I have a client who's had a problem with "soft pulls" by Capital One showing up regularly on some of his credit reports. That's great, you say, but "what's a soft pull?" A soft pull is a credit report inquiry by a third party that doesn't show up when other people pull your credit report, and it isn't reflected in your credit score. What's the big deal then? you might ask. Well, regardless of whether it shows up when potential creditors evaluate you for credit, each time there is a soft pull, it means somebody saw some of your credit data.
There are two primary types of "soft pulls" . The first is an account review inquiry. This is done by a credtior with whom you already have an account, just keeping tabs on your general financial health. It's pretty much allowed period as long as you actually have an account with the company. If you don't have an account with the company, they shouldn't be doing account reviews. The other type is trickier. It is the "PRM" or "promotional inquiry". A promotional inquiry shows on your credit report when the credit bureau sells a targeted list to a prospective creditor based on defined characteristics chosen by the company that wants to sell you credit. The prospective creditor does not get your full information; rather, the creditor simply gets a ping that you are in the group they are looking for. The Fair Credit Reporting Act allows these inquiries, but only when, in exchange for the information, the prospective creditor agrees to make you a "firm offer of credit." The catch with Capital One seems to be how often they are doing it, and whether they are really making firm offers in connection with all of the inquiries. One thing I found out in my web research, that people have been complaining about the quantity of Capital one promotional inquiries for at least a decade. Here's a link to an articles at consumeraffairs.org talking about Capital One's promotional inquiries back in 2006.
If you find out that Capital One has been making a number of promotional inquiries on your credit report that do not correspond with firm offers of credit that you received, please call my office at 317-662-4529. I'd love to hear from you. You can also send me an email inquiry through my website at www.hoferlawindy.com.
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Sunday, March 25, 2018
Prospective RICO Class Action Filed (by another law firm) against Kevin Mason and Stuart Goldberg
About a year ago, I filed on behalf of clients a lawsuit against National Legal Staffing Support LLC, Kevin Mason and V. Stuart Goldberg regarding a student loan debt settlement operation. That was an individual law suit which is still pending as I write this. Since then I have received a number of calls from consumers asking if this lawsuit was a class action or was going to be turned into a class action. The answer is no.
HOWEVER, somebody else has stepped into the breach. Two other attorneys, Daniel Gamez (gamezlawfirm.com) and Macy Hanson (macyhanson.com) have filed a putative class action lawsuit, Matthew Ali v. Kevin Mason, P.A. et al in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, case 2:18-CCV-01110-CBM-FFM. A copy of the complaint and a write-up can be found at classaction.org with this link. Please note that I am not associated with the Ali lawsuit in any fashion.
This lawsuit alleges Racketeering (RICO) on the part of the defendants. RICO is hard to prove and many if not most RICO cases get dismissed early in the proceedings. - Which is not to say that it is a waste to file them, because it often isn't. If nothing else, this lawsuit may extend the statute of limitations for a number of consumers who have potential claims.
Do not call me regarding the class action lawsuit. Please call either attorney Gamez or Hanson through their websites referenced above.
HOWEVER, somebody else has stepped into the breach. Two other attorneys, Daniel Gamez (gamezlawfirm.com) and Macy Hanson (macyhanson.com) have filed a putative class action lawsuit, Matthew Ali v. Kevin Mason, P.A. et al in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, case 2:18-CCV-01110-CBM-FFM. A copy of the complaint and a write-up can be found at classaction.org with this link. Please note that I am not associated with the Ali lawsuit in any fashion.
This lawsuit alleges Racketeering (RICO) on the part of the defendants. RICO is hard to prove and many if not most RICO cases get dismissed early in the proceedings. - Which is not to say that it is a waste to file them, because it often isn't. If nothing else, this lawsuit may extend the statute of limitations for a number of consumers who have potential claims.
Do not call me regarding the class action lawsuit. Please call either attorney Gamez or Hanson through their websites referenced above.
Saturday, March 3, 2018
Timeshare Relief Companies - Coming Back
When I worked for UAW Legal Services Plans, very often I would have a client come in with a timeshare that he/she couldn't afford. That experience made me really hate timeshares. What I hate worse than timeshares are the scammy companies who get money from desperate timeshare owners and generally do nothing.
Fifteen years ago the scam centered on companies promising to find a buyer for your timeshare, and naturally you had to pay them an up-front fee. Now the scam seems to be a simple problem of "relief" from your timeshare, no promises you will get any cash from the deal, just that you will get out of the timeshare. Of course, you have to pay them a fee, usually about $3,000.
What the timeshare relief companies generally won't say int heir advertising is that to qualify for their program, you have to be completely paid up on your timeshare, with all dues and assessments current as well. What they also don't tell you is the more reputable timeshare companies (and I hate saying that), such as Wyndham, will generally take your timeshare back for FREE if it is completely paid for and dues and assessments are current. When your timeshare is not current, it's just a problem to get rid of period, and there is no easy answer. Sometimes the best thing to do is file bankruptcy. Sometimes the best thing to do is default and try to settle up with the company when they sue you. None of the alternatives are perfect or costless.
