Gone are the days of “unsatisfactory” ratings by the BBB — they’ve switched over to a letter grading system designed to provide consumers with “more detailed insight into a business’s track record.”

BBB says:

“Consumers want more than marketing spin or a few comments about a business posted on the Internet, and rightly so, because given tough economic conditions, they literally can’t afford to make bad buying decisions,” said Steve Cox, BBB spokesperson. “BBB’s improved reports provide detailed insight into a business’s track record and are based on our time-tested standards, in-depth research and the millions of consumer complaints filed with BBB.”

The BBB’s rating system takes 16 factors into account — considering a variety of information from the type of business to deceptive advertising issues and, of course, the speed at which the company resolves complaints.

Here are the factors for those of you who are curious:

The type of business and its business model
How long the business has been operating
Whether the business has appropriate competency licensing
Total volume of complaints filed against the business
The number of unanswered complaints
The number of unresolved complaints
The number of serious complaints
An overall complaint analysis
The number of complaints with delayed resolution
Government actions against the business
Any advertising issues found by BBB
The extent of background information available to BBB for evaluation
The extent to which BBB is able to develop a clear understanding of the business
Whether the business has honored any mediation/arbitration commitments
Whether the business has attained BBB Accredited Business status
Whether the business has had its BBB Accreditation revoked

BBB Changes Its Business Ratings to A+ Through F Letter-Grade Scale [BBB]

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.