I don't know how to fix this mess

Welcome shea

I don't any background in PDL's so I really can not offer you any advice there. I wanted to welcome you and let you know that you are not the only one in this situation. Hang tight and someone will be around to offer their help.

You can and will get out of this mess.

Thanks!

I have been where you are. The one thing you need to do is close out your account or put stop payments on those particular accounts. Your bank can look them up. Go to bank and talk with them. They know payday loans are bad news and usually most bank managers will help you. Help you switch account numbers. Otherwise they will continue to withdraw from your account and change their name and try to do it again until your account is so overdrawn that you are living on noodles and water. The other thing is you need to look these companies up because some of them are not legal to have a business in your state. If so you are not obligated to pay a dime back. Their loss. Not yours. They will threaten to sue and blah, blah. It is a load of crap. If they won't send you a bill in the mail to post a payment to then you are no longer obligated to pay them back.

I actually put a stop payment on Geneva Roth last week, and they changed their name and got the payment anyway!! I opened another account last week and re-directed my direct deposit. Should I close the current account or change it to deposit only? I've heard that even if you close the account, the pdl people can have it re-opened somehow??

Alabama requires Internet based pdl's to be licensed by your state. I don't think any of yours are. If I am wrong, someone please correct me.


Quote:

I hope the information below will help you. :)
You are only obligated to pay back the principal amount you borrowed from an unlicensed/illegal Internet Payday Lender.
[quote]
What should you do?
Close your account asap, if you are unable to close your account, go into your bank and ask to speak with the Branch Manager, tell him/her you need a hard debit block placed on your account immediately! Explain that you are revoking ACH authorizations from unlicensed/illegal companies, and have learned these companies are notorious for ignoring revocation, therefore it is important to BLOCK any withdrawal attempts on your account to protect your interest. This is your privilege, do not accept no for an answer. The following link will provide you important information regarding closing accounts. CLICK HERE

What next?
AFTER your account is secure send each pdl (the unlicensed and illegal) an email similar to THIS (please scroll down to locate letter template). Tailor this letter to your needs, and try to write it with the same basic concept in your own words. You will need to research and locate email addresses/physical addresses if you don't already have them, I suggest that you type the name of the pdl (example: "oneclickcash address") in the search box in the upper right hand corner of this forum. You may also search for addresses HERE at the Better Business Bureau.

File complaints: Most of the time, you can file a complaint online with the following, I encourage you to follow through with doing so, you will need to search the Internet for your state Attorney General's website, however, here are links to file complaints for the FTC, Online complaints: Federal Trade Commission., and the BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU.

Keep in mind that you may not receive a response for days, or even weeks, or, you may receive harassing and threatening phone calls. I have found the best way to deal with this is not to respond or reply, simply hang up.

Side note: If you have paid an illegal/unlicensed payday lender above and beyond the principal amount you borrowed, it might be a good idea to demand a refund and a paid in full letter/receipt. You may or may not get one or both. It still doesn't hurt to include that tidbit in your letter. :)[/quote]

Oh my gosh! This is a tremendous help! Thank you all so much.

Your welcome, please keep us posted, we care!

Okay, I've got my letters ready to go and I'm just about to talk to my bank about closing my account, changing it to debit only. I do have a question about the revocation letters; do I send a copy to the BBB and my state attorney general?

Oh no, make sure you change your account to "deposit only" NOT "debit only". That could have been a typo but I just wanted to reinforce that. :shock: As far as sending the letters with your complaints, I would attach any correspondence you've made with these companies for restitution.

eeks! I did mean deopsit only;)

Yep - that's what I meant. I just got off the phone with a bank manager. He was very understanding and very helpful! He is helping me to transfer my funds to my new account and close this existing one! Now to put my revocation letters in the mail!

YAY! I got back the $150 that Geneva Roth took from my account (even though I put a stop payment on it). That's a huge relief!!! My letters are going in the mail today.

good luck, please keep us posted, we can help you throughout this whole process.

We changed our home phone # last night :)

I got an email from "Mike" at Paycheck Today. Here's what it says:

"Your balance is now $510. Your account will be turned over to a third party collector and reported to the three credit bureaus. We are licensed throughout the US. You were offered a one time settlement to this account."

I don't believe that they are licensed in Alabama, someone please correct me if I'm wrong. Should I respond to this email from Mike? What should I say? Should I mention the letter that I sent to them, pointing out that they are opperating illegal in my state and that I would like to set up payments (through the mail of course), only paying the principle amount? Alladvice is welcome as you guys have been tremendously helpful!!!!!

well, if you are 100% that they are not legal (i'm not familiar with them and cannot help you there, i''m sorry..), than you can request to only send money orders to pay down the principal. that's how i handled my illegal ones. even if they are legal, i would try to push for more than one settlement amount, i have seen it done before.

i would draft the letter like this

mr mike,you are not licensed in my state.i know this for a fact.
since you are so sure you are.give me the license#.i would also
like to point out that reporting on my credit report will result in my seeking legal advice.as that is a FCRA violation.please supply the license or know my position is clear on this.

sincerely,xxxxxx

anyway that's how i would do it.if anyone else has ideas they will share them.

Thanks for the help! I am going to email him back now.

That is a great start...........If they call you at work, just tell them you are not there.

I told a company i was fired once, lol!

I haven't even answered their calls. I have a direct phone line at my desk and just forward the calls to voice mail, needless to say they haven't left any messages.

I did the same thing, after while the calls slowed down & finally stopped

Okay - I emailed Mike verbatium what paulmergel said and this is the exact response I got back from him:

"You received our response. . . . "

That's it - what does that even mean? He didn't mention being licensed, he didn't mention the credit report, nothing. Should I email him back?

i wouldn't engage this jabronie any longer.file AG,FTC and BBB
complaints.this place is illegal and knows it.you need some help to get this resolved.the three places just mentioned can do that for you.

Thanks, I will do exactly that :)

Terminate all contact and file your complaints asap.