Atlanta, GA - November 17, 2010
Tags: BBB Unfair, BBB Rip-off, BBB Scam, BBB Fraud, BBB Complaints and BBB Abuse, BBB harassment, BBB retaliation, BBB sucks, BBB exposed on 20/20, Unethical Behavior of the Better Business Bureau (BBB)
Commentary: The BBB must be held accountable for their illegal and unjust actions. Mechanic's Responds.com® News, LLC is VERY aggressive in Investigating, Identifying, Exposing, Commenting on, and Responding to any News Worthy Story specifically involving the unfair BBB, Corruption, Unfair Practices, Injustice, and Consumer Abuses Against Businesses.
Today, Mechanic's Responds.com News, LLC has learned that Mechanic's Heating & Air Conditioning, LLC, herein called "Mechanic's", has filed a Formal Complaint today with the OCA (Governor's Office of Consumer Affairs).
Mechanic’s Responds® has been reporting since 2007 that the Metro Atlanta BBB loves to turn its enemies, like Mechanic's, into the OCA, and other State Agencies, in order to cause "pain" to companies that dare speak out against the BBB or dare not to pay the BBB extortion money (so called "BBB Membership Fees").
Click HERE for a copy of the OCA Complaint filed today against the BBB.
In their Complaint to the OCA, Mechanic's alleges the following against the BBB:
Dear Investigator:
As you may or may not be aware, on Friday November 12, 2010, ABC's 20/20 aired an investigation of the Better Business Bureau. Here is a link for your information:
Among the findings of their investigation was an underlying scheme to coerce money from businesses for removal of negative information on their BBB report and to improve their grade to an A or higher.
This has been going on for years.
In fact, this firm was a victim in 2007 of an attempted shakedown. When we refused to pay, we went from a Satisfactory rating to an Unsatisfactory rating with a few days of the telemarketing call. Later, when the grading system was implemented, we went from Unsatisfactory to an F.
So it wasn't shocking to us to see 20/20 discover that the Ritz-Carlton in Boston which has had a million customers and a total of two complaints receive an F. Wolfgang Puck stated he received an F when he refused to pay for membership. And the list goes on. You must see this investigation to believe it.
The Fair Business Practices Act of 1975 was passed to protect consumers from such deception and fraud.
10.1.391 states: "The purpose of this part shall be to protect consumers and legitimate business enterprises from unfair or deceptive practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce in part or wholly in the state.
You can imagine our concern when we see that your website refers visitors to the Better Business Bureau with the following advertisement:
Better Business Bureau
The Better Business Bureau is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting fair and ethical business practices. They maintain a database of information on over 14,000 companies, and have several offices in Georgia. To look up a particular business, go to http:/www.atlanta.bbb.org/search.html. You can find the BBB office nearest you at http://lookup.bbb.org, or file a complaint at http://www.atlanta.bbb.org/complaint.html.
10.1.391 states: "It is the intent of the General Assembly that such practices be swiftly stopped and this part shall be liberally construed and applied to promote its underlying purposes and policies."
In accordance with this statute, we request that you swiftly stop promoting the BBB and immediately remove all references to the BBB from your website.
It appears the BBB's service is included in this act.
10.1.392.28 states: "Trade" and "commerce" mean the advertising, distribution, sale, lease, or offering for distribution, sale, or lease of any goods, services, or any property, tangible or intangible, real, personal, or mixed, or any other article, commodity, or thing of value."
The BBB distributes a service or intangible property to consumers.
The Fair Business Practices Act of 1975 goes on to define violations.
10.1.393. (b) states: "By way of illustration only and without limiting the scope of subsection (a) of this Code section, the following practices are declared unlawful: (2) Causing actual confusion or actual misunderstanding as to the source, sponsorship, approval, or certification
of goods or services.
The BBB fails to state on any of its A-rated recommendations that the grade the business received was bought and paid for.
Furthermore, 10.1.393 (b)(3) states: "Causing actual confusion or actual misunderstanding as to affiliation, connection, or association with or certification by another."
In the 20/20 investigation, the BBB allowed anyone to sign up, pay $425 by credit card and BOOM!, they had an A+ rating. The BBB granted an A+ rating to Hamas and Stormfront, a skinhead, neo-Nazi website the second they signed up!
The BBB states on its website that: "If a business has been accredited by the BBB, it means BBB has determined that the business meets accreditation standards which include a commitment to make a good faith effort to resolve any consumer complaints."
Among the
accreditation standards, the BBB states: "An accredited business or
organization agrees to:
A. Have been operational (actively selling products or services) in any
BBB service area for at least the most recent 12 months, unless the principal(s)
previously operated a similar business with an eligible record (one that
qualifies for BBB accreditation).
