HN Explorer

Ask HN: Do you care about grades from the Better Business Bureau?

2 points by jc_811 ↗ HN
From searching HN it seems this hasn't been discussed for some time.

- How much do you trust the Better Business Bureau?

- Do you think the grades are an accurate representation of a company?

- If a company has a very low score, do you automatically discredit them, or do you take it with a grain of salt?

- Do you hold their rating system in high regard?

5 comments

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gormz
do people check that still?
jc_811
I've had clients speak along the lines of "Well they have a low grade on the BBB, so I'm not sure if I want to use them..." Or something along those lines. So I was just curious if anyone else had similar experiences or thoughts on the BBB
gormz
I know there was a big thing in like 2010 that tried to discredit them. They were forcing people to pay for good ratings and giving lower ones to people who wouldn't. Honestly thought they died out after that.
protonimitate
I think the BBB used to have much better reputation for their business ratings.

In my (admittedly limited) experience, must complaints leveraged against a company through the BBB are exaggerated claims that would be better suited for a poo Yelp review.

The only time I personally check out a businesses BBB score is if I am currently having issues, and am trying to find out of it is a common issue with the company (which would mean it will likely be a reoccurring issue in the future) or if it is a one off issue.

But then again, I take all only based ratings/reviews with a metric ton of salt.

paulcole
> How much do you trust the Better Business Bureau?

Not at all.

> Do you think the grades are an accurate representation of a company?

I don't even know what grades they give out.

> If a company has a very low score, do you automatically discredit them, or do you take it with a grain of salt?

I've never looked at a BBB score.

> Do you hold their rating system in high regard?

Not at all.