Attorney General T.J. Donovan announced the top 10 consumer complaints received by the Consumer Assistance Program (CAP) in 2021. CAP, a partnership between the Attorney General\u2019s Office and the University of Vermont, offers a free mediation service for Vermont consumers, including small businesses. In 2021, CAP received 1,173 complaints and recovered more than $240,000 for Vermont consumers. Claiming the list\u2019s top spots are complaints involving vehicles, retail, and home improvement, respectively \u2013 representing approximately 44 percent of all complaints filed.           <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to thank CAP for the services they provide to Vermonters. Whether they are resolving a consumer complaint, helping a Vermonter get a refund, or providing guidance to a victim of identity theft, CAP is always there to help. I encourage all Vermonters with a consumer complaint to reach out to CAP for assistance.<\/p>Attorney General T.J. Donovan<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\n

 The following are the top 10 consumer complaints received by CAP in 2021:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rank<\/strong><\/td>Consumer Complaint Issue<\/strong><\/td>Number of Complaints<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
1<\/td>Motorized Vehicles<\/strong> Common issues included defective merchandise; failure of state inspection; misrepresentation; and unsatisfactory service\/repair.<\/td>199    <\/td><\/tr>
2<\/td>Retail<\/strong> Common issues included failure to deliver; refund policy\/refund disputes; defective merchandise; and unsatisfactory service.<\/td>187<\/td><\/tr>
3<\/td>Home Improvements<\/strong> Common issues included unsatisfactory service\/repair; criminal home improvement fraud concerns; failure to perform; improper installation; and deposit refund dispute.<\/td>132  <\/td><\/tr>
4<\/td>Health\/Medical<\/strong> Common issues included unauthorized billing; excessive estimate\/charge; and defective merchandise.<\/td>83  <\/td><\/tr>
5<\/td>Fuel<\/strong> Common issues included pricing complaints; refund delays; propane tank removal delays; billing disputes; contract disputes; and safety concerns.<\/td>81<\/td><\/tr>
6<\/td>Housing and Real Estate<\/strong> Common issues included landlord-tenant issues; security deposit disputes; and warranty of habitability disputes.<\/td>77<\/td><\/tr>
7<\/td>Banking, Credit and Finance<\/strong> Common issues included debt collection; credit reporting disputes; and financing\/loan issues.<\/td>67<\/td><\/tr>
8<\/td>Home Furnishings<\/strong> Common issue included defective merchandise, often involving new appliances.<\/td>59<\/td><\/tr>
9<\/td>Athletics<\/strong> Common issues included refund policy disputes for seasonal passes, and failure to deliver services.<\/td>30<\/td><\/tr>
10<\/td>Delivery, Moving and Storage<\/strong> Common issue included delayed deliveries.<\/td>29<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>
CAP’s Top 10 Consumer Complaints of 2021<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Though not represented in the list of consumer complaints, scams continue to be of concern to Vermonters. Earlier this year, Attorney General Donovan released the top 10 scams reported to CAP<\/a>. In 2021, CAP received 5,154 scam reports, up slightly from the previous year. New twists on old scams involving computer tech support and fraudulent online listings represented nearly a quarter of all reports filed by Vermonters. More information on stopping scams is available at ago.vermont.gov\/cap\/stopping-scams\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            CAP offers a free mediation service to all Vermont consumers, including small businesses. If you are a consumer in need of assistance, please contact CAP by calling 1-800-649-2424 or visiting ago.vermont.gov\/cap<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2021, CAP received 1,173 complaints and recovered more than $240,000 for Vermont consumers. Claiming the list\u2019s top spots are complaints involving vehicles, retail, and home improvement, respectively \u2013 representing approximately 44 percent of all complaints filed. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4480,"featured_media":1422,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[505556],"tags":[642535,704809,485938,402199,639439,481474,494301,645870,645871,704808,704811,505456,684092,645873,505504,704807,645874,505537,645872,704810],"class_list":["post-1325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national-consumer-protection-week","tag-ncpw","tag-appliances","tag-auto","tag-cap","tag-car-buying","tag-consumer","tag-consumer-assistance-program","tag-consumer-complaint","tag-consumer-protection","tag-debt-collection","tag-delivery-delay","tag-elder-protection-initiative","tag-fuel","tag-health-medical","tag-home-improvement","tag-landlord-tenant","tag-medical-billing","tag-propane","tag-refund-disputes","tag-season-pass","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4480"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1325"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1325\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1442,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1325\/revisions\/1442"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cap\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}