FTC Releases List of Top 10 Consumer Complaints for 2012

Complaints about identity theft led the list in the Federal Trade Commission’s Top 10 Complaint Categories for 2012

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– 2012 marks the 13^th year that identity theft led the list.

Debt collection and banks and lenders also rated highly. Complaints about debt collectors made up 10 percent of the complaints – coming in at second — received by the federal agency while banks and lenders achieved 6 percent – coming in at third — of the complaints.

2012 marks the first year in which the FTC received more than 2 million complaints overall, and 369,132, or 18 percent, were related to identity theft. Of those, more than 43 percent related to tax- or wage-related fraud.

The report gives national data, as well as a state-by-state accounting of top complaint categories and a listing of the metropolitan areas that generated the most complaints. This includes the top 50 metropolitan areas for both fraud and identity theft complaints.

The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).