Consumer complaint received 2020-03-28
Company: FREEDOM FINANCIAL NETWORK
State: FL
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit repair services
Issue: Confusing or missing disclosures

Complaint:
Assistant Director for Enforcement Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection ATTENTION : Office of Enforcement XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX. Washington D.C. XXXX Date : XX/XX/2020 To : CFPB Assistant Director for Enforcement and Mr. XXXX XXXX From : XXXX XXXX RE : CFPB v. Freedom Debt Relief , LLC, Case No. 3:17-cv-06484 This Memo will serve as a formal complaint and evidence of fraud and spearfishing. I am contacting you to advise that you possess and attest that I signed a contract that I did not agree to. I am unable to know if I am working with Freedom Debt Relief LLC or Freedom Debt Financial Network My financial situation went from a career with a reputable company, that awarded me a better quality of life, to now living on Social Security XXXX Insurance. Im currently able to work a part-time job, per medical advice. This still creates an annual income well below the poverty level. My cards were maxed and eventually, I was unable to even pay the minimal amount. I went to XXXX to see if someone would allow me to bundle the card amounts and to learn if I could satisfy my debt responsibilities and make a lower payment each month. The results came back stating no one was interested in providing this service. Once this message stated this I began to scroll down to learn which companies declined me. 

Once I scrolled back up Freedom Debt Relief requested that I complete their form. I was completing the task, someone called me before I even selected submit. It was from XXXX from Freedom Debt Relief. She knew the credit cards that I held and the amounts on each of them. She offered me a program that lowered my monthly amount and negotiate with my creditors upon my behalf. I was instructed to stop making my payments because they wouldnt have the ability to negotiate. This was hard for me because my credit was 0x30, 0x60 and 0x90. I was assured that my credit will be affected at first but once everything was paid I would be debt-free and allow my credit score to increase. We completed a document via Docusign.com. We agreed that I would pay {$100.00} on two different dates because I would not be able to pay the full amount of {$420.00}. I also advised making extra payments if possible because paying the half amount will extend my contract and/or cause my payment to be much more than {$420.00}. XXXX also stated that I had funds to spare so if I need more relief they could assist me. 

She then transferred me to XXXX to make my initial payment. XXXX remained on the call to advice him that my initial payment would be two payments of {$100.00}. During our call, I made a payment of {$100.00} with my debit card. I saw the funds removed from my bank for the initial {$100.00}. I was alerted about a week later that I had a NSF charged on my account. I was so confused because the {$100.00} initially charged disappeared. I was advised by a Freedom Debt Relief agent that she showed nothing posted to my account yet. She also advised that their organization prefers to use Automatic Clearing House  than a debit card. I later saw a charge stating the Freedom Debt Relief tried to charge {$420.00}. I never agreed to pay that amount on my 1st payment and I never authorized them to take {$420.00} in XXXX. I called and couldnt get a clear answer from anyone. I just chalked it up to miscommunication. 



I called Freedom Debt Relief again due to the coronavirus to learn what XXXX meant by having extra funds to use. I was told the company doesnt extend a line of credit to their customers, so again I thought it was just misinformation. I was then advised by XXXX that I never made a XXXX payment. I asked to speak to a supervisor because I wasnt chalking up anything up to miscommunication anymore. I was transferred to XXXX who provided the same information, she stated that only a half amount of the normal agreement was made. I advised her that is was what I agreed to. She sent me a copy of the contract to my email, which did state that my initial payment was {$420.00} and not the {$210.00} ( two payments of {$100.00} ), I know that I would never agree to pay something that I couldnt pay. I looked up my initial contract through XXXX, it stated that the expiration date for the agreement had exhausted. XXXX also stated more than once, that my plan expires in 2 years but I remember the agreement stating four years. I asked to speak to her supervisor because what she was stating wasnt true. She said that she doesnt have a supervisor. I asked if she was the owner of the company, she said no but she still doesnt report to anyone. I told her I will start at the top of the company and potentially contact the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. I also requested to learn the correct information or pursue her supervisor to contact me within the hour. I then disconnected. I received a voicemail from XXXX who stated that I should not expect a call back because the information she provided is correct. 

When I went to the CFPB website to submit a complaint against Freedom Debt Relief only to learn they have a recent settlement and conditions they agreed to. I feel obligated to disclose items of the settlement still isnt being adhered to. In the attached documents you will notice that their system shows that I made no initial payment at all, and advised me to make no further payments to my creditors. I was also instructed to have all of my bills sent directly to them instead of relying on me to trust what actions they have taken but I cant even gather correct information from their website. Im assuming the fees are calculated by the 23 % interest charge. Considering the interest rate is XXXX over prime right now they knew that I was desperate. The ACH transactions show two payments of {$100.00} in XXXX and {$420.00} in XXXX which is what I agreed to pay. Some pages on the website show the 3 transactions and some only show one.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation