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If there was an option for more than 5 stars they would receive it! EFC has been a loyal partner in all we do for the 10 years that we have owned and run a Martial Arts Academy. I am so proud to call them family! read more

Terrible. Do not give your credit card to a school that uses this company. Try to take a break or cancel and you'll be continuously charged. Customer service is horrible. read more

Quit my local gym over two months ago, in writing, to both the gym owner and EFC. Called up EFC to confirm my cancellation with notice in May. They tried to rip me off an additional month through some clever math. Today at the end of July I am STILL being billed. Cannot get in touch with anyone who will help me at EFC. Also I never even signed a contract with this company, but a month-to-month agreement with the previous billing company at the gym. At this point I'm going to have to deal with this situation through external means. If you sign up at a gym who uses this payment processor, just be warned you may have to deal with serious headaches and extra charges when trying to leave. read more

Beware of this company. This is the billing company for my son's former martial arts school KEMPO OF HICKSVILLE INC. This is no reflection on the school (as of this writing; subject to change). We were part of the Kempo Martial Arts of Hicksville New York for a long time, and complained to the owner often about EFC (Educational Funding Company) and their crooked ways. It seems to me this may put the school in a bad light, since this is the company handling your money. But that's the way it goes. This is my hard earned money they are trying to steal. After so many years with KEMPO OF HICKSVILLE INC, do they really want us to remember them this way? Not good for business, I promise you. These freaks tried billing me for a final payment months after the expiration of my contract, months after I made that final payment. (Of course I confirmed and re-confirmed with my bank that the payment was made). The company even sent me an email stating that my business with them was concluded, and also a telephone conversation stating such. Then I get an email over 2 months later stating I owe them for that last payment. Crooks? Or just idiots? I don't like being harassed for a payment that was made months before. I warned them to stop. They have not, hence my review here, and any other public forum who will listen. Educational Funding Company attempts to scam people into paying money that is not owed them. Don't be a sucker. Go to the BBB website, as well as Yelp, and other review sites, and see how many people have had the same type of issue. If your school uses Educational Funding Company, keep copies of EVERYTHING. All your payments, everything. Because they WILL try to screw you over. Before you sign any contract with your school, question EVERY WORD on that contract. Literally. It's not like the school has never received complaints about EFC before. It's YOUR MONEY. Do not be bullied. On a personal note, this is all a shame. Because this crap is putting a dark shroud over our time with Kempo Hicksville. Update 1: My most recent communication from these freaks states my final payment is in dispute now, and I need to contact my financial institution to check the status. This is hilarious. Because I had already done that a week ago, and the bank showed me that payment was made to EFC months ago. Update 2: My latest communication from them, only 2 days after the prior one, states that my payments were "unsuccessful". Nothing about being "in dispute". Nonsense legalese and double talk. Update 3: The next day, a communication from them asking for a bank generated statement showing my payments. Why would they ask for that, if they claimed 1; my payment was in dispute, and 2; my payments were unsuccessful, and all this over the course of just a few days? Thieves. Don't fall for it. read more

My children are attending K2 Martial Arts (formerly Kim's Karate) and they outsource their billing to EFC. After trying to work with the school to handle billing issues I finally took legal action against the EFC directly to counter deceptive billing practices. If you find yourself at a martial arts school that uses the EFC for their third party billing, leave right away. The EFC has a "F" rating from the BBB. http://www.bbb.org/washington-dc-eastern-pa/Business-Reviews/consumer-finance-and-loan-companies/educational-funding-company-in-chevy-chase-md-7522 The EFC provides unprofessional customer service and management makes sure that the phone operators continually stonewall you. I called over a dozen times to try to get a hold of a manager and was given the run around each time. It took over 90 days to finally get the company to send me a written letter which listed the correct end date for my contract. Threat of legal action is the only way to get this company to act. read more

I've been dealing with EFC for a few months now and it all started when I wanted to freeze my account at my martial arts school because I'd be away for work for two months. The EFC was made aware by the school and still called me EVERY DAY looking for money, leaving messages. Months later and a different incident.... The second time I was charged for a month and they promised to refund my money. It took two weeks, 6 calls from me PERSONALLY and 4 calls from the actual school. The customer service reps either outsourced or are owned by an East Indian family. They're CLUELESS, UNPROFESSIONAL and LIARS. I had one rep say to me "Its 4:30pm sir I'm leaving my office....I cant do anything else for you" and rushed me off the phone. It has taken me almost 2 weeks to try and get my money back and I'm still waiting. I am looking into filing complaints locally where they're located and also as many online outlets as I can. I have a family member who works for the IRS in Maryland so lets see how far I can take this. FRUSTRATED!! read more

Assou Harvard with Champion Jiu Jitsu in Arlington Heights IL made an agreement with me in regard to my son taking jiu jitsu lessons at his studio. I was wary of signing a 12 mo' agreement but he assured me that I could get out of the agreement if I gave him written notice. My son started the class in April 08 and in Aug 08 I provided written notice that my son wishes to discontinue his classes. I received no response from Mr Harvard. After multiple attempts to contact him http://www.championjiujitsu.com/contact.html I received an email in December of 08 from "Julianne" that said she was the one that made an agreement with me and she clearly stated the terms of the agreement (Both of which are a lie), and if i wanted a refund that i had to contact Educational Funding Company for it. After multiple calls to Educational Funding Company I got in touch with a Cliff Quarrie who told me that he would assist on getting me a refund if I emailed him the corespondence that i had with Champion Jiu Jitsu noting my cancelation. The email he gave me was cliffquarrie@yahoo.com. I sent multiple emails to Cliff Quarrie with no response. I had to again call into Educational Funding Company this time i asked for Nick Cokinos (Chairman of the company who markets himself and his company as teaching integrity) reached him and i explained my situation and he said that he would transfer me to someone that dealt with refunds. The person i was sent to was "Villy" villy@efconline.com. He told me if i sent him the correspondence with Champion Jiu Jits AND Cliff Quarrie with Educational Funding Company that he would work on the refund issue. I have not received a response from Assou Harvard, Cliff Quarrie, Villy@efconline.com, or Nick Cokinos regarding my problems. Be wary of of doing business with Assou Harvard and Champion Jiu Jitsu as his word is NOT his Bond. Be wary of Educational Funding Company because they are the billing agents for Champion Jiu Jitsu and the integrity I have seen them display is in direct conflict with how they market themselves. Hopefully I can save others from the time/money andexperiences that I had to go through. read more

This company doesn't honor the terms of their contracts. If you don't close your bank account, you'll be charged long after your contractual obligations have been fulfilled. I've reported them to the FTC and BBB(where they have an "F" rating), so I suggest you do the same. I'm surprised a class action suit hasn't put them out of business already. The five-star reviews below are clearly written by teachers. I'm giving my opinion as a former student that paid tuition through EFC. Martial arts teachers that are out there to make money aren't real martial artists and should be ashamed. The 5 star reviews on this page are from people that run McDojos, otherwise known as Black Belt Factories. They prey on good, hard-working people. read more

terrible billing and service you have been warned. Constant letters that credit card was declined even though funds are available. You can call every month and update billing with same card and each month you get the same letter. In light of this business practice I am sending a certified letter canceling my services. read more

I have been with EFC since 1981. I have never had a problem that was not solved in a professional and timely manner. I could go to any other company that does tuition billing and I choose to stay with EFC because I have experienced integrity and honesty from each and every member of their staff. Empire State Karate has just celebrated 52 years in the martial arts and I am proud of the relationship we have with such a fine and forward moving company. Hanshi Joyce Santamaria read more

