Better not trust the Better Business Bureau

Turns out that those letter-grade scores it hands out might be nothing more than a pay-to-play scam, according to ABC News, which takes a look at the BBB tonight on "20-20." Business owners are accusing the organization of giving "A" ratings to anyone who pays membership fees and "F" ratings to those that don't. The head of the BBB denies such a connection, but just to prove the case, a group of L.A. business owners shelled out the $425 fee for a non-existent company called Hamas, named after the Middle Eastern terror group. It received an A-. From ABC:

Errors seem to abound at the Better Business Bureau. As reported by an anonymous blogger the BBB also awarded an A minus rating to a non-existent sushi restaurant in Santa Ana, California and an A plus to a skinhead, neo-Nazi web site called Stormfront. Each listing cost $425. "They ran the credit card and within 12 hours they were an approved, accredited member," said the anonymous blogger, who runs a site called bbbroundup.com. "They're more interested in the money than their credibility," he said.

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As part of the ABC News investigation, an ABC News producer with a camera was present as two small business owners in Los Angeles were told by Better Business Bureau tele-marketers that their grades of C could be raised to A plus if they paid $395 membership fees. Terri Hartman, the manager of a Los Angeles antique fixtures store, Liz's Antique Hardware, was told only a payment could change her grade, based on one old complaint that had already been resolved. "So, if I don't pay, even though the complaint has been resolved, I still have a C rating?" Hartman then read off her credit card number and the next business day the C grade was replaced with an A plus, and the one complaint was wiped off the record.