Better Business Bureau of Southern Piedmont and Western North Carolina released its 2022 annual report Thursday, detailing consumer activity related to businesses located in the BBB’s 37-county service area.

This report includes statistics on consumer complaints, verified customer reviews and the top five scams.

Consumer Complaints

In 2022, consumers filed a record 24,000+ complaints against area businesses, showing a 6.5% increase from 2021.

“Over the last year we’ve worked to make the consumer experience when filing a complaint seamless. We’ve updated our forms and made it very easy for consumers to differentiate between whether they’re looking to file a complaint or leave a review,” said BBB of Southern Piedmont and Western North
Carolina President Tom Bartholomy.

In spite of the large number of complaints filed, the BBB was still able to resolve 93% of all complaints submitted.

Verified Customer Reviews

Additionally in 2022, customers submitted more than 21,000 verified reviews about businesses, showing an 11% increase from 2021.

“Customer reviews continue to be on the rise,” said Bartholomy. “Potential customers always want to know what third parties say about a business they’re considering working with, and the BBB is a great resource for that. We also know how valuable these reviews are and continue to encourage businesses to ask their customers to leave them reviews on BBB.org.”

Top 5 Scams of 2022

1. Online Purchase/Counterfeit Products

2. Employment

3. Phishing/Imposter Scams

4. Tech Support

5. Advance Fee Loan

Consumers can visit www.bbb.org to check out a business, file a complaint or leave a review.