Council of Better Business Bureaus Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc. CBBB 3d party objective review promised: Where is the

13th of Nov, 2011 by User628620

Shock, horror and dismay hit me on a relaxed weekend morning, as I was casually browsing Google for results listing my url/domain name I read "BBB® Non-Accredited F Rating F. On a scale of A+ to F" But these local BBB offices still have the power to abuse the small powerless business owner who is trying to make an honest day's lively-hood. They trump "truth in advertising" while trampling and misleading and waging a smear campaign against a small business's reputation, blatantly and without restraint to twist and distort the truth and they did not even bother to notify me The abuse and intimidation of small business owners by demanding payment, capitulation and no objective review of the systematic problems plaguing the system as a whole do not appear to have been addressed and certainly not resolved. There appears no one at the helm at the CBBB. It seems to have little control over the 100 plus regional chapters across Canada and the Continental USA , and these local people are the ones who took down my A rating do to a late payment and a denied request for 3d party arbitration. Now these intimidating collection folks who one day dropped a similarly jarring wake-up call I personally listed a complaint with the CBBB against my local bbb office and asked the CBBB for objective 3d party ARBITRATION but was denied by the legal office in DECEMBER (and never heard from them again). That there was a "violation" on my website (of my over 100 web pages) that I had no idea of. They lie and deceive the public, boldly, brazenly and in broad daylight to twist-the-truth and suggest on their website, that I was contacted "numerous times" by the CBBB (A total distortion of the truth. The CBBB denied my request for 3d party arbitration in December 2010 but _acknowledged that I have_ made changes to my website and pointed out 1 further change to make regarding my mention of my BBB accreditation (since I was not aware of it, they pointed it out in 12/10 And this change was made by me as requested- I am unsure of the date), and this F rating appeared to have been slapped on to the page with out any regard to the actual truth, with a callousness and disregard befitting a dictator who has utter disregard or accountability to anyone with an arrogant air of being above reproach and that they could do what ever they want with out any CBBB intervention, shame or consequence! This is what they seem to display, on the internet, during the age of social media, instant communication: They don't seem to get it. Do they really think that they could get away with such recklessness? Do they so believe in their ability to bully a small business owner into submission and public disgrace...? I contacted both the legal and media relations office multiple times from December 2010 through March with scores of ignored and un-answered phone calls and emails. The media person told me that there is "no designated individual at the cbbb that, I as a small business owner can turn to". When I followed up with an email the same night, I received an email that this person who was a pivotal complaint "resolution" specialist has left the CBBB. There was not a person who would talk to me when she left CBBB. Multiple phone calls were ignored until finally I was able to talk in March. I asked for an independent arbitration of a local BBB office, but after an hour long conversation, I did not feel confident that anyone had the authority or the willingness to step up to the plate and deliver on the councils promise at that point, I decided that I had higher priorities to deal with. To my complete shock, after calmly conducting a Google search for my company name: Glaring at me were the following shocking and devastating with-out even needing to enter the BBB's website it states my company grade All what most people would have likely read about my company was the F grade: I assume that most people who saw that just turned away from doing business with an entity rated F, with an impression that this company is absolutely horrible, and yet, I had over 20 positive reviews online, but what people get to see is the BBB's F To add insult to injury, the BBB's removal of my legitimate A- rating earned for "satisfactory customer service" during my paid membership period has vanished overnight, giving unsuspecting reviewers the impression that my company and me are trying to deceive the public: The A rating with accreditation was removed and with out a follow up from the BCCC Legal office, advising me of further changes to make (the final time I heard from them was on approximately December 12 or 13th 2010). But on April 11th the BBB alledges that I discovered that the BBB gave me a F grade for no other reason than a "copy right violation as of April 2011. They also listed a second "offense" 1 unresolved customer complaint in the past 12 months (but if you look at the site it looks like there were 3 (but if anyone ever bothers to look lower down they will discover that 2 complaints were "resolved" (while I was a paying member) (I am getting tired now, at 5:30 am, sitting here since before midnight. I hope that what comes next makes sense and meshes well, as I am too tired now, to re-read what I wrote below-earlier this evening) (After 3 months with out any contact from the CBBB's legal office and with out ever bothering to let me know that there was still a "violation on my site" plus they cited me publicly for the alleged). Do you see how twisted this national BBB system is: At the same time that I was denied 3d party arbitration they had the audacity to demand that I attend mediation for a customer of mine who had a baseless claim. -The very same office that I lodged a complaint against with the CBBB and the CBBB law office told me that there is no 3 party for me to seek arbitration from, has provided misleading and deceptive "facts" about my business, and these corrupt and twisted people will now demand that I sit in arbitration facilitated by them. This is ludicrous beyond belief Also, the question of the legitimacy and credibility has not been addressed: You also didn't tell me that your bbb has already issued 247express an F rating from as early April for a non-consumer related 'logo violation' issues which I have been attempting to resolve through a 3d party mediators through the CBBB while your local office refused to reffer this to the CBBB for impartial resolution which I should have been entitled to! Do you know that the 'reason' given publicly on your BBB's site about 247 being contacted by the CBBB numerous times regarding my site is also very misleading especially given the fact that they acknowledged that I have removed "violations" and I then followed through with the additional request that they made of me, and after that I have continued to communicate with CBBB seeking an impartial 3d party arbitration through their office, an option that no one suggested that is even feasible. Were you aware that your BBB's Letter Grading Program which is biased in favor of paying members is known to be a serious conflict of interest issue for your bbb. You can check the wikipedia under BBB. The CBBB continues to stand by silently as it witnesses individual regional BBB offices continue to deny business owners a right for objective review of their complaints The BBB continues to mislead the public about the grade rating system: Despite the well publicized admonition by the Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal last November that the "BBB ratings should be based exclusively on performance, honesty and responsiveness..." The CBBB stands idle as business continue to get F grades for issues totally unrelated to customer service! At the very same time that the BBB stands as the "guardian" of business accountability, transparency, and "truth in advertising" the BBB continues to mislead the public about the very serious issues it has with the very slogan that they advocate" "Start With Trust" The CBBB has promised in a letter published on Nov 19th, 2010 to make serious changes in the way they handle complaints against individual/regional/ local BBB franchises including the following 3 mentioned here (numbers are not part of the quotation): 1. "Immediately, BBB ...streamlined process for receiving complaints on BBB sales practices and will implement procedures for investigating each complaint". 2. "BBB will conduct a review of its process for accrediting businesses, and as soon as possible, make changes that will apply system-wide." 3. "BBB will engage an independent third party to assist us in our review process"

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