On December 21, MPI sales representative, Caron Bracy, came to my shop to solicit my business. As a small business owner I am always interested in saving money, so I listened to what he had to say. Caron presented me with a service that was supposed to save my business roughly $600 per year. MPI was going to accomplish this by providing me with the lowest credit card processing fees in the business. When asked what the hidden fees were, he responded, "There aren't any".
The contract that I signed referred to some other fees that "may apply". I asked Caron how those fees might affect my service. He replied, "Those fees don't apply to your business". The contract also referred to a "Card Services Terms and Conditions" document regarding non-qualifying surcharges. I asked Caron what those were. He responded, "There are no other fees. All of the credit card types are treated the same". I, in good faith and trusting what I was being told was true, signed on with MPI.
Upon receipt of my first statement, I learned that Caron Bracy had lied to me. The statement was loaded with extra hidden fees that added up to nearly double what I was paying with my previous processor. I, by the way, was never shown the "Card Services Terms and Conditions" document.in fact, I was not provided any copy of the contract at the time of signing. My copies, along with the "Card Services Terms and Conditions" document, were sent to me several weeks later. MPI actually sent contractual information that was never disclosed to me at the time of signing.
That is when I found usacomplaints.com and discovered many reports of fraudulent behavior about MPI. The majority of reports reflected the same story as mine. I became very concerned about what else I might have been lied to about. I, of course, was never able to get my sales representative, Caron Bracy, on the phone. Nor would he answer the email I sent him.
So I called the MPI customer service number to discuss my concerns about the hidden fees, I was told to refer to the "Card Services Terms and Conditions", the same document that had been withheld from me at the signing.
Attempts to negotiate lower rates with MPI were met with more lies and deceit. I spoke with a representative named Brian who supposedly secured some rate reductions for me. However, upon receipt of my second statement, I found that none of them had been put in place. To this date, no credits have been given. I was sent a copy of the rate reductions and still MPI did not honor them!
In addition to the undisclosed fees, I was also never told that my equipment lease would be handled through the Lease Finance Group (LFG). The name on the contract was Lease Capital Group. This is a clear case of fraudulent misrepresentation. Had I been told that LFG would be the leasing company, I never would have signed on. I have already had an unpleasant experience with LFG and do not wish to give them my business now. I'll be filing a separate complaint about this part of the deception.
Obviously, if all of the hidden information had been disclosed to me, I never would have signed on. I am convinced that the information was intentionally withheld, and lies told, in order to get my signature on the contract.
MPI's business practices are fraudulent and unacceptable. I will not continue to do business with the company. I have closed my bank account so that they can't get anymore of my money. I have also filed complaints to the Oregon State Attorney General's Office, the Florida State Attorney General's Office and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The Oregon State Attorney General's Office, on their own, forwarded my complaint to the Federal Trade Commission.
Hopefully, something satisfactory will come of this.
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