D. Be free of an unsatisfactory rating and maintain at least a B rating at the accrediting BBB and the BBB where it is headquartered, if different."
Because any business in Georgia can sign up and immediately receive an A, the BBB is violating The Fair Business Practices Act of 1975 because they to not actually verify if the business has been operating for 12 months or require the business to have been operating for 12 months. In fact, the Business has no rating on any business signing up so it cannot comply with the "D" paragraph of their own accreditation standards which states the business has had a B rating or higher. This is fraud and deceptive. What grade did Hamas have before they signed up? B or higher? No. They had no rating at all.
The Fair Business Practices Act of 1975 is further violated under
10.1.393. (b)(5) "Representing that goods or services have sponsorship, approval, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities that they do not have or that a person has a sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation, or connection that he or she does not have;
(7) Representing that goods or services are of a particular standard, quality, or grade or that goods are of a particular
style or model, if they are of another;
(9) Advertising goods or services with intent not to sell them as advertised."
See the above comments for how the BBB violates those sections.
The BBB may respond and state that they disclose the Pay-For-Grade policy they have. They may refer to this sentence: " BBB accredited businesses pay a fee for accreditation review/monitoring and for support of BBB services to the public."
Our response is as follows: Where is the monitoring for Hamas? Ritz-Carlton?
Plus this sentence states the BBB is actually reviewing the accreditation of businesses. When do they do this? At the time a business signs up and is granted an immediate grade? When did they check out Hamas? The BBB is very deceptive when they state it this way.
But the BBB continues to violate The Fair Business Practices Act of 1975 by: "10.1.393. (b) (8) "Disparaging goods, services, or business of another by false or misleading representation."
We have been disparaged by false and misleading representation.
Our firm is fortunate to have almost three thousand happy customers documented online with photos and hand-written material. See: http://www.airconditioningatlanta.com/Mechanic's Atlanta HVAC Happy Customers Index.htm
We have transmitted this information to the BB weekly for over one year.
Yet the BBB rates us a D+. Our competitor has been arrested, filed multiple bankruptcies and owes hundreds of thousands of dollars yet maintains an A+. http://www.bbb.org/atlanta/business-reviews/heating-and-air-conditioning/reliable-heating-and-air-conditioning-in-woodstock-ga-4004103
http://www.mechanicsresponds.com/BBB of Metro Atlanta/The BBB and Reliable Heating Air.htm
Of course he paid for the grade. This a violation of the BBB's own standards.
Furthermore, 10.1.393.5 states: " (a) For purposes of this Code section, the term "telemarketing" shall have the same meaning which it has under 16 Code of Federal Regulations Part 310, the Telemarketing Sales Rule of the Federal Trade Commission, except that the term "telemarketing" shall also include those calls made in intrastate as well as interstate commerce. (b) Without otherwise limiting the definition of unfair and deceptive acts or practices under this part, it shall be unlawful for any person who is engaged in telemarketing, any person who is engaged in any activity involving or using a computer or computer network, or any person who is engaged in home repair work or home improvement work to: (1) Employ any device, scheme, or artifice to defraud a person, organization, or entity; (2) Engage in any act, practice, or course of business that operates or would operate as a fraud or deceit upon a person, organization, or entity."
It appears to us that the act of the BBB to telemarket to businesses and shake them down is a "scheme to defraud a person....or entity." Don't you think?
Apparently the Attorney General of Connecticut Richard Blumenthal and New York Congressman Anthony Weiner think so as well. They are leading the wave of outrage that the BBB is nothing more than a scheme to defraud businesses out of their dwindling cash and the defraud consumers in to thinking that the BBB is actually doing any monitoring or accreditation review of a business. It is time this stopped.
We hope you start an investigation immediately, issue subpoenas and remove all references off the government websites referring Georgia citizens to this corrupt and dishonest organization.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Clearly, the BBB (Better Business Bureau) is a scam.
Please
contact us at
News@MechanicsResponds.com if you have been the victim of the unfair BBB.
Mechanic’s Responds® encourages all interested parties to visit Mechanic's (Mechanic's Heating & Air Conditioning, LLC) ever growing list of thousands of happy and satisfied customers at this link:
http://www.airconditioningatlanta.com/Mechanic's Atlanta HVAC Happy Customers Index.htm
You can reach Mr. Fred Elsberry of the Metro Atlanta BBB via email at fred@atlanta.bbb.org.
You can reach J. R. Adams via email at News@MechanicsResponds.com.
Disclaimer: The information contained herein is for informational purposes only. The information contained herein is believed accurate but is not warranted. We encourage all interested parties to verify the information contained herein on their own. The information contained herein was derived from public information sources, from our records, or from Reports or Complaints filed with us.
Copy Right 2009 - - Mechanic's Responds.com News, LLC - All Rights Reserved