Received a call from 866-907-1001. I did not answer, but the gentleman left a message and said he was from the Better Business Bureau at ext 423, and returning my call. I have NEVER called them, so I am going to assume this is some kind of scam.

The number of scams going through telephones is huge.  The amount of money lost by honest people is huge.  No matter who is calling say "NO".  That is how the end of annoying phone calls will happen.  I cannot conduct business with these annoying phone calls interrupting me.  Please say "NO" to anything.  You will never need anything they are offering!  

Got a voicemail from a Douglas Frantz claiming to be from the BBB (866) 907-1001 ext. 418, saying he must ONLY speak with the business owner and that he would only be in until 4 pm today.  My caller ID listed the caller as "unavailable" -- which tells you a lot. These are telemarketers trying to get money out of legitimate businesses for absolutely no return on that investment.  I didn't return the call, and I suggest others who get similar calls do the same.  

Just got same message from the same person. Thanks to you we know that this is not important. Thank you

This is a legitimate telephone number.  A lady just called me from this number so I called the bbb in nyc and long island directly  and they verified that this is a legitimate phone number and one of their offices.  No need to worry.  1(866) 907-1001 is a legitimate telephone number.  you may verified this phone number by going to the better business bureau's website: http://www.newyork.bbb.org/  or call their new york telephone number  1 (516) 420-0500 or 1(212) 533-6200.

Saying she was calling from the Better Business Bureau, a woman called and requested I return her call by 4:00 PM. She gave no reason for the call. Her accent and the fact that I had recently hung on another strange business call convinced me to say something here.

I got a call from this phone number - 866-907-1001.  The lady said her name was Marilyn Bieber and she was with the Greater MD Better Business Bureau.  She wanted to speak to the owner and would not leave a message or tell  me what her call was about.  The owner called the Greater MD Better Business Bureau, and asked for her and they said they didn't have anyone by that name working for them.  I looked up her number and found her extension.  Turns out that she is a telemarketer for a company hired by BBB to solicit new members.  I called her and told her (per my boss) "Unless she is calling about a complaint from the BBB, the owner doesn't want to talk to her."  We have an A+ business rating and don't need to pay extortion fees to a telemarketer. Case Closed.

Who do you call to report the Better Business Bureau for awful business practices.  Rude and obnoxious message that sounds important and then no one ever answers number.  Glad to see from this website that it is a sales call.  The BBB has no more credibility with me now that I see how they do business.

Gaby Macaluso
daaalin@yahoo.com

Received the same call today.  Thanks for all the input, I wont be returning the call.  Someone should really report these clowns to the BBB... :-)

1-866-907-1001
1st i would like to say thank you for this website, 2nd i saved the voice mail for future problems (just in case)  3rd if someone calls but doesn't leave a detail message then its usually some one for advertising or other stuff but in this case BBB should leave a detail message if they want a business like mine on there website or yours, looks like to me BBB is not doing a good job to our standards and people who look us up may be like well i looked you up on BBB and you weren't there .. i say thats fine cause BBB over the years are losing there touch and the way they handle things.

I wanted to thank everyone for their time for putting up what this number is all about. I have saved my bosses time in calling the sales rep. You are right, at first I was thinking they were calling about a customer complaint. The woman who called us was Elizabeth Holland ext. 401. Thanks again for helping me look good to the boss and saving him time.

I agree that I get paid good money to screen calls for the owners of my company. They also like me to read over things and talk to people to I may give them the brief of what someone wants, then they decide if it is worth their time. Thank you for sharing.

No business owner I have ever worked for in 35+ years will return a call without knowing what the call is about.  As the person answering the phone, part of my job is to "sort through" the junk calls and solicitations that don't pertain to our company so as not to waste the business owner's time. Any legitimate caller is happy to give me a brief description of what they are calling about.  With just a name and call back number, they will not be getting a call back, and I tell callers that.  Additionally, even if this really is the BBB, being an accredited member isn't necessary for many types of businesses.  Perhaps if you are in a service business (handyman, plumber, etc.) it may help to have a good BBB rating, but that is not the case with many businesses (including ours).

