My 80 year old father, who is a Protected Person under court ordered Conservatorship (due to a history of financial exploitation through being the victim of internet / credit card scams in the past, for which I am sure he is on many "sucker" lists), was the vicitm of Five Star Commerce, when a charge to Five Star appeared on an illegally obtained credit card in October.
I became aware of the credit card and the charge to Five Star within 5 days of the initial transaction. My calls to Five Star were not returned. My Fax to Five Star did not go through. I sent letter with documentation of my status as Conservator as well as cancellation of account, but as of 3 months later, credit has not been given.
The charge was disputed on the credit card and initially reversed. The Five Star representative called me the day that the credit card statement came, showing the reversal of the charge. She asked me to withdraw the fraud charge, and that they would then credit me. I refused, encouraging her to continue to work with the credit card company. Unfortunately, the reversal was reversed again (charging back to my father again) after Five Star sent their "time line" of events to the credit card company, including copies of my father's signature of goods received approximately 12 days after the initial order was placed (the same day they claim to have recieved my cancellation letter, too late per their policy).
Five Star sold a website, which they created on the day of the initial purchase transaction, to a person who cannot even use the most basic aspects of a computer, much less a website. They also used sophisticated tactics to send a worthless document in the mail, for which they get the person's signature, as a means to justify to the credit card company that a "good" was actually received. They have ignored my court ordered Conservatorship status that neither the credit card nor the initial order were legally valid.
So far, the credit card company has not full recognized Five Star for the sophisticated scamming tactics that they are using.
I believe that Five Star representatives may have not only targeted their victim, a known incomptetent sucker who used to have money, coercing / extorting him with get rich financial promises, but that they also may have assisted him in obtaining the credit card on which the charge was made (or they did this independently of the victim, we can't know since they have targeted an incompetent individual who cannot provide reliable history and who lacks the computer skills to apply online, which I am told is how the card came about).in the process the evidence also suggests they obtained significant personal information, including W9 forms, on the victim.
Five star is using high tech methods to obtain and support their transactions as valid. Credit card companies may not recognize this level of sophistication is being employed, leaving the victim to pay the price of the crime, or to incur significant legal costs to right the wrong.
Five Star has not responded to the complaints that I have filed with government agencies.
I would encourage other victims to file complaints with the Az BBB, Attorney General of the state of Az and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, all available online, as well as with officials in your own states.
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