American Financial Savings Consumer credit rip-off fraud Miami, Florida

THE CALL FROM "NASHVILLE, TN": On the week of April 8th I accepted an evening phone call from a "Mark Johnson" of American Financial Savings in "Nashville, Tennessee", stating that I've been "preapproved" for credit with AFS; and he went on to an attempt to sell me on the perks and benefits, and I would get started for $239.00. I told "Mr.Johnson" that I may be interested in an offer of credit, AFTER I have had an opportunity to review the complete terms in writing. I repeated this several times throughout our conversation. He went on to say that he would do nothing illegal, citing the Federal Consumer Act and his many years on the job. CALL TRANFERRED After futher discussion about my interest in reviewing the terms, "Mr. Johnson" eventually transferred my call to "Arrianna". After some initial discussion with "Arrianna", I realized she was not clear about my insistence that I'd need to review terms IN WRITING befor agreeing to any program or offer of credit. Her manner of speaking was quite vague; she did not discount nor acknowledge my request; she did say that I would recieve something in the mail for my review. I wanted her to be abundantly clear that I would not agree to any program until I gave my signature. She went on to ask if I knew that this would be $239.00 to sign up, and if I had a valid bank account, etc. Again, at every point whereas money or signup of the program was concerned, I again and again said that I may be interested in joining the program AFTER reviewing terms IN WRITING, and CONFIRMED with my signature that I agree to such terms. THE RECORDING OF THE CALL: "Arriana" seemed to have taken a cue that my "interest" meant that we could proceed. She asked if she could record the call, to which I agreed. But then she said something that I later found curious: she asked that during the recorded portion of the call that I answer questions with a simple Yes or No, and withold any questions or comments. At no point was I made aware as to the purpose of the recorded portion of the call; based on her demeanor, I thought that it would be for quality control monitoring purposes. "Arrianna" asked questions about my name, address, asked the Yes/No questions if I knew about the cost of the program, and if I went with the program that there would be an electronic funds transfer from my bank account from a future date. Then she asked for my SS# and bank account number, which I gave, unwittingly. The manner of "Arrianna's" call sounded like a regular routine procedure; and not being previously experienced at these matters, I did not see any reason to interject any questions or comments during the recorded portion of the call, such as my demand to see and agree terms in writing before authorizing any transfer of funds. That the ETF would be scheduled to occur at a future date, and expecting to see something in writing before any such transfer was made, I understood it to be that I would have time to review terms; and if I didn't find them acceptable, I would cancel the agreement. "AMERICAN FINANCIAL SAVINGS" - location? The next morning, I did some browsing on the net. I could not find any "American Financial Savings" listed. Those three words on dogpile.com, google.com, alta-vista etc. brought up a lot of banks and institutions with "American Financial" "American Savings" etc with nearly endless combinations; but none as American Financial Savings listed in Nashville. The directory assistance in Nashville did not even have a listing for American Financial Savings. I knew something was wrong. REQUEST FOR CANCELLATION: I then called back to "AFS" at the number they gave me: 800-257-5330. When I reached one of their representatives, I told them that after thinking it over, and decided I did not want to accept the offer. "VERBAL AGREEMENT" The representative said that would not be possible. I asked why, and was told that I could not cancel the agreement. I pointed out that we did not yet have an agreement since I did not give my signature. The rep said that there is a verbal agreement. I countered that I did not agree to a verbal agreement; and the rep stated that indeed there is a verbal agreement, and that it was recorded. I countered that what was also verbally discussed - and repeatedly - that I do not accept any terms of any agreement until I have had an opportunity to review it in writing and confirmed with my signature. The rep then only repeated that they have a verbal agreement, it was recorded, and there was no cancellation possible. I stated that at no point during the call was I made aware that I was consenting to a verbal contract, and that this is an unauthorized transation. I was asked what I thought the recording was for? I replied that I thought it would be for quality control purposes. The rep went back to thier standard line: Verbal Contract, No Cancellation. I then asked to speak with a supervisor. I was asked why. I stated that I am not recieving a satisfactory answer as to why the cancellation was not possible. The phone respresentative said "I've already told you why: we have a verbal contract". I said that I wanted to hear it from a supervisor. The rep said they will not do that. I insisted This went around for another mintue or two before the phone representative hung up on me. I called back again, got another representative, who exhibited the same stonewalling: no cancellation, verbal agreement, no you cannot speak to a supervisor. I asked for the name and phone number of the supervisor, and the rep said "I am a supervisor". At which point I asked to speak with the supervisor above that person. I was told that I would not be given any such information. I was again hung up on, and had not spoken to any supervisor. REQUEST TO MOVE THE EFT DATE: In the call the night before with "Arrianna", I was told that I could move the date for the EFT. And so on the third call back to "AFS", the first request I made was to move the date. I was asked until when, and I put it until May 15th. They said that would not be possible, and was given no alternate date or timeline. I had to ask about when, and finally told the furthest out I could get was April 26th. I agreed to that date. Then, I asked again to speak with a supervisor. As with the phone rep the day before, the phone rep said "I am a supervisor". (I guess they're all supervisors-?) I asked to speak with the person above them, and was again told that they were not going to put me in touch with anyone else. I asked for a corporate address, and instead of Nashville TN address, I was given an address of 7349 NW 34th St in Miami, FL. I asked who Mark Johnson was, and was told that it was just one of their sales reps. I explained that the verbal agreement I had with the sales rep included my request to review terms in writing before authorizing any transation. As with previous reps, I was met with a stonewall response: no cancellation, verbal agreement; no, you're not going to speak with any supervisors or account managers - then I was hung up on. MOVE OF EFT DATE NOT OBSERVED ("NO RECORD") I was surprised to find that there was an electronic debit made to my account on April 16th of $239.00. When I confirmed that it was made by "1-800-257-5330" (no other business name was listed), I called "American Financial Savings" immediately. The rep said that I gave an authorization to have an electronic debit made on my account for April 15th. I explained that I made a follow-up call and spoke with a representative to move the date to April 26th. The rep said there was "no record" that I made such a request. I let the rep know that I have serious concerns about their practices and procedures, and ran down the history of their misrepresentation made during the phone calls, their unresponsiveness, and refusal to put me in touch with a supervisor. Again, I was told there was a verbal agreement, and I was hung up on. This company's MO seems to be dependent on short-term memory loss, blank customer files of those who call in, and an overabundance of "supervisors" who cannot seem to get anything done, other than stonewalling "customers" and hanging up on them instead of being responsive and solution-oriented. I have filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, and plan to contact also the BBB of Southeast Florida. I've since learned that "American Financial Savings" is run by a Mr.Ricardo Martinez, and operates under a number of other names: e-Credit Solutions, Inc.; Capitol Choice; NCS; and other names. I understand that there is also a class action suit being pursued. Clayton El Cerrito, California Click here to read other Rip Off Reports on Capital Choice Consumer Credit - Choice Consumer Credit aka E-Credit Solutions

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