Retriever Payment Systems Of Southwest Florida, Retriever Leasing Company, rips people off -- they are deceptive and unethical scam artists. I was scammed into signing a non-cancelable contract and have losts thousands of dollars. Houston Texas

In December 2005, I started my own home based invitation company using personal finances to cover start up costs. I am the only employee and make a minimal profit on most jobs. My work is very labor intensive; therefore, I value each dollar that I make. In March of 2006, I got a call from Retriever Payment Systems of Southwest Florida, who sold credit processing machines and services. I agreed to let the sales representative come to my home and explain what his company offered. He was a fast talking salesman who highlighted all the great opportunities and increased sales I would have if I signed up to lease this credit card machine and monthly service. I asked if I could purchase the machine and pay in full instead of making monthly payments. He said, Sure you can, but it makes more sense to lease it. It would cost several thousand dollars to purchase the machine up front. He made the option of purchasing the machine seem very silly and insisted that I sign up for the 4-year lease contract. He promised that I would be getting such a deal by paying only $65 a month for the equipment and the return on this investment would be incredible. He also assured me that I could sell the equipment in the end if I no longer needed it (he misled me on the value of the machine which is really less than $300). He also told me that I could cancel the agreement at any time for a $250 penalty, which I found out later to be a lie.

I used the machine a few times in the first year and paid a high percentage on each transaction which cut into my already small profit. The second year, I continued to pay for the machine by way of automatic withdrawal from my business checking account. I used the machine several times but never did it increase sales or bring in more business. I was basically throwing money down the drain. In addition to the monthly lease payments, I was being charged $35 a month for the service which did not include the individual transaction fees.

I soon realized that this credit card machine was a poor investment for my company which only did occasional sales. I decided to call and cancel the lease agreement for $250, like the salesman promised. I soon found out that the 4-year contract was non-cancelable and I would have to pay a significant fee in order to break the lease. I decided to wait it out, paying $100 a month in lease payments and service fees for nothing. The machine has sat unplugged and out of service for over a year now. I have faithfully paid every month; however, I consider it being stolen from.

I have only continued to pay in order to keep my outstanding credit. The Retriever company is undeniably unfair, unjust and unethical. This company misled me from the very beginning. I am not the only victim that Retriever has scammed. There are countless reports of victims who have been deceived by Retriever and have no one to help them. In most cases, the small business owner must continue to pay for a machine that is worthless along with a service that provides no benefit to the company.

The leasing company (Retriever Leasing Company) and the service company are separate, so I have had lots of fun dealing with each separately. It is obvious they are both part of the same company because they are stubborn and unwilling to compromise in my situation. The service contract was for 3 years. I also called about canceling this when I was only 2 years into the contract. I was told to just wait until the 3 years was up instead of paying the fee to break the contract. So I patiently waited until the 3 years had expired, but I was still being charged the automatic withdrawal for the service! I called to find out what was happening and they told me that the contract had been automatically renewed for 2 more years since I didn't call to cancel! This made me furious. I was instructed to write a letter and fax it to the cancelation department requesting that the $250 penalty be waived. I instructed them not to close my account if they were going to still charge me the fee. I got no response back from Retriever; however, I saw the charge for monthly service on my next bank statement.

I have since closed my bank account so they can no longer steal any more money than they already have. Technically, I paid for the full value of the machine within the first few months payments. How is it that this company can trick people into throwing their money at them and get away with it? I have worked very hard for the small amount of money I have in my company bank account only to have it drained by Retriever scam artists.

I have paid over $3500 in the past 3 years for a machine that is outdated and only worth a couple hundred dollars. How is this legal?

Can someone out there please help me in getting out of this mess?

In a time of economic crisis, how is it that a company can take advantage of faithful customers who have made timely payments for 3 years straight?

Anonymous
Fort Myers, Florida
U.S.A.