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      AN INVESTIGATIVE NEWS SERIES
    ON THE STANDARDS AND PRACTICES   
    OF THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU
       
         START WITH TRUTH


  V 1.4  Aug 2010
LOS ANGELES BBB ON TRIAL
AUGUST 20, 2010
It's been a tough couple of week for the LA BBB.  For the second time this month, the LA BBB website was down for an extended period of time.  The screen shot below is becoming a familiar sight.  Makes publishing stories about them difficult as I won't publish without independent, third-party corroboration of my findings. 



Things are about to get much worse for the LA BBB.  Next week, another law suit will be filed against them. 

Additionally, we're starting to go through thousands of LA BBB records, originally to uncover more Goofy Grades like these two:
burke williams gets F from bbb


Doesn't seem like the LA BBB views healthcare in a very positive light.  But something struck us while going through these thousands of reliability reports: a huge percentage of the businesses listed on the LA BBB website have been out of business for years.  This implies two things:  first, the LA BBB is very sloppy, does not do due diligence and certainly does not monitor businesses it lists; and second, the number of businesses in the LA BBB data base add up to approximately 10% of all greater Los Angeles businesses--however, with many of the data base listings being for no longer in business companies, the true figure is considerably lower.  Once we've had a chance to go through all the reliability reports we have access to, we'll report on our findings.  Gut instinct says that at least twenty to thirty percent of the businesses listed by the LA BBB no longer exist.

Finally, there's going to be a major protest against the LA BBB early next week.  It is designed to help win the battle against the LA BBB, at least in the court of public opinion.  If you'd like to participate in this protest event email me at editor@bbbroundup.com and I'll hook you up.
Editor's note:  There is a need for a consumer advocacy group that the public can turn to, and it used to be that the Better Business Bureau fulfilled this role adequately.  No longer.  It is obvious the Better Business Bureau does not now, nor ever will have, the resources to fully investigate the four million businesses in their database, much less grade them with any sense of accuracy.  It's an impossible job, and to think otherwise is a mistake that the BBB should acknowledge so they can get back to their reason for existence--protecting the consumer.  There's an old saying, "who will watch the watchers" and it applies here as the BBB has set themselves up to be above the law.  We are simply here to help the Better Business Bureau do a better job so that they may properly serve the consumer, the business community and themselves.  If they refuse to reform, then they must bear the consequences.
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