Consumer complaint received 2024-02-16
Product: Debt or credit management — Debt settlement
Issue: Didn't provide services promised — 
Company: Strategic Financial Solutions, LLC (NY)

In XX/XX/XXXX I received a notice in the mail from a XXXX XXXX XXXX called Strategic Consulting. It stated that they could reduce the amount owed on my credit cards and loans since I was getting behind on my payments. I inquired on line and a person named XXXX XXXX called me. She explained the program and e-mailed me showing the money I would save by consolidating with them. 

I wasn't sure if I should use them or another company so I waited a little to think about it. XXXX called a few times to follow up to see if I had made a decision. On XX/XX/XXXX I decided to work with this company. I gave all of the credit card numbers and loan information. She said that I needed to sign papers and meet in person with a notary that would come to my apartment. She said it was best if it happened right away. So she set it up for XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX. The gentleman arrived and I signed a bunch of papers and he left me with some information and stated the someone would be in contact with me. 

On XX/XX/XXXX received an e-mail from XXXX XXXX stating that they would be handling the banking for withdrawing the money from my account and making the payments to the creditors. I entered all of my bank withdrawal information on their site. 
I figured that the next steps were for them to withdrawal the money twice a month and to start paying off my debt as planned. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, after the XXXX payment was withdrawn and I hadn't heard from anyone, I filled out a form on XXXX XXXX site to ask what the next steps would be. They e-mailed stating that they were a third-party vendor and that I should contact my Debt Settlement Provider the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX and they also provided this phone number ( XXXX ) XXXX which is for a company called Sandstone Law Firm. So I reached out to XXXX via e-mail and I also called her at the number we had been calling back and forth on ( XXXX ) XXXX. The phone line was now not in service. And I never received a response to my e-mail or the two follow up e-mails that I sent. Online I found the number for XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX. I gave him a call and he said that he is in XXXX XXXX and that someone from New York should be getting in touch with me and he said that he would take care of it. He called me back and said that someone from the New York office would be calling me. By XX/XX/XXXX I hadn't heard back so I gave XXXX a call and he gave me XXXX XXXX phone number who would be handling everything for me. ( XXXX ) XXXX. That day I also found a paper that the notary had left that had a contact on it for me. It said XXXX XXXX and had her number of ( XXXX ) XXXX and an e-mail of XXXX. There was also a number on it for client services of ( XXXX ) XXXX and another e-mail XXXX. I spoke to XXXX and I had asked why no one reached out to me after I met with the notary and he said that some how I must have slipped through the cracks. He said that XXXX works for him and she should be reaching out. He said that I should be sending any correspondence that I get from my creditors to the e-mail that I had on the sheet for Sandstone. So I sent what I had received thus far and got the generic e-mail back saying that they would respond in XXXX business days which never happened. 

By XX/XX/XXXX I still did not hear from XXXX so I called XXXX back again. This time he explains to me that the company is under and audit from the government and has been so for a few weeks and that it was taking longer than usual and that they had to cease doing any transactions so that is why nothing was done with my accounts. He said that it should be handled within the next week and that I should call back in a week. I called back on XX/XX/XXXX and left a message. I also called XXXX who said that he would get in touch with XXXX. I felt that something was amiss so I did some researching on-line and saw that there was a lawsuit against them and all of these other alias companies of theirs that started in XXXX Here is the link : https : //www.consumerfinance.gov/enforcement/actions/stratfs-llc-fka-strategic-financial-solutions-llc-et-al/. I went on to XXXX XXXX site to cease the bi monthly withdrawals but my information is greyed out and I can not change it. The Customer Support number just goes to some XXXX XXXX that wants to give you some free device.