FCC Consumer Complaints – October 2015
Introduction
In October 2015, 31942 consumer complaints relating to telecommunications services were recorded in the Federal Communications Commission system, this was higher than the 29764 complaints recorded the previous month. Complaints were reported across 54 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 11186 complaints.
Key statistics
- Total complaints
- 31942
- Days with complaint data
- 31
- Days with complaints
- 31
- States & territories reporting
- 54
- Most common issue
- Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) (11186)
- Most reported state/territory
- California (3743)
Daily complaint activity
Daily complaint activity averaged 1030.4 complaints per day during the month. The busiest day was 15 October 2015, when 1426 complaints were recorded, and 21 days were above the monthly daily average. The quietest day was 25 October 2015, with 364 complaints, noticeably below the monthly average.
Each bar represents one day of the month. Taller bars indicate more complaints.
Where the complaints came from
The 31942 complaints recorded in October 2015 were submitted from 6033 cities across 54 states and territories. Complaints were relatively evenly spread across states and territories, with no individual location contributing a dominant share. Despite the overall distribution, a notable concentration at the city level was observed in District of Columbia, where Washington accounted for 137 of the 148 complaints recorded in the state.
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 | 3743 | 11.7% |
| Florida | 3077 | 9.6% |
| Texas | 2072 | 6.5% |
| Maryland | 1785 | 5.6% |
| New York | 1692 | 5.3% |
| Georgia | 1450 | 4.5% |
| Pennsylvania | 1313 | 4.1% |
| Illinois | 1137 | 3.6% |
| Virginia | 1011 | 3.2% |
| New Jersey | 926 | 2.9% |
| Other states and territories | 13708 | 42.9% |
Location highlight
Nearly all complaints reported in District of Columbia originated from Washington.
What the complaints were about
Complaints recorded during the month related to 7 different complaint categories. Phone accounted for the largest share, with 21725 complaints. Complaint activity was strongly concentrated in this category, with other categories contributing comparatively fewer reports.
| Complaint category | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Phone | 21725 | 68.0% |
| Internet | 5454 | 17.1% |
| TV | 3096 | 9.7% |
| Radio | 1496 | 4.7% |
| Emergency | 89 | 0.3% |
| Accessibility | 66 | 0.2% |
| Request for Dispute Assistance | 16 | 0.1% |
Phone complaints
21725 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 68.0% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) | 11186 | 51.5% |
| Robocalls | 5164 | 23.8% |
| Billing | 1980 | 9.1% |
| Availability (including rural call completion) | 710 | 3.3% |
| Number Portability (keeping your number if you change providers) | 635 | 2.9% |
| Equipment | 580 | 2.7% |
| Privacy | 531 | 2.4% |
| Junk Faxes | 362 | 1.7% |
| Cramming (unauthorized charges on your phone bill) | 330 | 1.5% |
| Interference (including signal jammers) | 143 | 0.7% |
| Open Internet/Net Neutrality | 81 | 0.4% |
| Slamming (change of your carrier without permission) | 19 | 0.1% |
The largest share of complaints in this category related to Telemarketing (including do not call and spoofing) and Robocalls, with fewer reports falling into other issue types.
Internet complaints
5454 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 17.1% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | 1839 | 33.7% |
| Open Internet/Net Neutrality | 952 | 17.5% |
| Availability | 924 | 16.9% |
| Speed | 698 | 12.8% |
| Privacy | 478 | 8.8% |
| Interference | 336 | 6.2% |
| Equipment | 227 | 4.2% |
A broad mix of issues was reported in this category, with Billing, Open Internet/Net Neutrality and Availability among the most common.
TV complaints
3096 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 9.7% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | 1121 | 36.2% |
| Availability | 540 | 17.4% |
| Indecency | 438 | 14.1% |
| Loud Commercials | 359 | 11.6% |
| Equipment | 352 | 11.4% |
| Interference | 187 | 6.0% |
| Open Internet/Net Neutrality | 52 | 1.7% |
| Privacy | 47 | 1.5% |
A broad mix of issues was reported in this category, with Billing, Availability and Indecency among the most common.
Radio complaints
1496 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 4.7% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Interference | 1174 | 78.5% |
| Indecency | 155 | 10.4% |
| Pirate Radio | 62 | 4.1% |
| Availability | 39 | 2.6% |
| Commercials/Promotions | 35 | 2.3% |
| Equipment | 20 | 1.3% |
| Billing | 11 | 0.7% |
The largest share of complaints in this category related to Interference and Indecency, with fewer reports falling into other issue types.
Emergency complaints
89 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.3% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Other | 42 | 47.2% |
| Phone | 26 | 29.2% |
| Interference | 15 | 16.9% |
| Tower | 6 | 6.7% |
The largest share of complaints in this category related to Other and Phone, with fewer reports falling into other issue types.
Accessibility complaints
66 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.2% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Closed Captioning on TV | 31 | 47.0% |
| Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) | 21 | 31.8% |
| Closed Captioning over the Internet | 10 | 15.2% |
| Video Description | 3 | 4.5% |
The largest share of complaints in this category related to Closed Captioning on TV and Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS), with fewer reports falling into other issue types.
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.