Credit Problems Top Consumer Complaints

In observance of National Consumer Protection Week, Attorney General Spitzer today issued his annual "top ten" list of consumer complaints to his office.

According to an analysis of nearly 55,000 written consumer complaints in 2004, credit and banking complaints - including credit cards, identity theft, debt collection and credit reporting - eclipsed auto-related complaints. Internet concerns continued to receive the third most complaints to the Attorney General's office.

"Consumers are encouraged to contact my office for assistance in handling disputes with commercial entities and for tips on protecting themselves before making purchases," Spitzer said. "My staff is dedicated to aggressive enforcement against fraudulent and illegal business practices and has an impressive track record in mediating individual consumer complaints."

Similar to statewide numbers, the top complaint to the Albany office of the Consumer Frauds and Protection Bureau was related to credit. However, second on the list regionally was telecommunications followed by automobiles.

The Attorney General's office - through its Consumer Frauds and Protection Bureau, Internet Bureau and Telecommunications and Energy Bureau - investigates and prosecutes businesses and individuals engaging in fraudulent, misleading, deceptive and illegal trade practices. It also mediates thousands of complaints from individual consumers.

Last year, these three public advocacy bureaus, joined by the Attorney General's 13 regional offices, were responsible for nearly 120 enforcement actions - including lawsuits and settlements - to protect consumers.

Based on these efforts alone, in 2004, Spitzer's office obtained more than $18 million in restitution through settlements, court judgments and mediation of consumer-oriented cases. An additional $13 million was recovered by consumers through the New and Used Car Lemon Law Arbitration Programs administered by the Attorney General's office. The office also collected nearly $4.8 million in civil penalties and costs. The foregoing figures do not include recoveries by the Attorney General's office in cases brought by other public advocacy bureaus.

The following is a list of top statewide consumer complaints by industry in 2004:

Industry Complaint Numbers

1. Credit 6,724
2. Automobiles 6,255
3. Internet 6,013
4. Telecommunications 5,091
5. Mail Order 2,757
6. Home Repair/Construction 2,610
7. Services (non-auto) 2,512
8. Retail Sales 2,274
9. Landlord/Tenant 2,064
10. Travel 1,639

This list does not include cases and complaints handled by the Attorney General's Health Care helpline, which each year handles nearly 7,800 calls. A separate report analyzing health care complaints and providing consumer tips is available at the Attorney General's website at http://www.ag.ny.gov/bureau/healthcare-bureau.

The following is a list of top complaints to the Albany office of the Attorney General's office, which covers the counties of Albany, Columbia, Greene, Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Warren and Washington.

Industry Consumer Complaints

1. Credit 1,238
2. Telecommunications 905
3. Automobile 815
4. Mail Order 654
5. Home Repair/Construction 515
6. Retail Sales 503
7. Internet 321
8. Services 261
9. Mortgages 221
10. Utilities 185

In 2004, Spitzer's Consumer Frauds and Protection Bureau in Albany handled over 10,800 consumer complaints and obtained nearly $2.5 million in restitution for consumers through mediation efforts and enforcement actions.

Some of the 2004 cases significant in the region include:

• A lawsuit filed in September against NY Catalog Sales, which has storefronts in Queensbury and Watertown, alleged that the company was engaging in illegal and usurious payday lending. Aware that these loans are illegal due to the excessive interest charges - as much as 400% APR - NY Catalog Sales tried to disguise its interest charges as payment toward "catalog sale" purchases. In January 2005, Spitzer's case resulted in a state judge issuing an order voiding the illegal loans and directing restitution to consumers in the amount of the excessive interest payments;
• Settlements were reached with three area auto dealerships that had not given proper notification to consumers who unknowingly bought former rental vehicles. Fuccillo Ford
  of East Greenbush, DeNooyer Dodge of Albany, and Haynes Ford of Hoosick agreed to pay restitution to consumers equal to $1,500 for each rental vehicle in which the legally-required notification was not given. In total, the dealerships paid at least $64,000 in restitution to 42 consumers;
• A court order was obtained against Colonie Seamless Gutters barring its owner, James Lewis, from the gutter- and drain-cleaning and installation business unless he posts a $25,000 performance bond. The order also requires Lewis to pay full restitution to injured consumers and $22,500 in civil penalties and costs. It is estimated that restitution owed to his customers could be as much as $6,500; and
• A lawsuit was filed against a Montgomery County man, Eric Charles Roselli, who engaged in a scam that lured aspiring actors to auditions in order to convince them to pay an advance fee of $552 each to join a non-existent "Artists Union."

Spitzer noted that his office stands ready to assist consumers in resolving their problems. He encouraged individuals to contact his consumer helpline at (800) 771-7755. Consumers can access a wide range of consumer tips by visiting his website at www.ag.ny.gov.