Americans Love to Complain About These 10 Companies

The nation’s three biggest credit-reporting companies should not expect many warm-and-fuzzy Christmas cards from American consumers later this year.

The three august institutions — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — are among the most complained-about companies in the nation, according to a recent analysis of data from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

A steady stream of grousing about the credit-reporting companies is among a record 257,000 consumer complaints published by the CFPB in 2018, a new report by U.S. PIRG Education Fund finds.

The three big credit-reporting companies have also received the most complaints overall since the CFPB established its Consumer Complaint Database in late 2011.

Nearly half of the complaints in the database were filed against just 10 companies. They are:

1. Equifax
2. Experian
3. TransUnion
4. Bank of America
5. Wells Fargo
6. JPMorgan Chase
7. Citibank
8. Capital One
9. Navient Solutions (student loan servicer)
10. Ocwen Loan Servicing (mortgage servicer)

U.S. PIRG notes that credit-reporting complaints jumped after the well-publicized 2017 Equifax data breach, up from 23% of total complaints in 2016 to 43% in 2018.

However, it also points out that the big three credit-reporting companies have been the most complained-about companies for four consecutive years — a period which stretches back to before the Equifax breach.

On a brighter note, a robust 97% of 2018 consumer complaints received a timely response, with more than 223,000 complaints resulting in “relief for consumers.” That includes more than 75,000 people who got money back from the companies they complained about.

U.S. PIRG attributes this success “precisely” to complaints being made public.

Since the CFPB began tracking consumer complaints in December 2011, nearly 1.2 million have been published.

Turning the tables on companies you despise

If a company makes your blood boil, the natural reaction is to stay as far away from it as possible. But that can be a costly mistake.

As we have noted, sometimes the best way to make peace with a company you dislike is to try to profit from it:

“Rather than resign yourself to simply sending money to companies you don’t particularly like, turn the tables and let your least-favorite corporations make you some cash.”

For more, check out “Why You Should Invest in Companies You Hate.”

Which companies do you particularly dislike, and why? Share your list in comments below or on our Facebook page.