REALSTORYALERT
United States of America#2Consumer Comment
Fri, December 07, 2012
You want the truth ???You may want to check THE WHOLE TRUTH ....there are always two sides to any story and unfortunately anyones bad expierience can affect the decision to do any business with any organization .THE REAL STORY ALERTs mission is to investigate these isolated incidents that involve bias opinion and or fabricted one sided stories particulary when the statements made are NOT FACTs but mere opinions .Misused words such as SCAM OR RIP-OFF are freely used in internet forums yet are seldom backed up by DOCUMENTION OR COURT FILINGS to back up the claim .Thus leaving the negative impact the misleading statements implied in place and keeping two otherwise compitent businesses in engaging in commerce /fair business practices.
This article is to expose a much larger story behind what has been named by some as one of the most perverse business practices to be exposed in american history .Please watch the following 20/20 national news cover story about the BBB and the severe allegations against themhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Yo8kfV9kONw .Furthermore before heeding any such advice particulary of bias opinion one should check into the whole truth behind the real motivation for attacks on small business repuations from larger corporations.In this particular incident the BBB has clearly out stepped their boundary .Under a related attack some larger whole sale auctions services are using their clout and advertising budget to control the media an attempt to assasinate the competition .This practice to is currently under investigation .Be cautious when reading an INDUSTRY NEWS PUBLICATIONS that clearly has an interest via large advertising dollars plastered on their web site of the comany under fires DIRECT COMPEDITOR .That should be a major red flag when considering the source.
Here are several national media videos ,quotes ,and stories to support the above story Cagle, the shop's owner, dismissed the complaints, saying some customers were using the BBB to try to "extort" money and services from her store. "Some people, you just cant make happy," Cagle said. She said she believes some customers "just out and out lie" to the BBB and says the complaints against her shop represent just a small fraction of her business.
http://stlouis.bbb.org/article/st-louis-county-bridal-shop-has-customers-singing-pre-wedding-bell-blues-12064we still do not have the highest score by the BBB. Unsure why, I spoke to a supervisor, Scott Thomas, who said that I needed to PAY for 'accreditation' in order to get the highest score! This feels like extortion to me.....paying to prevent harm to my company
http://www.ripoffreport.com/better-business-bureau/st-louis-better-busi/st-louis-better-business-bure-b628d.htmSt. Louis Better Business Bureau Scott Thomas, supervisor BBB only gives best company rating to those that pay them lots of money for "accreditation" st. louis, MissouriThe Trib did an expose on the high pressure sales pitch by the BBB, a year or two ago. Maybe they would reprint it? I also agree that the BBB seems to be a form of organized extortion. I have been contacted numerous times about becoming a member. Luckily the BBB has been located in St. Louis so I used that as an excuse. Every time I declined, I was told that becoming a member was the only way to make sure that my business would get a good rating.
lowell(anonymous) says...@BBB--I don't have knowledge to comment on the validity of the details on the employee hiring, the lawsuits, or the percentage of the grade given for accreditation, but from personal experience and the shared experiences of others I do know that BBB's business practices are, in many cases, borderline non-ethical. This seems ironic, to say the least, considering the BBB's ostensible purpose. As a person in management with a company with multiple branches in the area, I can assure that we will not pay "protection" money to anyone when we have spent years concerning ourselves with quality customer service. It is a pity that we and others that choose not to do so will then be held hostage by the BBB's rating system if a complaint is ever filed, regardless of how erroneous it may be, when an accredited member who has paid their "fee" will get to skate by regardless of their true service levelsYes, the Tribune did do an investigation. The BBB is a private business out to make a profit. It has nothing to do with helping the public. They have sales people that will try to sell memberships through telephone solicitation (although now with the do not call list, wonder if that will hamper some calls) and basically what is stated is that you won't have complaints against you if you pay the dues to join. (which according to their menu can get pricey) I know of people that have been threatened to have someone 'buy' their service. These are not reputable people and the public is being lead astray.http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2010/jun/08/better-business-bureau-to-open-local-office/?news *************************
http://www.trulia.com/blog/leanderrealty/2011/11/better_business_bureau_bbb_uses_phony_grading_system_to_grade_businesses
So the Better Business Bureau has nearly a HALF MILLION COMPLAINTS! These complaints range from bureaucratic nonsense to moral and criminal corruption. LOL! That's what Ripoff Report is saying...They are an extortionist organiztion. They specialize in fraudulently having business owners pay them or they receive a failing grade in return. Honestly, Ripoff Report is also an extortionist organization as well. The funny thing is they use the complaints against honest and hard working business owners as a powerful weapon to discredit businesses they don't like. Furthermore, the BBB will also grade the businesses they hate by giving them an "F" rating and will even go so far as placing bad press with the news channels to discredit those businesses.Still don't believe me? Check out the investigation of the crazy crap that the BBB is pulling according to a nationwide ABC News investigation. It is truly disturbing:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Yo8kfV9kONw wow wow wow wow http://www.trulia.com/blog/leanderrealty/2011/11/better_business_bureau_bbb_is_a_sham_with_406_732_complaints
http://www.meetup.com/realestate-520/messages/boards/thread/22539602
Auditors Final Comments:
It is a sad day in America when an organization such as the Better Business Bureau engages in such unconscionable, unethical and immoral conduct by holding ransom every single day the reputations of hard working business owners.
It is my personal belief that a FFF grade given to the BBB, for the purposes of this audit, is too kind and generous an action. In fact, I suggest that the BBB be criminally prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for engaging in extortion and using its grading system as a powerful and COMPLETELY PERVERTED weapon against honest businesses that the BBB completely dislikes.
Finally, the BBB completely and utterly has failed this audit and their officials need to be held accountable for engaging in such mass corruption on a scale never before witnessed by a consumer advocate agency in American History
http://www.trulia.com/blog/leanderrealty/2011/11/better_business_bureau_bbb_receives_fff_grade_fails_audithttp://www.trulia.com/blog/leanderrealty/2011/11/better_business_bureau_bbb_faces_nationwide_business_boycott(1) http://www.ripoffreport.com/bbb-better-business-bureau/better-business-bure/better-business-bureau-bbb-co-46g94.htm (2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=UT_BfidEBdM (3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=0w6Oick8x48 (4) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=lR38Qj5NLA8 (5) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=koIlecdtjcM
(6) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=GN4MKqDXGmY
(7) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=vgXLc1cGhGU (8) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=EKEMDzma1b4 http://www.trulia.com/blog/leanderrealty/2011/11/formal_warning_against_the_better_business_bureau_bbb_for_corruption_bad_business_ethics
http://www.ripoffreport.com/better-business-bureau/better-business-bure/better-business-bureau-or-buye-eq4fb.htmhttp://www.ripoffreport.com/pk-kriha/bbb-better-business-bureau/st-louis-park-minnesota-0e608.htmhttp://www.trulia.com/blog/leanderrealty/2011/12/better_business_bureau_bbb_complaint_mismanagement