I am not takng cases from people who are trying to get out of their timeshares. I will consider cases from people in Indiana who were defrauded by timeshare relief companies. If you are from Indiana and are having a problem with a timeshare relief company, please contact me through the "quick contact" form on my website, http://www.hoferlawindy.com/ If you are from another state and have a timeshare problem, I suggest you talk to a NACA consumer attorney in your state. You can find one with this link.
If you have a personal experience with a timeshare company or a timeshare relief company that you would like to share, please enter it in the comments. (If the discussion gets out of hand, I may have to shut it down, but let's see how it goes.)
Fifteen years ago the scam centered on companies promising to find a buyer for your timeshare, and naturally you had to pay them an up-front fee. Now the scam seems to be a simple problem of "relief" from your timeshare, no promises you will get any cash from the deal, just that you will get out of the timeshare. Of course, you have to pay them a fee, usually about $3,000.
What the timeshare relief companies generally won't say int heir advertising is that to qualify for their program, you have to be completely paid up on your timeshare, with all dues and assessments current as well. What they also don't tell you is the more reputable timeshare companies (and I hate saying that), such as Wyndham, will generally take your timeshare back for FREE if it is completely paid for and dues and assessments are current. When your timeshare is not current, it's just a problem to get rid of period, and there is no easy answer. Sometimes the best thing to do is file bankruptcy. Sometimes the best thing to do is default and try to settle up with the company when they sue you. None of the alternatives are perfect or costless.
I am not takng cases from people who are trying to get out of their timeshares. I will consider cases from people in Indiana who were defrauded by timeshare relief companies. If you are from Indiana and are having a problem with a timeshare relief company, please contact me through the "quick contact" form on my website, http://www.hoferlawindy.com/ If you are from another state and have a timeshare problem, I suggest you talk to a NACA consumer attorney in your state. You can find one with this link.
If you have a personal experience with a timeshare company or a timeshare relief company that you would like to share, please enter it in the comments. (If the discussion gets out of hand, I may have to shut it down, but let's see how it goes.)
Pension Assignment Problems Are Coming Back
Just when I thought the pension assignment industry was dead, they keep popping back up. The current problem seems to be collection effords driven by the "investors" who purchase the pension assignments. I have beeen dealing with these cases since 2014. Below is from a blog entry that I wrote initially in 2015.
In my opinion, these contracts are illegal not just from the point of view of the seller, but also from the point of view of the buyer as well. From the seller's point of view, they are disguised loans without required disclosure. From the buyers' point of view, they are illegal securities. The basic rule of securities law is that, unless an exemption applies, the security must be registered and the seller must be licensed to sell the security. In most of these cases, the security is not registered and the seller is not licensed to sell the security.
Many times these pension securities are sold to unsuspecting buyers by their trusted life insurance agents. These life insurance agents may have a bond and professional liability insurance. This is important because the companies putting these securities together may be practically insolvent or their assets may be out of reach of a reasonable-cost lawsuit. The sellers' only recourse may be to bring a claim against the life insurance agent or other person who sold them the security.
Note this applies not just to pension securities but other investments that might be sold by brokers and agents. I have seen cases involving illegal church bonds, for example.
If you bought a pension investment that is not performing, or were sold some other type of worthless security from a life insurance agent, including church bonds or unregistered corporate bonds, please call my office at 317-662-4529.
Of course, we still represent consumers who have sold part of their pensions. Here are some of the companies that are involved in the industry
Voyager Financial Group, LLC (also doing business as Pension4Case, Cash out my Pension, Buy Your Pension)
Veterans Benefit League
Cash Flow Investment Partners
LumpSum Pension Advance
Pension Funding, LLC
Pensions Annuities & Settlements LLC
Pension Income LLC
DFR Pension Funding
Veterans Benefit Leverage
First American Finance Corporation
Investing Forward (Termbrokers LLC)
In my opinion, these contracts are illegal not just from the point of view of the seller, but also from the point of view of the buyer as well. From the seller's point of view, they are disguised loans without required disclosure. From the buyers' point of view, they are illegal securities. The basic rule of securities law is that, unless an exemption applies, the security must be registered and the seller must be licensed to sell the security. In most of these cases, the security is not registered and the seller is not licensed to sell the security.
Many times these pension securities are sold to unsuspecting buyers by their trusted life insurance agents. These life insurance agents may have a bond and professional liability insurance. This is important because the companies putting these securities together may be practically insolvent or their assets may be out of reach of a reasonable-cost lawsuit. The sellers' only recourse may be to bring a claim against the life insurance agent or other person who sold them the security.
Note this applies not just to pension securities but other investments that might be sold by brokers and agents. I have seen cases involving illegal church bonds, for example.
If you bought a pension investment that is not performing, or were sold some other type of worthless security from a life insurance agent, including church bonds or unregistered corporate bonds, please call my office at 317-662-4529.
Of course, we still represent consumers who have sold part of their pensions. Here are some of the companies that are involved in the industry
Voyager Financial Group, LLC (also doing business as Pension4Case, Cash out my Pension, Buy Your Pension)
Veterans Benefit League
Cash Flow Investment Partners
LumpSum Pension Advance
Pension Funding, LLC
Pensions Annuities & Settlements LLC
Pension Income LLC
DFR Pension Funding
Veterans Benefit Leverage
First American Finance Corporation
Investing Forward (Termbrokers LLC)
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