- Nothing legal happens. BBB has no regulatory power. The cost is to your public profile and rating.
- A follow-up letter goes out first, so silence usually gets one more chance to be broken.
- Unanswered is the status BBB uses for no response, and its published scale gives it one of the two widest positive ranges.
- Non-accredited businesses have not committed to respond, but BBB says non-response can hurt any business's rating.
- A late response is usually better than none, so answer even if you are past the window.
On this page
The Short Answer: Silence Has a Price, Just Not a Legal One
Ignoring a BBB complaint triggers a follow-up, then an Unanswered closing, and the cost lands on your profile and your rating rather than in a courtroom.
BBB's complaint process is clear on the sequence. It forwards the complaint, asks for a response within 10 to 15 calendar days of filing, and sends a follow-up letter if it hears nothing. It notifies the consumer that no response was received, and complaints are generally closed about 30 calendar days after filing. If you want the full path from filing to closing, start with what happens when a complaint is filed.
| Step | What happens when you stay silent | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Day 0 to 2 | BBB forwards an exact copy of the complaint | BBB complaint process |
| Days 10 to 15 | The response window passes with nothing from you | BBB complaint process |
| Follow-up | BBB sends the business a follow-up letter | BBB complaint process |
| Consumer notice | The consumer is told no response was received | BBB complaint process |
| About day 30 | The complaint is generally closed as Unanswered | BBB complaint process |
| Next three years | The complaint appears on your profile for three years from filing | BBB complaint process |
Notice what is missing from that list. There is no fine, no court date and no enforcement action. BBB's FAQ says it cannot force a business to act and has no legal or policing authority. That is exactly why many owners decide to ignore complaints, and exactly why it is a mistake. The damage is done through the profile that every future customer reads.
The Real Consequences, Ranked by How Often They Matter
Silence costs you in three places: the closing status, the rating, and, for accredited businesses, the accreditation itself.
| Consequence | What BBB publishes | Who it affects |
|---|---|---|
| An Unanswered closing status | Unanswered means the business failed to respond to the dispute | Every business |
| Rating risk | BBB says failure to respond may negatively affect the rating of any business | Every business |
| A published points range | The scale lists unanswered complaints at 40 to 0 points | Every business, scored on closed complaints |
| Accreditation risk | Responsiveness is central to the accreditation standards. A local BBB page says it can terminate accreditation for a business that fails to be responsive | Accredited businesses |
| Public visibility | The complaint appears on the profile for three years from filing | Every business |
Be careful with the points. BBB's rating overview publishes ranges for unanswered complaints, unresolved complaints and delayed resolution, and it does not publish how a particular complaint converts into points. So we never say an Unanswered complaint costs a set number of points. We say what BBB says: the range runs from 40 to 0, it is one of the two widest positive ranges on the scale, and the rating can suffer.
A related line matters too. The FAQ says a business may receive a lower grade if it refuses to provide information BBB requests. Non-cooperation in general, not just on one complaint, can become a rating problem.
Want a Specialist to Look at Your BBB Profile?
We will check every published rating element on your file and tell you exactly what is costing you points. Free, and honest about what can and cannot change.
Myths That Keep Owners Silent
Most reasons owners give for ignoring a complaint fail against what BBB actually publishes.
| What owners tell themselves | What BBB publishes | Why it fails |
|---|---|---|
| BBB cannot fine me, so it does not matter | BBB has no regulatory power | The harm is reputational, and it shows on a public profile for three years |
| I am not accredited, so I do not have to answer | Non-accredited businesses have not made a commitment to respond, but non-response may hurt any business's rating | Optional is not the same as free |
| The complaint is false | BBB handles marketplace complaints and lists types it does not handle | A false claim is best answered with documents, not silence |
| It will disappear if I wait | Complaints appear for three years from filing and cannot be deleted by the consumer | Waiting extends the exposure, not the other way around |
| Responding admits fault | BBB closes as Answered when the business addressed the issues | A factual response is not a confession |
The last row deserves a second look. A good response states facts and offers a next step. It does not apologize for things that did not happen. Our response playbook shows the structure, and the templates include one for complaints from non-customers.
Accredited and Non-Accredited Businesses Face Different Stakes
Accredited businesses have committed to respond, while non-accredited businesses have not, but both can see the rating suffer.
BBB's complaint page states: unlike BBB Accredited Businesses, non-accredited businesses have not made a commitment to respond to BBB complaints. It also says responding is the right thing to do either way. One of the eight published Standards for Trust is Be responsive, so a pattern of silence can put an accreditation at risk.
| Accredited business | Non-accredited business | |
|---|---|---|
| Commitment to respond | Yes, as part of accreditation | No, but BBB encourages it |
| Rating effect of silence | May be negative, per BBB | May be negative, per BBB |
| Accreditation effect | Can be put at risk | Not applicable |
| Our advice | Respond, always | Respond, always |
If you are weighing the program itself, see whether accreditation is worth it. Silence on complaints is one way owners lose the benefit they paid for.
A Worked Example: Three Complaints, Two Approaches
The same three complaints produce very different profiles depending on whether the owner answers.
For example, a hypothetical moving company, Lakeview Movers, receives three complaints in one quarter. The owner reads two, gets busy, and never answers any of them.
Now picture the other version. The same owner answers all three inside the window. One customer confirms the issue is fixed and the complaint closes Resolved. One customer never replies, and it closes Answered. One customer is unreasonable and remains unhappy, and it also closes Answered, because the business addressed the issues.
| Outcome | Silent owner | Responsive owner |
|---|---|---|
| Closing statuses | Three Unanswered | One Resolved, two Answered |
| What a reader sees | Three complaints with no business reply | Three complaints with a visible, professional reply |
| Rating exposure | Three complaints in the unanswered range | Complaints answered, with good-faith effort on record |
| Chance to fix it later | Harder, the clock ran out | Open, because the work is already documented |
We are not promising a grade. BBB does not publish a formula. We are showing that the second owner has done everything the published scale rewards, and the first has done the opposite.
If You Already Missed the Deadline
Respond now, because a late response is usually better than no response.
- Find the filing date and count the days, so you know exactly how late you are.
- Check the complaint status in your BBB business account.
- Write a complete response with facts, documents and a specific resolution.
- If the complaint is still open, submit it at once.
- If it has closed, send the response anyway and contact your local BBB, explaining honestly why the original notice was missed.
A local BBB page we reviewed says late replies from consumers and companies are accepted, even after a case closes. That is one local BBB, not a national rule, and the same page says closed complaints are not routinely changed. A different 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. The honest summary is that your local BBB decides, and nobody can promise a status change.
We could not load BBB's help center pages while researching, so we cannot cite a published reopening process for businesses. Ask your local BBB directly, in writing, and keep a copy.
If You Never Saw the Notice
A missed notice is often a contact details problem, and you can fix it today even if you cannot fix the past.
- Log in to your BBB business account and review every contact field.
- Update the email to an address a person monitors, ideally a shared mailbox.
- Add a phone number that reaches someone who knows to flag BBB calls.
- Check spam folders for old BBB messages.
- Review the complaints section for any other unanswered items.
- Write down when you first learned of each complaint, in case your local BBB asks.
If BBB could not locate your business at all, the complaint may close as Unpursuable instead. See the five complaint statuses explained for how that differs.
If You Believe the Complaint Is Not Valid
Respond anyway, and say clearly why you think it falls outside what BBB handles or why the allegations are inaccurate.
Some complaints do not belong in the process. BBB lists types it does not handle, including anonymous complaints and complaints from people with no marketplace relationship with the business. See complaints the BBB does not handle for the full list. But BBB decides whether a complaint falls outside its process, and it cannot decide what it has not been told. Staying silent on a complaint you think is invalid just gives you an Unanswered one.
For the broader question, read can you remove a BBB complaint.
We are not affiliated with the BBB. We cannot reopen a closed complaint, change an Unanswered status or promise a rating. We can read your file, tell you what is realistic and work the case through BBB's published process. Before work starts, we agree the result in writing, and you pay when it is delivered. Start with the free BBB audit or see our complaint resolution service.
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
