- You earn most statuses through your own behavior. Only Resolved and Answered depend partly on the consumer.
- Answered is not a failure. It means you addressed the issues and the consumer did not confirm.
- Unresolved and Unanswered are the two statuses with their own lines on BBB's published scale, at 30 to 0 and 40 to 0 points.
- Unpursuable is almost always a profile contact problem, and it is fixable before it happens.
- Statuses are assigned when a complaint closes, generally about 30 calendar days after filing.
On this page
The Five Statuses at a Glance
A BBB complaint status describes how a closed complaint ended, and there are exactly five.
BBB publishes the statuses on its complaint process page. A closing status is the label BBB gives a complaint when it closes, and it records what the business did and whether the consumer confirmed satisfaction. The table below adds what you control, because that is what owners really want to know.
| Status | BBB's definition | Who decides it | Related line on BBB's published scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resolved | The complainant confirmed the issue was resolved to their satisfaction | The consumer, after your effort | No separate line published |
| Answered | The business addressed the issues but the consumer did not accept the response or did not tell BBB they were satisfied | Mostly you, then the consumer's silence or disagreement | No separate line published |
| Unresolved | The business responded but did not make a good-faith effort to resolve the dispute | BBB's reading of your response | Unresolved complaints, 30 to 0 points |
| Unanswered | The business did not respond | You | Unanswered complaints, 40 to 0 points |
| Unpursuable | BBB could not locate the business | Your profile contact details | No separate line published |
A word of care on the last column. BBB's rating overview lists unanswered and unresolved complaints as scored elements but does not define those terms or publish how a status converts into points. The names match the statuses, and that is a reasonable reading, but we never claim an exact point effect. For the full scale, see how BBB ratings work.
You Only See Statuses on Closed Complaints
BBB reports closed complaints, so a status appears only after the case ends, generally about 30 calendar days after filing.
BBB says complaint history considers closed complaints tied to marketplace activity, and one local BBB page we reviewed says BBB reports only closed cases. So while a complaint is open, the practical goal is to get it closed in the best available way. For the whole path from filing to closing, see what happens when a complaint is filed, and use the deadline calculator for your dates.
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The Five Statuses, One by One
Each status has a trigger, a business behavior behind it and a realistic way to move toward a better one.
Resolved
A Resolved complaint is one where the consumer verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction. This is the best closing and it is the consumer's call. Your job is to make the resolution real and specific, and then make sure BBB hears about it. BBB asks businesses to report any resolution they reach directly with the consumer, and encourages consumers to report it too.
One local BBB page says the consumer has 30 days to say whether the issue is resolved, and that a complaint is closed as assumed resolved if the consumer does not reply. The national page does the opposite: if the consumer does not tell BBB they are satisfied, the complaint is Answered. We cannot reconcile those, so do not assume silence will help you. Ask your local BBB how it closes the case when a consumer goes quiet.
Answered
An Answered complaint is one where the business addressed the issues, but the consumer either did not accept the response or did not tell BBB they were satisfied. It has two paths, and they feel very different. In one, the consumer disagrees. In the other, the consumer simply never replies.
One local BBB page we reviewed also describes a variant called Assumed Answered, applied when the consumer does not reply in time. It is not on the national list of five, which is another reason to ask your local BBB how it labels a quiet consumer.
Answered is not a mark against a good-faith business. It is the honest result of a real response that the consumer left open. You can improve your odds of Resolved by doing the work and following up. You can politely tell the customer that BBB asks consumers to confirm when they are satisfied. Never offer a reward for confirming and never pressure anyone. That would break the rules this site follows and would be a bad idea on any platform.
Unresolved
An Unresolved complaint is one where the business responded but failed to make a good-faith effort to resolve the dispute. The word that matters is effort. The status is about what the response did, not about whether the customer is happy.
Responses that tend to invite it are the ones that argue with the customer, blame the customer, ignore the specific allegation or refuse any next step. A response that states facts, takes ownership of what is yours and offers a specific remedy shows effort even if the customer still declines. This is the status most owners can avoid entirely by rewriting one draft.
