FCC Consumer Complaints – February 2015
Introduction
In February 2015, 21712 consumer complaints relating to telecommunications services were recorded in the Federal Communications Commission system, this represented a decline from the 23955 complaints recorded the month before. Complaints were reported across 55 states and territories, with California slightly ahead of the other locations. Complaints were most commonly associated with Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing), accounting for 8527 complaints.
Key statistics
- Total complaints
- 21712
- Days with complaint data
- 28
- Days with complaints
- 28
- States & territories reporting
- 55
- Most common issue
- Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) (8527)
- Most reported state/territory
- California (2760)
Daily complaint activity
Daily complaint activity averaged 775.4 complaints per day during the month. The busiest day was 18 February 2015, when 1142 complaints were recorded, and 18 days were above the monthly daily average. The quietest day was 8 February 2015, with 239 complaints, noticeably below the monthly average.
Each bar represents one day of the month. Taller bars indicate more complaints.
Where the complaints came from
A total of 21712 complaints were recorded in February 2015, with reports originating from 5179 cities in 55 states and territories. Complaint activity was fairly evenly distributed, with no single state or territory accounting for a large share of reports. At the city level, a significant concentration was observed in District of Columbia, where Washington accounted for 99 of the 101 complaints recorded.
The monthly distribution of complaints by state and territory is shown below, with locations ranked by the number of reports recorded.
| State/Territory | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| California | 2760 | 12.7% |
| Florida | 1594 | 7.3% |
| Texas | 1592 | 7.3% |
| New York | 1239 | 5.7% |
| Pennsylvania | 940 | 4.3% |
| Illinois | 922 | 4.2% |
| Georgia | 736 | 3.4% |
| New Jersey | 717 | 3.3% |
| Michigan | 662 | 3.0% |
| Virginia | 629 | 2.9% |
| Other states and territories | 9908 | 45.6% |
Location highlights
- All complaints reported in District of Columbia originated from a single city, Washington.
- Nearly all complaints reported in District of Columbia originated from Washington.
What the complaints were about
A total of 7 complaint categories were represented in the complaints recorded during the month. The largest number of complaints fell within Phone, which accounted for 16042 reports. Complaint activity was strongly concentrated in this category, with other categories contributing comparatively fewer reports.
| Complaint category | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Phone | 16042 | 73.9% |
| Internet | 2592 | 11.9% |
| TV | 2549 | 11.7% |
| Radio | 368 | 1.7% |
| Accessibility | 116 | 0.5% |
| Emergency | 40 | 0.2% |
| Request for Dispute Assistance | 5 | 0.0% |
Phone complaints
16042 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 73.9% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) | 8527 | 53.2% |
| Robocalls | 3195 | 19.9% |
| Billing | 1503 | 9.4% |
| Equipment | 490 | 3.1% |
| Number Portability (keeping your number if you change providers) | 474 | 3.0% |
| Privacy | 440 | 2.7% |
| Availability (including rural call completion) | 433 | 2.7% |
| Junk Faxes | 399 | 2.5% |
| Cramming (unauthorized charges on your phone bill) | 315 | 2.0% |
| Interference (including signal jammers) | 225 | 1.4% |
| Slamming (change of your carrier without permission) | 27 | 0.2% |
Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) and Robocalls accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.
Internet complaints
2592 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 11.9% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | 712 | 27.5% |
| Privacy | 497 | 19.2% |
| Speed | 453 | 17.5% |
| Availability | 448 | 17.3% |
| Interference | 340 | 13.1% |
| Equipment | 141 | 5.4% |
Complaints in this category covered a range of issues, including Billing, Privacy and Speed.
TV complaints
2549 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 11.7% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Indecency | 899 | 35.3% |
| Billing | 742 | 29.1% |
| Availability | 287 | 11.3% |
| Loud Commercials | 280 | 11.0% |
| Equipment | 207 | 8.1% |
| Interference | 89 | 3.5% |
| Privacy | 44 | 1.7% |
Indecency and Billing accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.
Radio complaints
368 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 1.7% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Interference | 179 | 48.6% |
| Indecency | 99 | 26.9% |
| Pirate Radio | 31 | 8.4% |
| Equipment | 24 | 6.5% |
| Availability | 22 | 6.0% |
| Billing | 12 | 3.3% |
Interference and Indecency accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.
Accessibility complaints
116 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.5% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) | 64 | 55.2% |
| Closed Captioning on TV | 23 | 19.8% |
| Closed Captioning over the Internet | 11 | 9.5% |
| Video Description | 7 | 6.0% |
| Emergency Information on TV | 3 | 2.6% |
| Hearing Aid Compatibility of Wireless Phones | 3 | 2.6% |
| Hearing Aid Compatibility of Wireline Phones | 1 | 0.9% |
Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) and Closed Captioning on TV accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.
Emergency complaints
40 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.2% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Phone | 19 | 47.5% |
| Other | 18 | 45.0% |
| Tower | 3 | 7.5% |
Phone and Other accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.
The information presented on this page is based on consumer complaint data submitted to regulatory authorities. References to telephone numbers reflect reports made by consumers and do not confirm ownership, authenticity, or that the number was genuinely associated with the call. Caller ID information may be inaccurate or subject to spoofing.
Complaint categories, dates and complainant locations are based on the source records and may contain incomplete, approximate or user-entered information. Location details refer to the complainant’s reported location, not the location of the caller or telephone number. This content is provided for informational purposes only.