Consumer complaint received 2021-04-08
Product: Payday loan, title loan, or personal loan — Personal line of credit
Issue: Charged fees or interest you didn't expect — 
Company: Lending Club Corp (CA)

I have a personal loan through Lending Club that was taken out in XXXX of XXXX. It was a 36 month loan for {$10000.00}. They immediately charged a startup fee of nearly {$1000.00}. So really, I received {$9000.00} which I used to pay off an auto loan so I could sell the vehicle through private party. I had made all of my payments on time without issue. When covid hit in XXXX of XXXX, I was no longer with a job and hadn't received any financial assistance at this point so I was very nervous that I would not be able to make my $ 421 monthly payment. Luckily, all of my other expenses were offering deferments due to covid, so I inquired with Lending Club if they would offer the same. They assured me that they did. Both on their website, automated voice messages, and personally over the phone, they stated that they understood that these were hard times for everyone and that they were here to help. Like anyone else in my position, I jumped to the occasion and received 4 months of payment deferrals. This was a blessing and gave me enough time to get back on me feet and figure out my finances. After the deferment period, payments returned back on their normal date and were automatically withdrawn from my account. Since then, I have never missed a payment and have been in good standing with the company. 

Here 's where the issue comes in ... 

Since my payments were automatic, I never had to check the website in order to make payments. This I take credit for, as I wish I had caught this much earlier. 

Lending Club decided to add an additional 5 months on to my term, on top of the expected 4 months of deferment. So my loan went from a 36 month loan to a 45 month, with an additional {$2000.00} added on top. So at one point I owed more money than I had even taken out, almost an extra 1,000 dollars. So all in all, they have profited almost {$3000.00} not including the ludacris amount of interest they are already profiting off of me ( about {$250.00} each month, more than half of my monthly payment ). 

When I confronted them about this issue, the receptionist agreed that this was shady practice, but I agreed to it and there was nothing that could be done. When I asked for a manager they put me on hold for an hour then hung up. When I called back and waited again, they told me there were no managers to speak to, I insisted on waiting. When the manager got on the line she pretend to not hear me and hung up. When I called again, the receptionist answered, I heard someone in the background telling her to hang up, and she hung up. When I called back again ( about 4 hours into this exchange ) I was finally able to speak to the manager. She insisted that I agreed to the nearly {$2000.00} in additional charges and extra 9 months of payment, and that there was nothing I could do about it. She said she listened to audio tapes of me agreeing to these charges. When I asked to hear the tapes, she refused. Then she hung up. 

In conclusion, I have been wrongfully exploited by a predatory loan company during a global pandemic. A deferment is a deferment. There is absolutely no reason to charge thousands of dollars for a deferment. Especially during a pandemic. Especially when they advertised that they were here to help. Had I known that they were going to do this to me, I would have never ever taken this deferment payment. It's sickening what they have done. 

I have already filed my complaint with the XXXX XXXX XXXX  and the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation of California. From what I hear, Lending Club is already in deep water with the FTC. So, I'm certain I'm not the only one they have manipulated in recent months.