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Identity theft most common complaint among consumersFeb 29, 2012 (The Virginian-Pilot - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Consumers complained to the Federal Trade Commission about identity theft more than about any other type of problem in 2011 -- the 12th consecutive year that category has led the agency's annual list of top consumer complaints. In a report released Tuesday, the FTC tallied 279,156 complaints about stolen personal information, or 15 percent of the more than 1.8 million complaints that came in to the agency last year. Complaints about debt collection came in second, with 180,928 complaints, or about 10 percent of the total. The rest of the top 10 complaints were about: - prizes, sweepstakes and lotteries - shop-at-home and catalog sales - banks and lenders - Internet services - auto-related services and transactions - imposter scams - telephone and mobile services - advance-fee loans and credit protection/repair. The FTC's report also included complaint rates by state. Virginia ranked fifth in general fraud complaints -- not including complaints about identity theft -- with 527 complaints per every 100,000 citizens, or 42,165 total complaints in 2011. Of those, debt collection was the most common source of consumer problems in the state, accounting for 5,644 complaints, or 13 percent of the total. Virginia also counted 5,416 complaints about identity theft. The rest of the top 10 list in Virginia resembled the federal list but included two other complaint areas: credit cards; and foreign money offers and counterfeit check scams. The FTC compiles complaints in a secure online database called Consumer Sentinel, which is accessible to civil and criminal law enforcement agencies across the United States and in foreign countries. They use it to research cases, track targets and identify victims. Other state and federal agencies also contribute complaint information to Consumer Sentinel. Carolyn Shapiro, 757-446-2270, [email protected] ___ (c)2012 The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Va.) Visit The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Va.) at pilotonline.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |