Top 10 Ripoffs In Colorado

DENVER, CO -- It's National Consumer Protection Week, and Colorado has its share of fraudsters, crooks and scam artists. Colorado Attorney General Cynthia H. Coffman unveiled her list of the top ten types of consumer complaints filed in 2017.

The total number of complaints and inquiries in 2017 was 9,146. That was up about five percent over the 2016 total. But the number one complaint category remained the same: Debt collectors.

“My office is committed to protecting consumers from deceptive or predatory business practices and fraud, and it is particularly despicable when these scammers use threats to intimidate their victims,” said Coffman in a statement. “Our Consumer Protection Section continues to see an increase in debt collection complaints, including disputes about whether debt is owed and the amount of debt owed, as well as claims of harassment and other problematic conduct by debt collectors."

Coffman's office reviews "every complaint we receive," she said in a statement.

The top 10 types of complaints and inquiries received in 2017 are:

Type of Complaint or Inquiry Amount

1. Debt Collection Companies - 977

These include disputes about whether debt is owed and the amount of the debt owed, as well as claims of harassment and other problematic conduct by debt collectors.

2. Fraudulent or Unwanted Telephone Calls- 587

These include complaints about phony IRS tax collection scams, and other imposter scams, including tech support scams and phony debt collection scams.

3. Utility Complaints (cable, telcom and satellite) - 341

These include billing disputes, service or coverage issues, rate changes, and cancellation and termination issues.

4. Automobile Dealers, New and Used - 211

These include complaints that relate to misrepresentations about the condition of used cars, loss of trade-in vehicles that are sold by the dealer before financing is approved, warranty issues, title issues, and general advertising issues.

5. Contractors - 211

These include complaints about general home-repair, remodeling, and other general contractor complaints relating to service, workmanship, and billing.

6. Mortgage and Foreclosure Matters - 188

These involve loan modification and foreclosure issues, including complaints that lenders or servicers renege on modification offers, delay modification approval while initiating foreclosure, as well as some complaints involving short sales and other loss mitigation problems.

7. Internet Shopping – Personal Care Products - 122

These involve complaints relating to negative option billing disputes, service and delivery issues, along with cancellation and termination issues.

8. Schools – Academic College & Universities - 120

Most of these involve student complaints about for-profit colleges, including amount of tuition, loan repayment, and closure of colleges or programs.

9. Telephone (cell phones and equipment) - 109

These complaints include billing disputes, service or coverage issues, rate changes, and cancellation and termination issues and fees.

10. Fraudulent / Unwanted Email - 103

These complaints include unsolicited offers of sweepstakes, phishing attempts, and not being removed from email lists when they try to unsubscribe.

The Attorney General's office brought four consumer complaint cases in 2017.

• In a case against a family HVAC installation business, a 95-year-old woman was forced to evacuate her home because it filled with carbon monoxide after the failure of the furnace installed by Mile High Heating and Cooling/Pikes Peak Heating and Cooling, LLC.
• The AG's office joined a multi-state lawsuit to sue generic drug companies that were allegedly conspiring to drive up the price of geriatric generic medications.
• In El Paso County, the AG's office filed an injection to stop a pole barn construction company that allegedly bilked several customers of a total of $360,000.
• The Colorado AG's office also reached a multi-state settlement withThe Western Union Company for illegal fees tacked onto wire transfers of money.

To see more cases the AG's office has brought, see the comprehensive case list at StopFraudColorado.gov.

Where can you complain about a bad business practice?

StopFraudColorado.gov is a website for the Attorney General’s Office’s Consumer Protection Section that is designed to meet the demand for timely, credible information on scams, help victims, and encourage consumers to report fraud. It emphasizes consumer protection outreach and makes it easier for Coloradans to avoid becoming a victim of fraud, while streamlining the process for filing fraud reports. If you believe you have been defrauded or victimized by a Colorado business or nonprofit, file a report by visitingwww.stopfraudcolorado.gov or by calling 1-800-222-4444.

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