FCC Consumer Complaints – 1 September 2015

Introduction

The Federal Communications Commission recorded 1356 consumer complaints on 1 September 2015 relating to telecommunications services, complaint volume increased from 1090 complaints the day before. The complaints came from 51 states and territories, with Florida reporting a modestly higher count than the other locations. Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) recorded a slightly higher number of complaints than other issues.

Key statistics

Total complaints
1356
States & territories reporting
51
Most common issue
Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) (443)
Most reported state/territory
Florida (192)

Where the complaints came from

Across 823 cities in 51 states and territories, a total of 1356 complaints were recorded on 1 September 2015. Complaints were relatively evenly spread across states and territories, with no individual location contributing a dominant share. This pattern continues at the city level, where complaints were distributed across multiple locations without a single city standing out.

The distribution of complaints by state and territory is shown below, with locations ranked by the number of reports recorded.

State/Territory Complaints
Florida 192 14.2%
California 168 12.4%
Maryland 92 6.8%
Texas 75 5.5%
Georgia 54 4.0%
New York 54 4.0%
Illinois 53 3.9%
Pennsylvania 44 3.2%
Colorado 42 3.1%
Virginia 42 3.1%
Other states and territories 540 39.8%

What the complaints were about

Complaints recorded on this date related to 6 different complaint categories. Phone was the most reported category, with 891 complaints. Complaint activity was strongly concentrated in this category, with other categories contributing comparatively fewer reports.

Complaint category Complaints Share
Phone 891 65.7%
Internet 271 20.0%
TV 127 9.4%
Radio 60 4.4%
Emergency 6 0.4%
Accessibility 1 0.1%

Phone complaints

891 complaints were recorded in this category, representing 65.7% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) 443 49.7%
Robocalls 193 21.7%
Billing 88 9.9%
Availability (including rural call completion) 42 4.7%
Equipment 34 3.8%
Number Portability (keeping your number if you change providers) 29 3.3%
Privacy 29 3.3%
Cramming (unauthorized charges on your phone bill) 13 1.5%
Junk Faxes 10 1.1%
Interference (including signal jammers) 7 0.8%
Open Internet/Net Neutrality 3 0.3%

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

271 complaints were recorded in this category, representing 20.0% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Billing 97 35.8%
Open Internet/Net Neutrality 50 18.5%
Availability 42 15.5%
Speed 36 13.3%
Privacy 20 7.4%
Equipment 13 4.8%
Interference 13 4.8%

A broad mix of issues was reported in this category, with Billing, Open Internet/Net Neutrality and Availability among the most common.

TV complaints

127 complaints were recorded in this category, representing 9.4% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Billing 58 45.7%
Availability 21 16.5%
Equipment 15 11.8%
Loud Commercials 14 11.0%
Indecency 10 7.9%
Interference 6 4.7%
Open Internet/Net Neutrality 2 1.6%
Privacy 1 0.8%

Billing and Availability accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.

Radio complaints

60 complaints were recorded in this category, representing 4.4% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Interference 53 88.3%
Indecency 4 6.7%
Availability 2 3.3%
Commercials/Promotions 1 1.7%

Interference and Indecency accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.

Page last updated: 10 December 2018 with FCC complaints data from 1 September 2015.

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.