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CALPIRG Study Analyzes Which Credit Card Companies Get The Most Complaints

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS)— More than 100 million Americans have credit cards and a report released on Tuesday breaks down which companies receive the most complaints.

The California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG) analyzed data from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (CFPB) consumer complaints database they've maintained since July 2011.

"Some of the key findings is that the most complaints for credit cards in California is [about] Capital One," said Garo Manjikian an advocate with the CALPIRG Education Fund.

CALPIRG's Credit Card Study Finds Capital One Gets Most Complaints

Manjikian said the biggest issues with Capital One were billing disputes, interest rates, identity theft and difficulty closing or canceling accounts.

He also said 10 companies made up about 90 percent of the complaints. Among them in addition to Capital One were; Citibank, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and GE Capital Retail.

"We think the report really shows that the CFPB is empowering consumers to demand accountability and that consumers who are getting ripped off by junkie credit card add-ons or unfair billing disputes have somewhere to turn now,"

Manjikian said American credit card holders carry an average of about $15,000 in debt.

The CFPB has helped about 10,000 consumers get relief from credit card problems.

(Copyright 2014 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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