Consumer complaint received 2026-01-07 00:00:00
Product: Payday loan, title loan, personal loan, or advance loan — Installment loan
Issue: Charged fees or interest you didn't expect — 
Company: Harpeth Financial Services, LLC
State: NC

Complaint narrative:
I obtained a Flex Loan from Advance Financial as a Florida resident. 

The initial loan was issued for approximately {$1000.00} around XX/XX/XXXX, and a second advance of approximately {$980.00} was issued around XX/XX/XXXX. 

I made regular, timely monthly payments throughout XXXX. However, my principal balance did not meaningfully decline. My statements show that recurring Billing Cycle Charges absorbed most of each payment. I was charged more than {$2400.00} in fees in XXXX alone, while my principal remained nearly unchanged as you can see here : Amount borrowed : {$1900.00} Total payments made : {$2800.00} Applied to principal : {$410.00} Fees and charges retained : {$2400.00} Despite making payment after payment, I have already paid amounts exceeding the principal borrowed, and I still owe an outstanding balance. This indicates that the loan was structured to generate repeat fees rather than allow a borrower to pay down principal. 

This loan created a debt cycle I could not reasonably escape, even while making timely payments. I did not miss payments and was not delinquent, the problem is the way Advance Financial applies payments. 

I believe these practices are unfair and unconscionable, such as : Extending credit without reasonable assessment of ability to repay, structuring payments to prioritize fees over principal, creating a foreseeable cycle of repeat indebtedness, disguising the true cost and duration of the loan and exploiting unequal bargaining power and financial distress On XX/XX/XXXX, I reached out to Advance Financial in an attempt to discuss this matter and spoke with XXXX. I was advised I would receive a call back. On XX/XX/XXXX, I sent an email to Advance Financial along with a letter requesting a response. I again sent another email along with a letter on XX/XX/XXXX outlining the above and requesting the loan be closed as paid in full and a refund for the excessive fees paid. On XX/XX/XXXX, I called Advance Financial again. I was advised someone would call me back and alleged someone had called me on XX/XX/XXXX, but I received no such phone call or voice mail message. As I again requested a phone call back, later in the day, on XX/XX/XXXX, I received a call back from " XXXX ''. She said she was calling to discuss the loan and a " settlement '' for me to pay them another {$1200.00}. I advised that I could not pay them another dime as they had already been paid back the amounts borrowed plus another {$870.00} on top of that. I told her I was requesting the loan be closed as paid in full and no negative credit reporting, and also said I would like a refund for {$840.00}. " XXXX '' gave a very demeaning and condescending reply and said " there is no way you would ever get a refund '' and said " did you even bother to read the contract? '' I told her that their lending practices are unethical and prevent a consumer from ever having the ability to pay these loans back. She refused to offer any further assistance so we ended the call. 

* * I can provide all statements upon request, but because they bill bi-weekly, there are currently XXXX statements.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation