Life is hard for a single mom, especially when you're a mom with bad credit. I was stressed, worried, exhausted from lack of sleep, & bitter, so I desperately started looking for a second chance at rebuilding my credit & paying off some delinquent bills by shopping online for loans for people with bad credit. I knew that there wasn't a chance that a bank or credit union would lend me any money because of my credit history. Now, during my search, I spotted several companies online, but most were offering payday advance loans, which I wasn't interested in because I was already caught in that vicious cycle, so I stopped my search.
On 07/20, I was looking through The Flyer (a smaller version of the newspaper's classified), & saw an ad for loans for people with all types of credit. I called the number printed in the ad, (877) 293-8920, & spoke to Melissa, a representative at Gateway Application Center. She was polite & professional. She collected information, such as my name, address, phone number, date of birth, social security number, & etc. Then, she informs me that a lender will contact me within 24-48 hours. The time came & went & I got no response, but on 07/23 at 7:03 PM, I was left a voice mail from Christopher Kennedy, a loan agent at Eagle National Lending, who needed me to call him back in reference to my loan application. He left his phone number (800) 878-2420 ext. 475, & told me to call him back after 10 AM. The next day I called him back & he told me that I was approved for the $5000.00 I requested. He informed me that I had a 9% fixed interest rate, 48 month term, & monthly payments of $124.04, plus as a bonus I get 2 months grace period to make my first payment. Then, he asked me if I had anything to place as collateral, which I don't, so he advised me that I would need to buy a loan protection insurance for $500.00 before I can secure the loan. That sounded reasonable to me, so I agreed. Before hanging up the phone, he took my fax number to fax over the loan contract & terms & condition (8 pages) which I had to fax back to him at (866) 737-2718, along with a copy of my ID, social security card, & most current paycheck stub. I thought it was a Godsend. I was elated at the fact that I finally would have relief from my financial woes.
Once I received his 8 page fax, I carefully looked over the document before signing it & faxing it back. I waited a few minutes to call to confirm the receipt of the fax, so I called him back & asked him if he received the fax, but he stated that another department handles the receipt of faxes & scans them into the computer. He then asked how soon would I have the $500. I explained to him that I don't get paid until the following Friday (07/31/09). He then proceeded to tell me that the lender's offer for the loan was only good until Tuesday (07/28). When I pleaded to please get me an extension, he told me to give him a call back later, & to let him see what he can do.
I was frantic because I didn't want to let this opportunity pass me by. Like I said, I thought it was a blessing from God to find someone that actually would finance me, nonetheless for $500. So, as instructed I called him back later on in the afternoon & he said that the lender, Sterling Financial, agreed to hold the application until Friday (07/31). He laughed when I yelled with excitement:) Well, one of my co-workers overheard my conversation & wanted to know what I was so excited about. I told her the great news, & even gave her their phone number.
The following day, during my lunch hour, I bumped into that same co-worker in the hallway, & she pulled me to the side & told me that since I found that companies number in The Flyer, I should make sure that they are legit, since she's heard a lot of news about these companies that offer you a loan for an upfront fee, but once you send your money you never get the loan, or they ask you for more. Well, since they say, "with age comes wisdom", & since she is old enough to be my mother, I heeded her advice & started doing research on Eagle National Services located at 50 Washington St., Floor 10 Norwalk, CT 06854, but nothing came up on the Better Business Bureau's website (www.bbb.org) or the state of Connecticut's website (www.ct. Gov). So, I called Christopher back the next day & asked him for the business' license number. He told me that he didn't have it with him at moment, to call him back in fifteen minutes. I waited fifteen minutes & called him back. He then gave me license number TN455733-2. I thanked him & went on www.bbb.org & www.ct. Gov again, but neither website could verify the number, so I called Christopher back. I told him that I wasn't able to verify the company's business number. He was cordial & accommodating & even said that he understood that I wanted to know who I was dealing with before parting with my money, so he explained that Eagle National Service is not listed with the BBB, but they are registered with the Better Financial Registry Bureau & gave me the number, (877) 208-6368.
Once I hung up the phone with Christopher, I called the Better Financial Registry Bureau, & got Linda. She told me that Eagle National Service has an A rating, & have been in business for eleven years, and has no complaints. I took her words at face value. Big mistake! Once again, I called Christopher back & told him that we were a go, & got the instructions on how to send him the money. He instructed me to wore the money via Moneygram to Susan Martin, which is an insurance broker for First USA Insurance Group, in Montgomery, Alabama.
On Friday (07/31), as promised, I went to my local Moneygram store & paid $536.00 ($500 fee $36.00 wiring fee), & wired the money over to Susan Martin. I guess Moneygram is aware of the ongoing loan scam because the operator I spoke with gave me a disclosure 7 even asked if I've dealt with this company before. I told the operator that I already checked them out through the proper channels, so he gave me the confirmation number, & we ended the call. I went to the cashier & paid the money & got my receipt with the reference number. Once I left the store, I called Christopher back with the Moneygram reference number, which he took down. Then, he told me that once they confirm the receipt of the transfer, the $5000 should be electronically deposited into my account either tomorrow (08/01), or Monday (08/03). He told me to check my account tomorrow after 11 AM & if the funds aren't there to call him, but not to panic since Saturday is not considered a business day, so I thanked him for helping me & hung up.
Well, Saturday the funds weren't there, so I called Christopher at 1:23 PM to tell him that, which his response to me was, "Its Okay Ms..., you will get your funds on Monday. Don't worry & just enjoy your weekend". Monday morning, around 11:00 AM I called my bank to verify if the funds were deposited, & when they weren't I called Christopher once again. I had a hard reaching him, but finally I reached him around noon time, & he then referred me to Mr. Frederick Forrester in the funding department at (888) 559-2708 to check the status of my transfer. I called Mr. Forrester who was very curt & rude to me. He explained that my loan agent, to whom he referred as Mr. Moore, gave me the incorrect information, & that I should of been told to send $850.00. I told him that the contracts I signed stated nothing about $850. I told him that the contract clearly stated that once I sent the $500, within 1 to 2 business days my funds would be wired electronically to my checking. He became argumentative & said if I wanted my loan I would need to wire an additional $350 to a Mr. John Arnold, since Susan Martin supposedly was off today. When I questioned him more, he hung up the phone on me. I called Christopher back but he did not answer, so I left him a total of 4 messages. I was angry & frightened at that point because the $500 I sent them was the majority of my paycheck, therefore if I didn't get the loan or my money back, I would not be able to pay my rent or any other bills for that matter.
I kept calling back, but Christopher never answered.in the voice messages I left, I called them a scam & that I would contact the police if they didn't give me my money back. When I called Mr. Forrester back, I guess he heard the voice mails, & at that point he became defensive & claimed that he was insulted by my accusations & because of this he has cancelled my loan & issued a refund for my $500 which would be sent to me by certified mail in 1 to 2 weeks. I completely broke down at that point because I was already 2 days late on my rent, but Mr. Forrester didn't care, he simply told me that he cancelled my application, but if I wanted to pursue this matter further, I would need to contact the lender directly, & gave me the phone number to Mr. Stephen Goodman at (800) 296-0792 ext. 765, then disconnected our call. I immediately dialed Mr. Goodman's number & heard the recording say that I was calling Sterling Financial. Once, I got Mr. Goodman on the line, I introduced myself & explained the situation. Well, Mr. Goodman, was even worse than Mr. Forrester. He told me if I wanted the loan to be issued I'd have to send him $475. I persisted more, but Mr. Goodman said if I didn't have $475 to send him then we cannot do business & hung up the phone on me.
I was so livid! I couldn't believe I was being punished like this. So, I waited a few hours & then called Mr. Goodman again, & tried to reason with him, but he would not listen. So, after he hung up the phone on me again, I started doing some research online; the research I should have done prior to handing them my hard earned money. I looked up their location on Google maps & learned that the address they were using was a landmark in Norwalk, so it made it easy for me to find the management company. I called the building manager & tried to get information on Eagle National Services, but he couldn't disclose such information even though I explained my situation to him.
Unfortunately, that same afternoon, I collapsed at work in agonizing pain & was rushed to the hospital. I had a miscarriage: (The following day when I was released from the hospital & despite my state of mind & condition, I called the Norwalk Police Department at (203) 854-3000, but the officer told me that I would need to contact my local police & then the officer assigned to my case would contact Norwalk PD to follow up. Thus, I called my local police department & requested for a detective to come to my home. At this point, I was not only worried about my health, but I was worried about the money I lost & my identity. The police officer finally came to my residence late in the afternoon & took the report. I decided to call Moneygram & see what type of information I could get. Unfortunately, the most information the operator was able to disclose was the time of pick up & date (07/31; 3:11 PM central time), but she was more than happy to give the number to the Federal Trade Commission & Phone busters. I called the BBB & explained my situation to the representative, but although there wasn't much she could do since Eagle National Service is not registered with them, she suggested that I contact the state attorney's office in CT. So, I called information & got the phone number & called. The representative there told me that I would need to write my complaint & gave me the address.
Well, to conclude, I have yet to hear from my local police department, the Norwalk PD, or even the state attorney's office, & I feel so violated & helpless. Furthermore, to make matters worse, after my hospitalization, I experienced complications from the DNC & was placed on leave without pay from my employer, thus I am more behind on my bills, rent, car note, & etc. Than I was before. Even though, I don't expect to get my $500 back, but there is nothing more that I would like than to bring these thieves to justice, but how, when they are like ghosts? I don't have the technology or finances to hire private companies to track them down. So, now what do I do? Thus, everybody, be wary when dealing with your money & identity information. These scam artist cover all their bases. They have people that can verify they are legit, multiple toll free numbers, & probably multiple locations. Therefore, once your money is in their hands, you can consider it gone for good. I know that times are hard for everybody, but control your stress & don't let your desperation cause you to make foolish decisions like I did. Just be careful, until we find a better way to deal with these wolves.
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