I used to work there.  Employees or ex coworkers do not have the best tactics sometimes and neither do business owners.  I agree that no one should ever be scared, but if you do not want the invite to be a part of the BBB then do not call back.  The salaries are not high when one is the President of a local BBB.  It is a not for profit, so please it is public record.  I mean I guess the business owners do not understand that even a not for profit organization needs to create revenue in order to offer its services.  Do you people hae any idea of what the BBB does in your community as well as others around the country?  The BBB works with the Attorney General in every state, so by all means call them.  This 866 number is the money aspect of the BBB.  Supporting the BBB is not a negative.  The BBB plays a very important role in the business community. P.S. I did say I no longer work for the company.  Also I have had to deny places that I have called because I overlooked their either not par rating or I have missed an unresolved complaint.  Anytime I have issed these items in my initial call, I do have to call a company back and tell them we will give them a full refund, and that their company does not qualify for accreditation.  
I don't eve know why I'm on this site.

Thanks everyone.  I got a call from 805-637-7243 cell in Santa Barbara - David Bailey from the "BBB" told be to call back at 866-907-1001 ext 478 - no info why, rude tone.  Had me worried until I read this site.
Thank you.

DONT WASTE YOUR TIME CALLING BACK

Imagine getting a rude call from your local Better Business Bureau with an urgent message.
You prioritize that callback because of the message and tone.
You make a client wait, a customer wait or a patient wait -so you can respond to a bush league tactic fronted as a call from the better business bureau for a solicitation.
Aleisha Emerson at 866-907-1001 ext. 413 you get a failing grade on your manners when leaving a message.  

When you call back the message even says the better buiness bureau - but it's not.
This is a scam that is devoid of business ethics and consideration of a person's time when it comes to the prospect of getting a sucker on the line and hopefully making a sale.

Call your LOCAL BBB if you want to be affiliated with them - they will be in your same State and they will most certailny know your business name.

We received a phone call today from  866-907-1001 from a woman who stated she from the BBB and needed to speak with the owner right away.,  This is not the first time they have tried to get money out of us,  they have tried twice before with threatening scare tactics of hurting our reputation.  As a company being in business for over 30 years we do not need the BBB to say we are a good business.  We have earned it on our own.
I have since put a block on this number and called the atty general.

Thank You for this site I see the BBB has been at this for years of leaving a message for business owners. It is obvious the BBB does not have anyone's best interest with this kind of business tatic.
Never been a member and after 12 years have had one complaint and it was years ago and it is still there.
Not a member and never will be. 8669071001 calls me about twice a week.

I got home tonight, had one of these calls. It was past business hours, so I figured that I would call back in the morning.  The lady leaving the message sounded a bit ominous, didn't leave any details except that she was from the BBB, the phone number and the extension 117,  and said that she needed to speak with the business owner. I first checked the web site of my state BBB, and saw that the number she left didn't didn't match. So I googled 866-907-1001, and sure enough, I found this website with others in the same boat. I don't intend to call her back. If the BBB wants me to register, they'll at least have to mail me something that I can read and study. I'm not going to sign up after being pressured during a phone call.

They called and left a message for the owner.  Well, I am the office manager, and part of my job is to screen calls such as these.  If we wanted this, we will call you, you don't need to solicit us.  My employers pay me good money to answer these calls and not disturb them.  This is not an abuse of power.  You have to get through me to get to them.  Case Closed