Unanswered
An Unanswered complaint is one where the business did not respond. BBB sends a follow-up letter first, so the status usually means the business missed or ignored the notice and the follow-up. BBB says failure to respond may negatively affect the rating of any business. We cover the consequences in detail in what happens if you do not respond.
Unpursuable
An Unpursuable complaint is one where BBB cannot locate the business. It is the most avoidable status on the list. Keep the email, phone and address on your BBB profile current, and use a mailbox that more than one person reads. In our work since 2013, owners often find old contact details are the only reason they ever hear about a complaint late.
Resolved Versus Answered: The Two Everyone Confuses
The difference between Resolved and Answered is the consumer's confirmation, not the quality of your response.
| Question | Resolved | Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Did the business address the issues? | Yes | Yes |
| Did the consumer confirm satisfaction to BBB? | Yes | No, either did not accept or did not say |
| Is the business at fault? | Not implied | Not implied |
| Can the business influence it? | Yes, by delivering and reporting a real fix | Partly, by following up in good faith |
| Is there a separate published scale line? | No | No |
The takeaway is simple. If you did the work and the customer will not confirm, you still did the right thing. If you did not do the work, you moved toward Unresolved. The statuses reward effort first and confirmation second.
Which Status Will Mine Get? Common Situations
Most real situations map cleanly to a status once you ask two questions: did you respond, and did the consumer confirm.
| What happened | Likely status | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You responded, fixed the issue and the customer confirmed to BBB | Resolved | The consumer verified satisfaction |
| You responded with a fair offer and the customer never replied | Answered | The business addressed the issues and the consumer did not tell BBB |
| You responded with a fair offer and the customer refused it | Answered | The consumer did not accept the response |
| You responded by arguing and refused any remedy | Unresolved | No good-faith effort to resolve |
| You never responded to the notice or the follow-up | Unanswered | The business did not respond |
| The notice went to an address BBB could not use and BBB could not find you | Unpursuable | BBB could not locate the business |
These are the likely readings under BBB's published definitions. BBB closes every complaint, so the final status is BBB's call. For example, a hypothetical bakery that offers a replacement cake within two days and keeps the promise is in a strong position for Resolved or Answered. A hypothetical bakery that replies, we do not owe you anything, is courting Unresolved.
Can a Status Change Later?
BBB's national complaint page does not describe a way to change a status, and local practice varies.
The national page says submitted complaints cannot be deleted, and says the consumer can add or edit information through their BBB account. One local BBB page says late replies from consumers and companies are accepted, even after a case closes. Another local BBB page says it typically does not reopen a closed complaint, though it may consider reopening if a consumer did not receive a promised resolution. We could not load BBB's help center pages, so we cannot cite a published business-side reopening process.
Our advice is to aim for the right status the first time. If you are already past it, write to your local BBB with the facts and ask what is possible. Nobody can promise a change, and anyone who does is selling something. Our complaint resolution service works inside the published process, and a free audit tells you what is realistic.
What You Can and Cannot Do
You control your response and its quality, and BBB and the consumer control the rest.
What you can do
- Respond inside the window
- Offer a specific, honest resolution
- Report resolutions you reach directly
- Keep profile contacts current
- Follow up with the customer in good faith
What you cannot do
- Choose the status BBB assigns
- Make a customer confirm satisfaction
- Delete a complaint that BBB handles
- Buy a better status with accreditation dues
- Change a status by asking on a schedule of your own
BBB's FAQ is explicit that accreditation dues do not buy a rating and do not remove a complaint. See why complaints you can remove are limited for what BBB's rules do allow.
We are not affiliated with the BBB. We cannot assign or change a status, force a consumer to confirm satisfaction or delete a genuine complaint. We can help you respond in a way that gives the complaint its best realistic closing. Before work starts we agree the result in writing, and you pay when it is delivered.
Anthony Will
Founder and CEO, Reputation Resolutions
Anthony Will founded Reputation Resolutions and has worked in online reputation management since 2013. Reputation Resolutions is BBB Accredited with an A+ rating and is a Google Partner. Business Rating Fix is its Better Business Bureau rating division.
- In online reputation management since 2013
- Reputation Resolutions: BBB Accredited, A+ rated
- Google Partner
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Fact-checked against bbb.org · Updated November 2026
