British consumers last year lodged a complaint nearly every second about products and services.
In all, 38 million customer complaints were made in the course of 2013, according to the Ombudsman Services.
Most complaints concerned energy, retail and internet telecoms. Transport and travel followed on.
Despite the rise, Ombudsman Services also discovered that millions of people with legitimate complaints fail to act on an estimated 40 million problems. Many consumers told them they felt making a complaint was either ‘not worth the hassle’ or believed the companies would do anything about their complaint.
Ombudsman Services, free to consumers, helps resolve disputes between people with complaints and the energy, broadband, mobile telecoms and property sectors.
It reported that complaints only about energy had doubled in the last year. In December the 1,805 complaints represented a 106% rise over the previous December.
The survey also revealed that millions of disappointed consumers are increasingly taking to social media to air their grievance publicly and shame unresponsive providers.
Which? pointed to its free consumer rights website for people seeking advice
The Consumer Rights Bill, which is going through Parliament, will update various consumer laws and will introduce new rights for consumers and businesses, including a set 30-day time period to return faulty goods and get a full refund.
