I wasn't going to say anything about my INVESTools experience at first out of respect for their coaches, but now I am so frustrated with their customer service and cancellation department, that I felt it very important to post a complaint on this site. I hope that this message will reach other students that have experienced similar problems with the company as I have, and that they also post their experience with the company. Consumers need to be informed about INVESTools before they invest thousands of dollars into their education like I did. I have had so many problems with INVESTools that it is hard to know where to start.
All consumers beware because INVESTools has two faces. When you attend the free seminar, you will meet their smiley-faced saleman with such a good sense of humor that you might actually believe all he says. He will share photos of his family and tell stories about dear ones, etc. He'll tell you how he started with $5,000 and turned it into millions trading with INVESTools. These guys are some of the best salesmen in the world, and you won't even realize it until you have already dumped $20,000 into their program and 2 years later have lost half of your retirement trying to trade options using your new investor education. How do I know this? You see, I am a consumer, just like you, seeking that financial security and well-being, and I am a gullible consumer that fell for their sale's pitch.
Here's what I was told. I was told that I could never learn to trade options from a book, just as a doctor would never learn to operate from reading a book either. I was told that I would make my tuition back within 6 months, and I was encouraged to charge the $20,000 on my credit card. (I even explained to the saleman that I was already in debt financially, and he insisted that this would change my life for the better.) I was told at the seminar that if I was not making money by the end of the program that he would personally work with me until I was successful. I was told by my sales rep that I would be given a very special deal if I agreed to be another success story for the company. (This was an especially good sales tactic making me believe even more in their program.) I was also told that the average PHD student was making 30% a month trading options. I was basically told everything I really wanted to hear, especially since I was having financial problems at the time.
Well, it's now been 2 years, and guess what, I am not the next INVESTools success story. Actually, I have lost nearly half of my savings trading the INVESTools method. I certainly never made my tuition back. I am now farther in debt than ever and my credit cards now exceed $50,000. The interest rates are so high that I can't keep up, and debt collecting agencies are calling me, harrassing me, and I am really in a serious financial state now. I can't say I owe it all to INVESTools, but I can honestly say about $30,000 of it has been lost going after the dreams that they sold me.
What has really pushed me over the edge recently was that I tried to communicate to the company that the education was not working out for me, and I wanted some of my tuition refunded because I felt they lied to me, and I also wanted my yearly subscription of $600 to their website back because I had no intention of using it anymore. I requested the website cancellation before my yearly subscription even started. But what they did was very sneaky. They renewed my website access 3 months before the subscription fee was actually due. So now my payment date on my credit card bill does not match my subscription renewal date. I had to file a dispute with my credit card company because they never responded to my requests, but now it looks like I had access for 3 months already, but the truth is that I had not even started my next year's subscription yet. I now know the reason INVESTools bills early. They do this is because when you file a dispute as I did, they say you have already used the site for 3 months and you do not qualify for a refund. The credit card company does not know all the facts, so they side with INVESTools on the dispute. So now that the credit card company has awarded INVESTools the $600, here's what INVESTools replied to me by email:
"You are not eligible for a full refund. You disputed this charge and the outcome of the dispute was in INVESTools favor. You can either accept a prorated refund or you can accept no refund at all. Those are your options."
Pretty nice hah? I couldn't believe that INVESTools actually threatened to rip me off $600 more! They closed my online access to the website and also kept the $600! They did not even offer me a partial refund until I contacted them. If I didn't say anything, they would have closed my account and kept all the money too. And I am a PHD student. I have already paid them over $20,000. To this day I still have not received any refund. I am checking my statement each day, but no credits show. I know this is totally illegal but not sure what I can do. If anyone reading this knows who I should contact, please post. I think I will start with the Attorney General, but INVESTools is in Utah, so I don't think they will do anything.
So that is some of my bad experience with INVESTools. I would also like to add that their hotline is very mixed. Sometimes you will get a good coach, sometimes you'll get a newbie who knows less than you, and sometimes you'll get a condescending a-hole. They know nothing about double diagonals, condors or calendars, so if you want to trade methods that actually work, don't bother with the hotline or INVESTools at all.
Before I leave, I would like to say a few good things about INVESTools. The good side is that they have many coaches that are pretty decent people. The only problem is that their website is really not for trading options. It's a pretty good site for trading stocks only. I have since been furthering my education in Options and finding some success finally. My advice is check out some free videos on CBOE.com. I wish I found that site before I found INVESTools. I really do regret ever paying INVESTools so much money now that I see what kind of people they really are.
So let's here it. What other students have been ripped off? I have met a lot of alumni, and I have still not found one INVESTools student who makes money month after month, year after year. Their option strategies do not work, and their site is not near as good as using software created specifically for options. Well enough said. Good luck on your trades and be sure to research INVESTools before you invest your hard-earned money into them. I for one am not happy with my investment.
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