Care Credit - GE Money Bank Extremely deceptive, manipulative, and shamelessly greedy practices that constitute usury. El Paso Texas

In May 2006 I agreed to have dental work that included the replacement of six very old crowns and veneers on the front teeth. The cost was almost $12,000 and before commiting to the work I asked about the possibility of paying in installments. Both the dentist and his staff said they did have that option through something called "Care Credit." They said you could have ZERO PERCENT financing for up to a year and low interest financing for even longer.

At the time, I was paying for a LaZ-boy couch precisely on those described terms- it was zero percent for a full 18 months after which it jumped to 22% on the balance. That seemed more than fair to me and I assumed that loans meant for medical purposes should logically be on terms that were at least that good.

The secretaries told me to call Care Credit with any questions because none of them knew the details. In fact, I could not find anyone in the office who could tell me anything about Care Credit- you could only get information from the toll free number they gave you, apparently absolving them of all responsibility for Care Credit's nasty practices. I looked at the brochure, which also claimed to offer ZERO PERCENT financing and called the number to ask about their "low interest financing" for longer periods. It turned out low interest was not low at all- 11% and up, so I applied for the zero percent for one year. My application was approved and the secretaries asked me how much of my bill to put on the card. I said I might as well put the whole thing on it if it was a zero percent loan, so they put $11,750.00 on my CareCredit account.

When my first statement arrived, there was a finance charge noted in one of the many boxes on the statement of about $400.00. It said the charge would be waived if the entire bill was paid off by the end of the promotional period and if every minimum monthly payment came in on time. If either of these conditions was not met, I would be paying 22-29% interest on the entire $11,750.00, regardless of how much I owed. In other words, this was not a zero percent interest loan but rather a DEFERRED INTEREST LOAN AT 22-29%. Furthermore, even if I paid 90% of what I owed in the first month, if I either did not pay the entire balance by the end of the year or was late just once, I would pay 22-29% interest on money I had already paid- I would owe almost $4000 on top of the $11,750.00.

First I called CareCredit and noted that there was a "ghost" finance charge on my statement and the representative quickly noted that this was a DEFERRED INTEREST LOAN. I asked why it was marketed as "zero percent interest" financing when a true zero percent interest loan would not charge any interest until the year was over and would never charge you interest on money already paid. The representative said it worked like student loans and I later found that student loans are GE Money Bank's other business. Care Credit was clearly marketed deliberately deceptively as zero percent financing for medical loans to a very vulnerable consumer market.

I called the dentist's office to complain and explained how deceptive Care Credit was and told them it was not a zero percent loan but rather a deferred interest loan and should be advertised as such. They said they had never had any complaints about it and always told patients that they had to pay within the year for it to be zero percent. They said Care Credit representatives had told them it was a zero percent loan and that was why they advertised it that way.

I wondered why medical and dental offices like my dentist's would recommend Care Credit as a way to do what they used to let you do for free- pay medical bills in installments. Why were dentists, veterinarians, and doctors, providing such a dangerous and devious option to finance expensive treatments when almost any other commercial credit card could offer a better deal? And why was Care Credit marketing its student loans as Deferred Interest loans but its medical loans as "Zero Percent" financing?

I had to think that CareCredit had to be paying dentists and other medical professionals to take over the business of extending credit to their patients. My suspicions became stronger when I went to the website and found out that I could earn an INCENTIVE by participating on their review board. My suspicions were confirmed when I called to ask a representative some key questions. The representative said there was no difference between their deferred interest student loans and their zero percent financing medical loans and could not tell me why they were marketed differently. I asked how they got away with paying people like my dentist "incentives" to use Care Credit and the representative said that all information on incentives was private and if I wanted to find out about anything paid to my dentist, I would have to ask my dentist. It was very clear from our conversation that medical professionals are PAID TO OFFER CARE CREDIT as THE financing option in their office.

Not only is this allegedly zero percent financing, really a 22-29% deferred interest loan that medical offices are bribed to push on their patients, but it also negatively affects your credit rating. Care Credit files monthly inquiries to the credit reporting agencies. When I looked at my credit report, I found out that Care Credit was my only creditor that filed monthly inquiries. (The number of inquiries into your credit is one of the factors used in your credit rating- the greater the number of inquiries, the more negatively your credit score is affected.)

Ironically, before signing up for Care Credit, my credit rating was so good that I could have applied and received dozens of credit cards offering zero percent introductory rates for as long as 18 months. I made the mistake of trusting my dentist and assuming that CareCredit really was the safest and most effective way to finance a large medical bill.

CareCredit tops off its deceptive practices with a trick it pulls as the "promotional period" is coming to an end. The date the loan is due is deliberately timed to be BEFORE the last statement is due. In my case, my promotional period ends September 23rd, which I logically believed must be the due date of my August statement. There is a note in fine print on my July statement that says my promotional period ends BEFORE the statement due date for that month, reminding me that I must pay off the entire loan by the date of the end of the promotional period, not that of the statement...and leaving unsaid that I will owe over $4000 on top of the $1050 balance I have left after laboriously whittling down the $11,750 I originally had on the card.

Though no small feat, I have been able to avoid falling into the many CareCredit traps. My final payment will go in this month and I will escape without any financial penalties, though plenty of emotional ones. I have therefore personally not been injured but after finding out how CareCredit works I cannot help but believe that there are many people out there who have fallen prey to one of the most devious scams I have come across in a long time. Ever since finding out about Care Credit all I could think was "If this is not class action law suit material, what is?"

CareCredit/GE Money Bank is bribing medical professionals nationwide to subject one of the most vulnerable consumer groups to some of the most devious, damaging terms in the credit industry. People who innocently think that their veterinary, medical, and dental bills are being financed on the most preferential terms available are instead hit with the reality that the loan is rigged to make it as likely as possible that consumers will pay one of highest interest rates you can legally charge on some of their largest, most needed, and often unexpected bills.

Someone has to stop this company and everyone who is colluding with them to bilk consumers out of their hard earned money. While I cannot be the "test case" because I have not technically suffered damages, I will cooperate with anyone and everyone who wants to do something about this problem.

Although I am a staunch believer in capitalism and the entrepreneurial spirit, I am ashamed of General Electric for stooping to such base practices and even more dissappointed in good people like my dentist for accepting "incentives" to become a partner in this scheme. Predatory practices are not illegal but it should be illegal to make them this deceptive and to give one company a monopoly over the business of offering credit in a medical office.

Medical professionals and GE should not be marketing deferred, high interest loans as zero percent financing for out of pocket medical expenses. Medical professionals should not be accepting payoffs to offer CareCredit as their financing option but should rather open it up to competition and let consumers know that many commercial credit cards may be able to offer them better terms if they have good credit. They should also let consumers know how CareCredit can damage their credit history with their constant inquiries and should make sure that their staff knows the details of how CareCredit works. Medical professionals should take some responsibility for the financing options they offer. Finally, there is no excuse for making promotional period dates not coincide with statement due dates.

I am happy that others are reporting their experiences and hope that there will be enough of us to put all of the people behind this scam to shame. I also hope that the people who are damaged speak out and that those responsible for the harm they suffer be made to pay every penny of the damages inflicted on CareCredit victims.

New haven care credit victim
New Haven, Connecticut
U.S.A.

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