Burglar alarm companies top chart when it comes to complaints, Utah BBB says

For the third consecutive year, burglar alarm companies ranked first on the Better Business Bureau of Utah's Top 10 list of the industries that generated the most complaints, according to a recent report by The Salt Lake Tribune.

There was a silver lining for burglar alarm companies in that unflattering ranking. Their resolution rate for the complaints increased—to 97 percent, according to the report.

Here's more from the Jan. 4 story:

The Better Business Bureau of Utah has released its Top 10 list of the industries that generated the most complaints last year, with burglar alarm companies once again topping the chart.

The BBB said it received a total of 16,144 complaints in 2012 — down 5 percent from 2011 — and resolved nearly 77 percent of the cases, while the number of consumers accessing its reviews of businesses was up nearly 15 percent.

Among the industries on the BBB's Top 10 complaints list were computer, hardware, software and services.

… In 2012, for the third year in a row, burglar alarm companies drew the most complaints, with 1,825. Although the resolution rate for alarm companies improved, the number of complaints rose by more than 61 percent. Nearly 97 percent of the complaints were resolved.

Complaints against alarm companies usually involve sales issues, billing and contract renewal.

The second-highest number of complaints, 380, were logged against loan mortgage audits, or companies that promise to examine payments to make sure the amount is applied correctly.

Other industries that made the BBB's list, in order of the number of complaints, were:

• Health and medical products, primarily those making promises about weight loss, with trial offers and hidden monthly fees

• Training program companies, such as firms offering instructions on how to start a business or make money on the Internet.