FCC Consumer Complaints – August 2022
Introduction
In August 2022, the Federal Communications Commission recorded 24782 consumer complaints relating to telecommunications services, complaint volume increased from 22682 complaints the month before. Reports were received from 56 states and territories, with California recording slightly more complaints than other locations. The most common issue reported was Unwanted Calls, accounting for 10535 complaints.
Key statistics
- Total complaints
- 24782
- Days with complaint data
- 31
- Days with complaints
- 31
- States & territories reporting
- 56
- Most common issue
- Unwanted Calls (10535)
- Most reported state/territory
- California (3165)
Daily complaint activity
Daily complaint activity averaged 799.4 complaints per day during the month. The busiest day was 2 August 2022, when 1060 complaints were recorded, and 23 days were above the monthly daily average. The quietest day was 14 August 2022, with 314 complaints, noticeably below the monthly average.
Each bar represents one day of the month. Taller bars indicate more complaints.
Where the complaints came from
Reports recorded in August 2022 show 24782 complaints originating from 5805 cities across 56 states and territories. Complaint reports were spread across multiple states and territories, without any one location accounting for a large share. Despite the overall distribution, a notable concentration at the city level was observed in District of Columbia, where Washington accounted for 103 of the 114 complaints recorded in the state.
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 | 3165 | 12.8% |
| Texas | 1877 | 7.6% |
| Florida | 1819 | 7.3% |
| New York | 1473 | 5.9% |
| Pennsylvania | 987 | 4.0% |
| West Virginia | 894 | 3.6% |
| Ohio | 808 | 3.3% |
| Georgia | 796 | 3.2% |
| Illinois | 788 | 3.2% |
| North Carolina | 788 | 3.2% |
| Other states and territories | 11356 | 45.8% |
Location highlight
Nearly all complaints reported in District of Columbia originated from Washington.
What the complaints were about
A total of 8 complaint categories were represented in the complaints recorded during the month. Phone accounted for the largest share, with 17445 complaints. Complaint activity was strongly concentrated in this category, with other categories contributing comparatively fewer reports.
| Complaint category | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Phone | 17445 | 70.4% |
| Internet | 5134 | 20.7% |
| TV | 1490 | 6.0% |
| Radio | 368 | 1.5% |
| Accessibility | 134 | 0.5% |
| Broadband Story | 104 | 0.4% |
| Emergency | 65 | 0.3% |
| Request for Dispute Assistance | 42 | 0.2% |
Phone complaints
17445 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 70.4% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Unwanted Calls | 10535 | 60.4% |
| Availability (including rural call completion) | 2385 | 13.7% |
| Billing | 1938 | 11.1% |
| Equipment | 1023 | 5.9% |
| Number Portability (keeping your number if you change providers) | 570 | 3.3% |
| Privacy | 277 | 1.6% |
| Cramming (unauthorized charges on your phone bill) | 235 | 1.3% |
| Interference (including signal jammers) | 222 | 1.3% |
| Junk Faxes | 205 | 1.2% |
| Slamming (change of your carrier without permission) | 47 | 0.3% |
As is often the case in this category, unwanted calls were the most frequently reported issue. Further analysis of these complaints is provided below. Complaints in this category covered a range of issues, including Availability (including rural call completion), Billing and Equipment.
Internet complaints
5134 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 20.7% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | 2124 | 41.4% |
| Billing | 1697 | 33.1% |
| Speed | 398 | 7.8% |
| Equipment | 355 | 6.9% |
| Interference | 308 | 6.0% |
| Privacy | 252 | 4.9% |
Availability and Billing accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.
TV complaints
1490 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 6.0% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | 536 | 36.0% |
| Availability | 412 | 27.7% |
| Loud Commercials | 229 | 15.4% |
| Indecency | 156 | 10.5% |
| Equipment | 77 | 5.2% |
| Interference | 48 | 3.2% |
| Privacy | 25 | 1.7% |
Billing and Availability 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 1.5% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | 116 | 31.5% |
| Interference | 89 | 24.2% |
| Pirate Radio | 64 | 17.4% |
| Indecency | 56 | 15.2% |
| Commercials/Promotions | 19 | 5.2% |
| Billing | 10 | 2.7% |
| Equipment | 9 | 2.4% |
Complaints in this category covered a range of issues, including Availability, Interference and Pirate Radio.
Accessibility complaints
134 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.5% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) | 36 | 26.9% |
| Closed Captioning on TV | 29 | 21.6% |
| Closed Captioning over the Internet | 26 | 19.4% |
| Video Description | 8 | 6.0% |
| Emergency Information on TV | 4 | 3.0% |
| Hearing Aid Compatibility of Wireless Phones | 3 | 2.2% |
| Hearing Aid Compatibility of Wireline Phones | 1 | 0.7% |
Complaints in this category covered a range of issues, including Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS), Closed Captioning on TV and Closed Captioning over the Internet.
Broadband Story complaints
104 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.4% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|
Emergency complaints
65 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.3% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Interference | 32 | 49.2% |
| Phone | 18 | 27.7% |
| Tower | 10 | 15.4% |
| Other | 5 | 7.7% |
Interference and Phone accounted for the majority of complaints in this category, with other issues reported less frequently.
Request for Dispute Assistance complaints
42 complaints were recorded in this category during the month, representing 0.2% of the total.
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|
Unwanted calls
10535 complaints relating to unwanted calls were recorded on this date, accounting for 42.5% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| (818) 230-3095 | 28 | 0.3% |
| (888) 594-6814 | 11 | 0.1% |
| (315) 947-3151 | 7 | 0.1% |
| (844) 399-7994 | 6 | 0.1% |
| (202) 567-7241 | 5 | 0.0% |
| (303) 479-3828 | 5 | 0.0% |
| (315) 802-7301 | 5 | 0.0% |
| (248) 598-7321 | 4 | 0.0% |
| (310) 695-2071 | 4 | 0.0% |
| (315) 853-6646 | 4 | 0.0% |
Most reported business contact numbers
| Telephone number | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| (818) 230-3095 | 28 | 0.3% |
| (555) 555-5555 | 21 | 0.2% |
| (866) 201-3695 | 8 | 0.1% |
| (833) 212-9897 | 7 | 0.1% |
| (833) 213-0993 | 7 | 0.1% |
| (833) 213-4724 | 7 | 0.1% |
| (469) 905-6195 | 6 | 0.1% |
| (833) 213-3714 | 6 | 0.1% |
| (855) 352-3282 | 6 | 0.1% |
| (888) 534-6214 | 6 | 0.1% |
Key patterns
- None accounted for the largest share of unwanted call complaints by service type.
- Prerecorded Voice was reported slightly more often than other call types.
- (818) 230-3095 was reported slightly more often than other business contact numbers.
- (818) 230-3095 stood out as the most frequently reported caller ID number.
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.