Unbelievably terrible. I'm shocked at how incredibly dubious EFC's billing and business practices actually are. Six months ago, I stopped taking Jiu Jitsu classes because I was having money trouble and had to move to a different neighborhood. I spoke with my instructor, told him that I'd be back sometime in the next six months, once my money troubles blew over. He told me he'd contact EFC to discontinue my contract and told me to do the same, so I sent an e-mail to their contact at EFC and figured that was that. Then I see another $170 transaction on my checking account, which just so happened to line up with my rent check. I call EFC, the contact (the same woman I spoke with previously) played stupid and told me that I never sent her an e-mail. I looked up the e-mail (while still on the phone with her), confirmed that her e-mail address was correct (it was!), and I forwarded THE SAME EMAIL that I'd sent to her previously (with the same timestamp that I'd sent a month before), TO THE SAME E-MAIL ADDRESS, and confirmed that she received it while I was still on the phone with her. I explained my situation, realized how incredibly difficult they were going to make it to get a refund, and decided to just take that last hit to my wallet and figured (again) that was that. (I also asked her to contact me if there were any problems; she didn't) ONE MONTH LATER: Surprise, surprise. Another $170 transaction. Fortunately, my landlord had already deposited my rent check, so that wasn't a problem, although it DID overdraft my checking account. I call EFC, speak to THE SAME WOMAN, she tells me she never received an e-mail, even though she confirmed that she had received it over the phone a month prior! She says she has to look into, and asks me to call back later. I call back. No answer. I call again. No answer. I call from a DIFFERENT number; GUESS WHO PICKED UP THE PHONE IMMEDIATELY. I call my bank, tell them to block any future transactions from EFC. Sorry EFC, you're not swindling me out of any more of my money. (I waited months before doing this, but do this IMMEDIATELY upon canceling with EFC. You'll thank me later.) So, I get a call today from their automated calling system, saying that I missed a payment. I've been getting these for several months since I talked to my bank, yet I got no calls from EFC when I was pleading with them to stop charging my account... strange. I call EFC, speak with some guy that I absolutely cannot understand (EFC outsources their call centers), who by the way was incredibly rude to me, and he tells me that I owe $500+ (lol), for the last couple months while I haven't stepped foot on a Jiu Jitsu mat in six months! Finally, the guy tells me to just call back tomorrow and speak with someone else, incredibly unhelpful, and here I am writing this review on Yelp. Six months ago, when I quit Jiu Jitsu, I told my instructor (great guy, btw) that I was only taking a break and that I'd be back in a few months. Now, my money problems are cleared up and I have a nice bit of disposable income, but I DO NOT WANT TO TAKE JIU JITSU EVER AGAIN BECAUSE I NEVER WANT TO DEAL WITH EFC. EFC is so awful that I literally never want to be part of a martial arts school again, just out of fear that I'll have to deal with another company like them. Such an incredibly horrible company, so rude over the phone, purposefully unhelpful, they employ downright sleazy business tactics, they'll flat out ignore your calls when you need help the most, and call you six times a day when they need yours. I want to practice Jiu Jitsu so, so badly, but I never want to deal with a company like them ever again. EFC should be ashamed of themselves. _______________________________________ TL;DR If you are a student looking to attend a school, do NOT sign up with any school that uses EFC. It is near impossible to cancel your contract, and EFC's billing agents (or whoever I spoke with over the phone) will purposefully go out of the way to make it unbearably difficult to cancel your contract. If you are a martial arts instructor or looking to set up a martial arts instruction school, do NOT partner with EFC! Your students will hate you for it, and they will not ever want to come back to your school if they need to take a hiatus. read more

I have to agree with the two folks who wrote real reviews of this company. Not some employee from EFC who is trying to get their star rating up higher. These guys do not live up to their word, are impossible to get a hold of, and make life incredibly difficult for anyone who does business with them. When I signed up at Renzo Gracie Academy in Stamford I was assured that when I told them I may have to move in with my mother which was more than 25 miles away from the gym that I would be able to cancel my membership. I had to cancel my membership after 8 months and stated so in writing on June 15th 2011 because my mother was terminally ill from cancer and I needed to move in with her to take care of her. She eventually passed, and I was under the care of a doctor and was unable to participate in physical activity. They have continued to bill me on a monthly basis saying I am not allowed to cancel my membership per my enrollment agreement despite the fact that they will not provide me with such document. Not that this maters anyway because I had just cause to cancel the membership. However, they have ignored me for months, yet continue to send me monthly bills which continue to compound. Do not do business with this company or any martial arts gym that uses them. read more

