Consumer complaint received 2019-01-16
Company: Harpeth Financial Services, LLC
State: VA
Product: Payday loan, title loan, or personal loan
Sub-product: Personal line of credit
Issue: Charged fees or interest you didn't expect

Complaint:
In XX/XX/XXXX, I was offered a higher paying position with a new employer. Initially, I was exuberant over the news. When I put in my two week 's notice, that's when the problems began- my employer stated that instead of waiting the two weeks, they would simply " accept my resignation now '' - and just like that, I was out of work unexpectedly through no fault of my own. Due to the start date of my new job and how everything worked out, I had to go an entire month without receiving a paycheck, and there I was ... in an incredibly difficult position financially, worried about losing everything I had worked so hard to obtain. I did everything I could, payday loans, loans from friends and family, anything and everything ... but the debt was severe, far more than I have ever had. 

I had received many mailers for fast loans over the years, and in desperation, I finally decided to use one. The company stated that they would offer a " line of credit '' to me, and them calling it a line of credit lead me to believe they were a bank of some sort. Having exhausted all possibilities for my continued financial survival, I used their service, received the money, and planned to pay it all off as fast as I could. This transpired in XX/XX/XXXX. I was aware of the anti-usury laws at the time, and it never even occurred to me that these people would do what they did- charge interest rates of over 360 %! 

The financial turmoil did not calm down due to that single setback that XXXX however, and I struggled to get caught back up on my payment schedules. My bank account remained constantly overdrawn. My rent was constantly late. I am not accustomed to making late payments, and the stress was unbearable. Through much work, I now have paid off all of these things, save one, the entity that I now file a complaint against. 

Now we are at the current date. My wife is XXXX, and unable to work. While still recovering from one financial problem, I now face another, and while every other entity involved in my finances has been understanding and worked with me to get me on a payment plan that will allow me to care for my soon-to-be XXXX, this organization refuses, despite having a clause in their contract that should I report a change of income to them, they will allow me to get on some type of payment plan. 

This company refuses to allow me to close this " line of credit '' as they call it, until I pay back the full amount, all so that they can continue to charge interest on it every 30 days at a rate that is far higher than any state usury law permits. It is unfathomable and abhorrent that businesses are allowed to sidestep the obvious intent of usury laws with technical nonsense in good conscience! 

All I want is the account closed, and a payment plan made for the current due amount. I have even offered to pay the industry standard interest of 36 %. Having not missed a payment, and having the account still " in good standing '', this is still not acceptable to them!? Ridiculous. 

As it stands today, they refuse to negotiate the terms of closing out this loan. I have ensured they will no longer automatically deduct payments from my account and I want everyone to know the ordeal that these types of loans create- you will never get out from under a 360 % interest rate. It simply isn't possible! Stay away from these lenders! Even the so called clauses in their contracts that are there to ease the financial burden are simply lip service so that they don't get their XXXX   kicked by any given attourney general! 

What is worse, is that this organization told me just today, on XX/XX/XXXX, that they are licensed lenders in the state of virginia- yet on their website, no such license is documented, as it is with other states. In fact, this organization may not be licensed at all! Due to this, my lawyer is looking at the legality of their business, and I would humbly request that the CFPB and Virginia Attourney General do the same.This type of usurious lending is immoral and has been legislated against countless times, only for some LLC to call it something else and do it all over again! A loan is a loan, and no loan should be outside of the laws of this sovereign nation and it's regulation, no matter what they call it!

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation