I hate to admit this, but, I've been scammed. We were looking for a loan to help pay some unexpected medical bills, and we fell for it. I feel like such an idiot. I was the person that went around forums and asked people if they were dumb for falling for scams like these. Turns out, desperation is what does it.
My domestic partner has had some unexpected medical complications recently, and, as you can imagine, our funds started running out. After having applied for several loans, I found the site badcreditloanservices.com. Flag flew up because of the name, but, after doing a search I'd found no complaints or issues, so I filled out the form. I received a call the next day from "Arthur", who told me I had been approved for the loan and that there was some paperwork I needed to file. He discussed all the information on the loan with me, then told me that once the papers were filed, all I had to do was pay 5 months up front as a type of "lender's insurance" since my credit is non-existent. It took me 4 days to send the paperwork in. I went through it with a fine tooth comb, my boyfriend looked at it, and I even had a co-worker who used to be a financial advisor look over it. They all said the same thing: it looked safe and legit. I sent in the paperwork and waited. Received a call the next day from "Arthur" saying it had been processed. Said I had to talk to their "Finance" department rep "Steve" in regards to my payment. Mind you, at this time we were broke. We had medical bills coming in, our regular house bills, car needed to be fixed... You get the point. I didn't have the money for the 5 month up front payment. They told me they would not release the loan without that amount being paid ($776). We had to borrow money from family members in order to get that amount, but we got it, so I called them to let them know I could make the payment. "Arthur" transferred me to "Steve", who walked me through the Western Union express payment. Said I should write it out to "David Tan" in Ontario Canada because that way they couldn't charge me extra for sending it to a business... After that was done, I called back in, talked to "Arthur" again, and he told me we would continue speaking over the next few weeks in regards to the loan.
Needless to say, the payment went out to them last week (10/7/10) and nothing. No loan has been received, and no call has been answered. I've left them messages, even gone to the site and sent them a contact request. Nothing. They took advantage of our desperation, and I feel very much the fool right now. Medical bills are coming due soon, as well as all the other home bills, and I know there is no way we can afford it. We thought they were a god-send, but they are nothing but a scam. A bunch of liars, and thieves. Don't make my mistake. Listen to your gut, and not to the desperate side of you that says that you need this and to not be scared. That fear maybe the only thing that keeps you out of falling for their trap.
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