BBB Ratings for Credit Repair Companies

The Better Business Bureau can be a good resource for checking out companies, getting a feel for how reputable they are, and seeing how they handle customer complaints. So, naturally, many people check with the BBB when researching credit repair companies, especially since there is so much talk about credit repair scams. But, it is when researching credit repair companies that the BBB can really let consumers down.

A couple of years ago, many of the local BBBs adopted a policy of automatically assigning an F rating to any company they classify as a credit repair company. Depending on where they were located, this meant that overnight, some credit repair companies that had an A rating and in some cases were even BBB Accredited saw their rating drop to an F. Regardless of the number of people their companies had helped, the number of complaints these companies had received, and how the complaints were handled, suddenly these credit repair companies looked like scams to anyone who checked out their BBB report.

For this reason, if you see a credit repair company with an F rating with the BBB, it does not always mean they are a bad company. You want to dig a little deeper to find out why the company was assigned that rating. When assigning an F rating, the BBB will usually provide reasons for the rating such as failure to respond to complaints or failure to resolve specific problems, both of which are understandable reasons for assigning an F rating. In the case of a credit repair company that has been assigned an F rating solely because they are in the credit repair industry, however, there will only be one reason and it will say something like "BBB concerns with the industry in which this business operates".

If you find a company that doesn't have any unresolved complaints and is still given an F rating because of the industry it operates in, then keep in mind that the company would probably have an F rating no matter how good of a credit repair company they are. And if you want to confirm that the company has an F rating because it is a credit repair company, check out any other credit repair companies within that same BBB's jurisdiction. If they all have F ratings, you can be reasonably sure that the BBB is responsible for the poor ratings, and not the behavior of the companies.

Of course if you find a credit repair company with a good BBB rating, that is always a good sign. Not all BBBs automatically fail all credit repair companies and some still offer the BBB Accredited status. But just keep in mind when comparing credit repair companies that a company with a good BBB rating is not necessarily better than one with a poor rating. It may be a case where the difference in ratings are a function of the different BBB ranking guidelines and not a true comparison of the individual credit repair companies.

Comments

I have been looking for a credit repair company to help me improve my credit score. I decided to go with DSI. I went on their website and called the phone number where it stated "call 24 hours a day 7 days a week". I got a message that said they are closed, and to call back during normal business hours. So much for DSI - visitor

It is always good to do research on a company before using them. There is one company that major fortune 500 companies and major universities use and that is CRE Credit Services. Log on to www.CRECreditServices.com - visitor

BBB has taken a biased opinion against the credit repair industry and they are not to be trusted when it comes to gauging a credit repair company at all.

The National Association of Credit Services Organizations, or NACSO is the trade association of the credit repair industry and if the company you are researching is a member then they have proven themselves to pitch their product in accordance with federal law as well as their pricing matrix and contractual obligations to the consumer. - visitor

THIS IS TRUE! ANSWER THIS BBB. HOW IS IT THAT A CREDIT REPAIR COMPANY CAN HAVE 100'S OF LAW SUITS AGAINST THEM FOR RIPPING OFF HARD WORKING AMERICANS AND YOU GIVE THEM A PERFECT, HIGH RATED SCORE. MAYBE THIS HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT! CERTAIN COMPANIES THAT WERE NOT MEMBERS OF THE BBB AND NOT COLLECTING DUES FROM THEM HAD THE LOWEST OF RATINGS, BUT WHEN THEY JOINED THE BBB, THERE SCORES AUTOMATICALLY SOARED TO THE TOP AND WAS CONSIDERED TO BE THE BEST OF THE BEST? MY OPINION IS: MAYBE THE BBB IS THE TRUE SCAMMER. I TRUSTED THEM AND ENDED UP LOSING 1867.43. THANKS FOR NOTHING BBB. - visitor

all credit repair companies are a scam - visitor

"all credit repair companies are a scam"? I personally know several people who would object vehemently to that statement since their credit scores are much better after using a credit repair company. These people's lives became much better because of the help they received. - visitor

All Credit repair companies are not a scam. You can repair your own credit just like you can cook your own dinner or fix your own car. But if you want it done right and proficiently, you take it to an expert. If your a Credit Repair company you need to contact the BBB and get your F rating resolved by verifying your bonding, license, compliance and all other necessary credentials. It is not hard and a must. My company The National Heavensent Company did this and is also accredited by the BBB. - johny182

so what co to repair credit is reasonable and get good results need help - visitor

Not all credit repair companies are scams and the BBB is great way to find the ones that do great work. - visitor

This is not true at all, the bbb has a grading system and if a company does not meet it criteria, it gets an F - visitor

Check out the BBB review for Beacon Credit, a Florida credit repair company (http://www.bbb.org/west-florida/business-reviews/credit-repair-services-advance-fee/beacon-credit-in-dunedin-fl-90011455). The BBB profile was created in 2005 and there have been zero complaints in the past three years, but the company still has an F rating. In the BBB's list of factors that lowered the company's rating, there is only one: "BBB concerns with the industry in which this business operates." - visitor

REALLY, Beacon does not have a rating and is not a member of the BBB:

http://www.bbb.org/west-florida/business-reviews/credit-repair-services-advance-fee/beacon-credit-in-dunedin-fl-90011455

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