Moderators - I'm sorry to post this again, but I just wanted this to stand out because I had success today & wanted to share.
Wow. I cannot believe it was as simple as this... Wow! Don't want to get too wordy, but want to explain how things proceeded as it may help some people here.
I borrowed $500 from F&R, an on-line PDL. I paid them $725 so far over a period of 2 1/2 months, then lost a significant amount of monthly income which made it impossible to pay back any interest at all. According to IL law (where I live) I'm entitled to an interest free repayment plan after PDL is in place after 35 days. I email the support email address to request such a repayment plan.
Not surprisingly they say IL laws do not apply, DE laws do as that's their location so the loan originated there. They say they do understand though and offer a repayment plan that does not include any extra fees - however, their payment plan calls for over $700 more in payments spread over time, so there are extra fees worked in.
Now I'm irritated that they are not following IL laws, so I do all my homework (I know - should have done it in the 1st place). I confirm here on this website that they are required to be licensed in IL to offer me a loan - this was my 1st internet payday loan. I call the IL Dept. of Financial Regulation to confirm they are not licensed - they are not.
Next I email them to state that I've confirmed with the state regulator that IL laws apply & they are required to have a licnese - I ask if they are licensed. They admit they have no IL license and insist again that DE laws apply - their theory: I sought them out so it would be just as if I'd driven to DE to take out a loan with them.
After sending my response (below) I got an email stating "Great news! I got the approval to close this loan - no more debit transactions will occur".
MY RESPONSE AFTER GETTING THEIR RUN-AROUND ANSWERS WAS THIS:
"I see on your website that there are certain states that you do not lend to. I'm going to assume this is due to their strict state laws. If you abide by those state laws why are you not abiding by IL state laws?
Please forward this to your legal/complaince/licensing department.
I do not agree to the repayment plan terms and am revoking authorization to debit my account for any payments. This was an illegal loan to begin with and I am owed a refund of $225 from your business for interest payments you were never legally entitled to collect from me. There is now an ACH/EFT block on my account to prevent you from unauthorized debits.
Your company has violated several IL payday loan lender laws. If you pursue this loan as a legally binding contract any action you take against me will be a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) violation. I know what my rights are under the FDCPA, and I know that as an unlicensed IL payday lender this loan is illegal, invalid and unenforceable by any state. Therefore, the only amount I was obligated to pay your company was the amount borrowed: $500."
I really thought I was up for a fight - but it worked! I requested a paid in full receipt, which I'm told is on it's way. I'd have never known what to do if it were not for this helpful website.
I doubt I'll get the $225 back - but at least it is now over without much of a fight.
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