The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) has released its list of top consumer complaints received over the past year.
In its newest report for 2025, the DATCP has found that, overall, complaints sent in from consumers were up last year.
For the fourth consecutive year, the DATCP’s most frequent complaint dealt with landlord/tenant issues, coming at 2,620 complaints filed.
These included a wide variety of issues such as failure to maintain premises, security deposit returns, unauthorized entry, and much more.
With 1,283 complaints, telemarketing ranked second despite a decrease from 2024.
Common issues involving telemarketing include phishing scams, impersonator scams, harassment, and violations of the Do Not Call Registry.
While there is a substantial gap between number two and three on the list, home improvement issues would come in at third with 641 complaints.
While addressing last year’s consumer complaint list, DATCP Secretary Randy Romanski said, “No matter how common the problem, if consumers are facing a disagreement with a business that they have been unable to resolve, DATCP is here to help.”
Major results from these complaints included multiple contractors serving jail time for violating state laws, a $450,000 settlement with a telecommunications company, and saving a customer $85,000 on a medical procedure.
The complete list of consumer complaints for 2025 can be found online at datcp.wi.gov.