EFC is a wonderful company filled with people who care about my business. My students have been happy with their tuition collection process and we've never had a complaint in 20 years. It is important for students to realize that their martial arts school is responsible for changing any payment plan that was sent in to EFC. If you have a problem, reach out to your martial arts school. As a martial arts school owner I highly recommend EFC to other martial arts schools. They make it easy for me to focus on teaching. read more

I took Muy Thai classes, and at the end of the year decided to cancel my membership (I had to sign up for a year). This company kept charging me even though I called them several times. read more

I have been dealing with this company for months now. I gave written notice 40 days before out last day of attendance. We more than fulfilled out 1 year contract and a couple months after. We gave notice on 11/19/14 that our last day was 12/31/14 (more than 30 days notice) and was told that everything was taken care of. We were billed for January and February. I called numerous times and no one called back and each time I spoke to the rep they said they'd have to call the dojo owner and would get back to me. They never call me back. I filed disputes through my credit card company and I received a refund. EFC did not dispute these chargebacks and then I received a late bill for February. I called them and they said to disregard the notice and my account was now closed. Now I received a late bill for January (not February) and they added 2 months worth of late charges on top. I am calling them tomorrow again AND I'm sending a letter asking for them to validate these January charges. This has been a nightmare and I am reluctant to sign another marital arts contract. I am well aware of gym memberships and have no problem meeting the contract minimum and giving ample notice to cancel. In fact my gym will stop billing you after the year is up and they wait for you to sign a new contract to start billing again. I don't understand why EFC still bill after the contract is up AND after you cancel membership. I'm really disturbed because I have a good relationship with the dojo and even assistant taught for free (but I still paid my membership). But after 3.5 years my very young kids wanted a couple months break. If they continue to bill with EFC I'll be searching for another dojo that doesn't use EFC. read more

EFC is a dishonest company lacking basic integrity. I recently tried to cancel my Jujitsu contract at the end of the first 6 month renewal (I signed a 6 month contract with 6 month renewals). I was told on the phone that they would not renew me, and also, strangely, that according to their records I was on a 12 month contract. After faxing in a written request to confirm my cancellation and dispute the length of the original contract, I did not hear anything, so I called one week later. The agent I talked to told me that I had been taken off auto-renew, but claimed that I had signed a 24-month contract and had a full year left! I am still working to resolve this issue, but there is no doubt that EFC is solely interested in billing you for as long as possible, regardless of little details like the terms of the contract. read more

I recommend the following if you decide to sign up with a martial arts school that uses this company. 1. CHANGE THE TERMS of your contract to suit your own needs, for example, 3 months not a year in case you don't like it or don't want to continue, and have your changes initialed by yourself and the owner/manager. If they don't agree to this, find someplace that will. 2. KEEP YOUR CONTRACT!!!! Just put it in an envelope and in your top drawer! This will make your life much easier if you have any problems, which, if you read the other comments, is very likely. 3. KNOW YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS. If you read your contract, it is required to include the information that federal law and FDIC (banking regulations) support your right to discontinue automatic payments from your bank or credit card. 4. READ YOUR CONTRACT before you sign it. Take your time. Don't let them rush you. If they tell you something is included that is not part of the contract, write it down and have them initial it. 5. ASK QUESTIONS such as, what if I don't like the class, what if I move, what if I have money issues and need to take a break. Remember, they will likely tell you anything you want to hear, but get it in writing. 6. Although I know most people don't like to deal with checks and monthly payments these days, it would be much more prudent to NOT GIVE YOUR BANKING OR CREDIT CARD information to anyone. Once they have it, you've lost control over it. They can take your money, turn you over to a collections company and impact your credit if you close your account. So, pay monthly with a check. It's easy, just bring it with you when you go to class at the beginning of each month. read more

As an owner of multiple martial art schools, to say that I am disappointed with EFC is an understatement. EFC is an unprofessional and unorganized company with no integrity. Their customer service was horrible to me, and even worse, to my customers. With un-returned phone calls and unanswered emails, there was never any possible way to properly communicate what needed to get done, so nothing ever did. EFC would change their policy and not inform us. In addition to that, they did not adhere to our business's policies and changed some accounts without notification. How is a business supposed to operate when we can't trust the company we have hired to get important work done? They would promise to reach out to customers, but ultimately never even attempted to contact them. As a result, our customers were left without answers for urgent matters that needed attention. Now, as we try to leave their company, we have been struggling over a month to get in touch with them and get them to do anything. Don't join EFC. TKD Elite Staff read more

