My boyfriend somehow got involved with these guys and didn't tell me what they were up to until just recently (about 2 months after the initial loan). I'm an attorney, but deal with injured workers, not this kind of stuff. Anyway, I wrote them a nasty lawyer letter and copied his bank (which isn't being as cooperative as they advertise they are on tv). We are in Florida, so here is a brief summary of the Florida law that I found on the State's CFO's website.
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Please note that Florida law requires all terms of agreements such as the one you entered into with Mr. Dto be in writing and signed by all parties. Also, the State of Florida requires payday advance lenders to register with the state and to follow certain regulations. You have not registered with the State of Florida, and therefore, any business you do with individuals in Florida is illegal. The Florida law also states as follows: deferred presentment providers (payday lenders) can accept personal checks from customers for the amount they want to borrow, plus 10 percent of the amount loaned and a $5 verification fee. These are the maximum charges permitted under Florida law, therefore you should have only charged Mr. D $25.00 for the loan. The payday lender holds the check for no less than seven days, but not more than thirty-one days. The borrower can redeem the check with cash at any time during that period. The “roll-over” of payday loans is no longer permitted, and payday lenders must now allow 60-day grace periods to consumers who can't pay at the end of their deferment without imposing any additional charges on the borrowers. To qualify for the grace period, the borrower must make an appointment with a consumer credit counseling agency within seven days of the loan coming due, and must complete the counseling by the end of the grace period. Both the borrower and the payday lender must agree on the payment plan set up by the consumer credit counseling agency, and the payday lender can not deposit the borrower's check during the grace period. The Florida Attorney General has been successful in prosecuting payday lenders who do not comply with the law.
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I don't hope to get much out of it, but I did mention in the letter that any further phone calls or deductions will result in us bringing a lawsuit in addition to reporting this to state, federal and international authorities. I also stated that any future phone calls will be recorded. I recommend telling anybody who calls you that you are recording them and my guess is that will get them to at least stop calling you!
Here's a good website for various state's actions against payday loansharks.
http://www.fraudupdate.com/fsu/cna1....=payday&home=y
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