State Attorney Generals - Why bother?

To date, I've received letters from the State Attorney General's offices of my state (NY), Oklahoma and Maryland, all of which state that there is nothing they can do and I should consult an attorney. The NYS AG added insult to injury by attaching a one-page summary about PDLs.

I'm wondering if the AGs simply aren't sympathetic because the majority of people who take PDLs are people who can't get a traditional loan a.k.a. low-moderate income, poor credit, etc.

Or is it that they have yet to receive a sufficient number of complaints to warrant a closer look at these scumbags?

As far as my own PDL situation, aside from emails from USFastCash offering me a settlement, it's been quiet. Almost too quiet.

I have not heard anything from the AG office in Cali. And I am too wondering why.

My state's (NJ) attorney general does not do anything at all. they say to go to the BBB. what a joke! but seriously we encourage people to report them because if they get many complaints, they cannot ignore it.
some states' have great attorney general's offices that really get inolved.. hopefully our states will too someday.

The BBB doesn't do anything either. What needs to happen is for everyone and anyone who got sucked into the PDL trap to bombard these agencies like crazy. THEN they'll start taking action. It will be a happy day for me when that happens.

I agree.. though I really think this is out of the BBB's scope.. they handle buisness who want to keep their reputation good, but these companies do not care if they get bad ratings.
but i agree we should flood out offices with letters.

Realistically speaking if a PDL is located overseas I don't know there's very much ANY US government regulatory agency can do. However, personal opinion only, I'd keep filing complaints wherever I felt it would some good. Couldn't hurt, at any rate.

I had the exact same thing happen with MN AG they didn't do anything at all. But also the PDLs have not contacted me at all either.

I would make sure you let your AG know how dissappointed you are that they aren't providing you any support. For crying out loud, the least they could do is send a letter to these illegal lenders and let them know they are aware of what's going on. Don't give up, complain, complain, complain to your AG.

shazzers, believe me i do not give up! its been almost two years and i still fire off complaints

The reason why AG's are not sympathetic to the consumer is because the majority of people who take out PDL's are given every chance to ask the questions and back out at any moment - consumer responsibility.

When a PDL is contacted by the AG, the PDL can provide recorded phone calls, signed contracts, etc, proving the consumer was educated about the terms.

In most cases, the consumer is focused on "I want the money now, get this over with".

When the lender/loan officer asks the questions "Do you agree to and understand the Terms and Conditions of your loan" "Yes" "Do you have any questions or concerns regarding this loan" and the consumer replies "How soon will the money be in my account?" there's not much else the AG can do.

I'm not saying this is how you responded - but working in both sides of the industry for five years (lending/collections/QA/supervisor) and collections overall for ten years, this is the majority of consumer responses.

The fact remains that there is a huge consumer awareness that these loans are bad, they are a last resort, they are intended for a borrower to get the min. they need to get by - but the borrower rarely thinks of it like that.

They are focused on "My bank is sixty dollars negative and I don't have any money until friday" or "I need 100 to pay my rent and they are going to give me 300? Awesome".

While massive reformation is needed - and most PDL's need to be put out of business - the fact remains that the AG will not interfere in situations where the consumer is not taking responsibility for their actions.

All you can do is keep complaining and hopefully they will hear you. Also - contact your state reps in both state and federal level govts. They are the ones that can help get laws passed to be protected from predatory lenders. Don't just stop with the AG - go all the way up. If you continue to get no action from an AG's office, contact your media. Write a letter to the editor and put the very valid question of non-involvement where it belongs - in the public forum.

that's not always the case.. most of my loans never called me, some never sent documents. either way most people did not know some loans were illegal. for instance i never knew they were not legal in my state. it is the attorney general's job to enforce these laws and they failed me. i focus on illegal lenders.. it sounds like you worked with legit buisnesses but the ones my attorney general office refused to help me with were prohibited in my state, and overpaid.. one was overpaid by over a thousand dolalrs!

It makes no difference what a consumer agrees to or not, the law is the law. If what you are saying were true, then give me your phone number so I can call you and make a GREAT offer to borrow money from me, all you need to do is sign a contract I have drawn up which states you are bound by MY laws, in fact, I will read them off to you, rather quickly I might add and I will be taping this conversation. Give me your personal account number and the money will be deposited tomorrow. And the rest is history.

In other words, the law is the law, those contracts provided by illegal pdl's are NOT binding! If they were binding, you would be reading more and more posts here about actually being sued rather than being harassed!

And that's where the problems start. From a lending standpoint, it's frustrating when you do a bank verification and you hear "Deposit 300, my cash loan 11/15; deposit 500 cash jar 11/15; deposit 250 paydayloan 11/15;" and so on - and you tell a consumer "I'm sorry, but I can't approve the loan for you" and then they lay into you like you are scum of the earth because you won't allow them to get further into debt.

You're absoultely right about the illegal focus - i've worked for both legit and non-legit companies, where I work now is a legit company and my title is in-flux - I am the person you talk to if you can't pay, or if you were refused and you just don't want to accept it. I'm the one who has to tell you that I'm sorry you can't get your child a christmas present but you make 800 on a paycheck and have loans out for a total of 600 biweekly. I'm the one that tries to explain what the actual obligations are and encourage you to A - NOT borrow at all or B - borrow the absolute lowest amt. I'm the one you scream and curse at because I'm the cause of your car getting repossessed.

Again - if the AG isn't doing anything, contact state reps in both state and federal govts. Illegal PDL's should be shut down. There should be more focus on consumer education. There should be more of a focus on equal liability. There's a lot of good advice out there - and a lot of people who want to help. Even though it's two different sides we're approaching from, we both have a common goal in mind.

Why such animosity towards a fellow buckeye? A fellow human?

Again - if the contracts were illegal then the AG would be more than happy to investigate. The quickest way to get a good political following nowadays is the "We're going to protect the consumers from the sharks out there" route - if the contracts are truly illegal and the AG is refusing, then make it known! You've said several times "Write them and let them know you are dissapointed" - and I agreed. You should go further, though.

As for your summary of a loan call - I would have to ask that you slow down reading those rules for me, I didn't quite understand all of that. And I also have some questions regarding these terms and payment options - i want to make sure that I fully understand what's going on before I agree to anything. Oh, wait - I did some research - turns out that this is an illegal and unlicensed lender in my state - I'm going to have to go ahead and say no to this loan. Thank you, though, for your time. =)

That was my thing! my loans were overpaid and illegal and my attorney general refused to help..
we have people from both sides on this board and though sometimes there is debate we welcome all advice that is respectfully submited welcome.

No animosity, I was responding to the comments in one of your posts below, you perceived it that way.