I got taken by these guys 3 times in the last 2 years. 2 of those are my fault according to the "once bitten twice shy" theory, but that doesn't mean others shouldn't beware.
The first time was innocent enough; I was solicited by phone by a nice-sounding young lady promising "good" internet leads for a change. I should have known better (having fallen for the same pitch multiple times before) but, like everyone else, needed a lead source and had few options due to previous bad experiences. What I experienced couldn't have been re-produced even in a cartoon world.
First, I was told I had to deposit $250 to start an account. This was more than I had ever heard from an internet lead company but I fell for the "They must ask for more because they're the good one" line. Turns out I was charged twice for the $250 "accidentally"" on 8/12/09. I called when I got my credit card statement the next week and was told that this was a "common" error and that it would be refunded to my card "as soon as possible".
Today is 9/11/09. Still no refund to my card, and that's the LEAST of my worries. Come to find out this has happened to a lot of their customers recently since they changes their name from Insuranceleadz.com. Apparently they had to change their name due to negative reporting on them in the past due to similar issues.
Since the opening of my account I have been billed twice for $100 for no reason. I was told this was another "glitch", and that I'd get a prompt refund for these charges as well. Guess what? Hasn't happened yet.By asking around (I'm a State Farm agent and apparently we're their favorite target) I found out that they buy most of their leads from other lead-generation companies and are on the verge of collapse. Word is they like to call State Farm agents and claim to be an "approved vendor" when they most certainly are not.
Turns out it is going to take 3-6 weeks to get my money back, assuming I get it at all. State Farm corporate told me they have contacted the company about claiming they are an approved vendor and have continued to receive complaints nonetheless.
I don't recommend ANY internet lead generation company, but I've dealt with more than a few and this is the worst. I found on-line that the owner is only 25 and was dismissed from Allstate a couple years ago.
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