It sounds like my story is very similar to everyone else's experiences. My company got a call from Mitch Roberts at the Better Business Bureau pretty much demanding that the owner call him back at 866-907-1001 x105. He would not say what the call was about, he was very curt and abrupt and he wouldn't speak with anyone but the business owner. Of course we were initially alarmed and thought that something was seriously wrong. After looking his phone number up on the internet, I found this site and many others which explained that this was nothing more than a sales tactic for him to speak directly with the owner just to pitch a BBB membership. (Mitch doesn't really realize how lucky he was NOT to speak to the owner as the owner is not all that pleasant with phone solicitors.) He's called back a few times but now that the whole office is aware of how the BBB operates we simply put him on hold and wait for him to hang up. While what they're doing is technically legitimate, I take issue with their methods. By using fear and intimidation they're certainly doing everything possible to erode their reputation. They used to be a respectable and worthwhile organization and it's a shame how they're losing what little credibility they have left by being a bunch of bullies just to sell memberships. I now trust them far less than I did before and also question the usefulness of any of their services.

I received this call as well as a VM and returned the call.  As any business owner you want to know why the BBB is calling you.  After a 25 minute conversation about becoming "accredited" he asked for payment.  I said I would like something faxed/emailed over to me so I could look it over before agreeing to anything.  He then asked for a verbal acceptance.  I said again that I am not going to agree to anything from a phone solicitation without having something credible to review.  

He then spouted off numerous names and phone numbers I could contact while he held on proving he was legitimate.  The entire sales tactic was ridulcous to me.  He was more of a bully then an salesman and used numerous scare tactics to try and obtain my credit card.  

He stated my fax would be "right over" with my information.  That was 45 minutes ago and I still have not received a thing from them.  

There is no reason to be "accredited" by the BBB.  They use to be something good, now they have gotten into the game of strictly making money and accrediting anyone who will pay them.

The phone number 866-907-1001 is the business relations department of the better business bureau. Please feel free to call your local better business bureau ( their number is in the white pages) to verify that this information is accurate.

Receivd message from women indicating she was from BBB. She told me to call this number.

I received this call today and the woman caller was adamant that she only speak with the business owner.  I got the co-owner and the caller told her the same thing - must be THE business owner only.  I asked what BBB she is calling from and she told me Oklahoma City.  So I called them to verify.  They agreed they only have a 3-person office and have hired a telemarketing agency to get new members for them, using the 866 phone #. There is no need to call this number back unless you want to be an accredited business member of the BBB.

I received a message from the 1-866-677-1001 x-103. She stated her name was Jennie Bass and she was from the BBB. I am already a memeber with the BBB in NY, NJ, and CT. I did not return the call. If I do have a call about a customer who contacted the BBB, It is always a local number and comes up as BBB on the call id.

They were very friendly and had me accreditted in less than 20 mins i was astounded to how fast they work

I HAVE PERSONALLY CONFIRMED THAT 866-907-1001 IS THE BUSINESS RELATIONS DEPARTMENT OF THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU. IT IS A FACT. APPARENTLY THEY DO NOT LEAVE THE REASON FOR THE CALL W/ THE RECEPTIONIST B/C IT IS BUREAU POLICY TO SPEAK ONLY W/ THE OWNER. OFFICE MANAGERS AND RECEPTIONISTS ABUSE THEIR POWERS AND WILL REFUSE THE INVITATION FOR ACCREDITATION W/OUT EVEN NOTIFYING THE OWNER. THE BBB HAS THEIR REASONS FOR EVERYTHING, BUT I AM NOW AN ACCREDITED MEMBER!! TO THOSE WHO WERE SCEPTICAL, TOO BAD!! YOU LOST OUT ON YOUR CHANCE TO DO THE ABSOLUTE BEST THING YOU COULD HAVE EVER DONE FOR YOUR BUSINESS!! IMAGE REALLY IS EVERYTHING AND WHAT BETTER IMAGE TO HAVE THAN BEING AN ACCREDITED MEMBER OF THE BBB?

So long as a business complies with state mandates its not necessary to be *accredited* by the better Business. This Bureau is to be NON BIAS in both its public response and NOT favoring a business simply because they paid extra for the *Accredited* License fee. If you are a business owner and have maintained good standings in the community and the clients, its NOT a necessary invest to make. If you have a lesser image and want to pay extra to follow some program rules to be accredited then consider it a learning lesson. Money in- money out.