FCC Consumer Complaints – June 2021

Introduction

In June 2021, 25436 consumer complaints relating to telecommunications services were recorded in the Federal Communications Commission system, this was higher than the 24518 complaints recorded the previous month. Complaints were reported across 55 states and territories, with California slightly ahead of the other locations. The largest number of complaints related to Unwanted Calls, with 14987 complaints.

Key statistics

Total complaints
25436
Days with complaint data
30
Days with complaints
30
States & territories reporting
55
Most common issue
Unwanted Calls (14987)
Most reported state/territory
California (2818)

Daily complaint activity

Across the month, the FCC recorded an average of 847.9 complaints per day. The highest daily total was 1155 complaints on 2 June 2021, while 22 days recorded more complaints than the monthly daily average. The lowest daily total was 291 complaints on 20 June 2021, well below the monthly average.

Each bar represents one day of the month. Taller bars indicate more complaints.

Where the complaints came from

The 25436 complaints recorded in June 2021 were submitted from 5619 cities across 55 states and territories. The distribution of complaints was relatively even, with no single state or territory contributing a dominant share. At the city level, a significant concentration was observed in District of Columbia, where Washington accounted for 126 of the 136 complaints recorded.

The table below shows the distribution of complaints by state and territory for this month, highlighting the locations with the highest number of reports.

State/Territory Complaints Share
California 2818 11.1%
Texas 2320 9.1%
Florida 2025 8.0%
New York 1577 6.2%
Illinois 942 3.7%
Arizona 935 3.7%
North Carolina 859 3.4%
Ohio 834 3.3%
Pennsylvania 826 3.2%
Colorado 798 3.1%
Other states and territories 11441 45.0%

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 8 different complaint categories. Phone was the most reported category, with 19071 complaints. Complaint activity was strongly concentrated in this category, with other categories contributing comparatively fewer reports.

Complaint category Complaints Share
Phone 19071 75.0%
Internet 3981 15.7%
TV 1860 7.3%
Radio 307 1.2%
Broadband Story 87 0.3%
Emergency 56 0.2%
Accessibility 54 0.2%
Request for Dispute Assistance 20 0.1%

Phone complaints

19071 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 75.0% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Unwanted Calls 14987 78.6%
Billing 1294 6.8%
Availability (including rural call completion) 1043 5.5%
Equipment 655 3.4%
Number Portability (keeping your number if you change providers) 285 1.5%
Privacy 269 1.4%
Junk Faxes 202 1.1%
Interference (including signal jammers) 166 0.9%
Cramming (unauthorized charges on your phone bill) 135 0.7%
Slamming (change of your carrier without permission) 26 0.1%
Rural Call Completion 9 0.0%

As is typical for this category, unwanted calls accounted for the largest share of complaints. A more detailed analysis of these reports is provided in the section below. Complaints in this category covered a range of issues, including Billing, Availability (including rural call completion) and Equipment.

Internet complaints

3981 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 15.7% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Availability 1491 37.5%
Billing 1385 34.8%
Speed 452 11.4%
Interference 257 6.5%
Equipment 221 5.6%
Privacy 175 4.4%

Availability and Billing were the main issues reported in this category, while other issues were less common.

TV complaints

1860 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 7.3% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Billing 649 34.9%
Availability 430 23.1%
Indecency 320 17.2%
Loud Commercials 276 14.8%
Equipment 111 6.0%
Interference 49 2.6%
Privacy 25 1.3%

Complaints in this category covered a range of issues, including Billing, Availability and Indecency.

Radio complaints

307 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 1.2% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Interference 89 29.0%
Availability 63 20.5%
Indecency 60 19.5%
Pirate Radio 49 16.0%
Billing 18 5.9%
Equipment 17 5.5%
Commercials/Promotions 11 3.6%

Complaints in this category covered a range of issues, including Interference, Availability and Indecency.

Broadband Story complaints

87 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.3% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share

Emergency complaints

56 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.2% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Interference 25 44.6%
Other 18 32.1%
Phone 11 19.6%
Tower 2 3.6%

Interference and Other were the main issues reported in this category, while other issues were less common.

Accessibility complaints

54 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.2% of the total.

Issue Complaints Share
Closed Captioning on TV 18 33.3%
Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) 16 29.6%
Closed Captioning over the Internet 6 11.1%
Emergency Information on TV 4 7.4%
Video Description 2 3.7%

Closed Captioning on TV and Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) were the main issues reported in this category, while other issues were less common.

Unwanted calls

14987 complaints relating to unwanted calls were recorded on this date, accounting for 58.9% of all complaints. Reports referenced both caller ID numbers and business contact numbers, with number tables shown where meaningful patterns are present.

Most reported caller ID numbers

Telephone number Complaints Share
(407) 392-2704 18 0.1%
(559) 702-0248 18 0.1%
(863) 238-5926 18 0.1%
(407) 966-1588 17 0.1%
(559) 633-1489 14 0.1%
(424) 287-4798 13 0.1%
(559) 201-1053 13 0.1%
(810) 207-6201 13 0.1%
(503) 401-9991 12 0.1%
(254) 791-8686 10 0.1%

Most reported business contact numbers

Telephone number Complaints Share
(833) 304-1447 210 1.4%
(315) 232-8257 137 0.9%
(469) 694-7084 73 0.5%
(866) 202-4955 28 0.2%
(928) 379-5899 26 0.2%
(866) 204-4885 25 0.2%
(555) 555-5555 22 0.1%
(800) 249-7097 19 0.1%
(999) 999-9999 17 0.1%
(877) 547-7275 15 0.1%

Key patterns

  • All unwanted call complaints with a recorded service type related to None.
  • Prerecorded Voice was reported slightly more often than other call types.
  • (833) 304-1447 was reported slightly more often than other business contact numbers.
  • Several caller ID numbers were reported multiple times, with no single number clearly ahead of the others.
Page last updated: 1 July 2021 with FCC complaints data from June 2021.

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.