The Educational Funding Company is run by the Father of Martial Arts Billing, Consulting and Tuition collection. With out their help, Martial Arts schools would still be in the dark ages. If you have a true problem with your billing, I suggest meeting in person with the owner of the school. Not by phone, but in person. 99.9% would be happy to resolve the issue. Read the terms of any agreement you sign and the issue should never come up. The cancellation policy is also written on all agreements. As far as EFC, they are the premier Martial Arts Tuition organization company in the world. It's run by very capable people who are very understanding of everyones issues. They are fair and at the same time protect the student and the owner. They are without a doubt the best company in the world for tuition and consulting. read more

I literally was doing so well with my daughters tuition auto take out for her karate class, and some how after I wanted to renew her contact after the six month using the same acct info I use previous. They claim there are no funds available???? I actually called this ridiculous place and they ask for who the contract for and I stated my daughters name and then they go on to pretend that she doesn't exist in there system and continue to ask me questions that a collection person would. I stated to the teller, "that should my daughters name pop up with all of that information already in your system once you typed her in?" It doesn't make sense so I actually went to her karate class and talk to the main person in charge of taking care of accounts and billing, and she was very nice and patience, she stated that eveything looks good and nothing seems to be wrong. I was just in like total piss mode after all of this. read more

I signed a contract with a respected MMA school in Philadelphia which uses EFC for billing. The contract was for 10 Saturday classes only since my daughter was taking painting classes for 10 weeks in the area. The contract was for 3 payments of $133 only. The first being made to the school directly with the next two being made to EFC. Now EFC is still trying to bill me even though I have contacted the MMA school and them via phone and email. I don't trust this company and won't sign up at any school who uses them! read more

Educational Funding Company is being run by very capable people who are very understanding of everyone's needs. They protect the welfare of both the students and the school owners. They are without a doubt one of the best companies specializing in martial arts school's billing and tuition. read more

Educational Funding Company does not recommend "get rich fast" strategies. Instead, the company inspires martial arts schools to improve their classes as doing so will surely make more students want to learn. read more

I wish I can give this garbage company a negative star. First of all I honored my 12 month contract. I no longer wanted to attend the school. I called spoke to a lady named "Susie" she assured me that the contract would not be renewed. WELL guess what? they are still charging my card and its been a struggle to get them to stop. This billing company is an absolute thief. Please save yourself the aggravation and do not enroll your kids or yourself in any school that uses "Educational funding Company " They have caused me a financial hardship by constantly charging my card when im no longer enrolled. Great job Educational Funding Company and thank you Miss Susie hope you can sleep well at night knowing you are jerking people over. P.S make sure you get confirmation numbers and names when attempting to close an existing account with this garbage unprofessional company read more

I stopped going to my BJJ class back in March of 2012 and I had to call EFC many times and spoke with the same person a few times about canceling my membership. I thought I was done with this school and then in Dec I received a notice that I had to pay for OCT 2012 $170, so I disputed it with my credit card company. I called and they told me that all I had to do was pay the $170.00 like I was being held hostage. I called the CC company asked them to remove the dispute, which they did and I called those fucking morons and couldn't get a hold of the person I was dealing with, so I got the next asshole on the phone, who knew about my account and I told them to go ahead and charge the $170.00 and send me a letter that it was taken care of and I will never hear from EFC again. Today I get home from doing errands with my wife and newborn baby and when I opened up the mailbox, I saw there was some mail for me from a company I never heard of and I open it, and it is a collection notice from CBCS that they are trying to obtain $170.00 from me for EFC. These people at EFC are total fucking assholes and thank GOD I have all my credit card statements, showing that this was paid. EFC go fuck yourself's you miserable bastards. read more

If there was less than one star, I would have marked that one. My problem echoes the previous one-star reviews above. This company drags its feet. I've been trying for six weeks just to get a copy of my contract, which I never received when I signed up my 3-yr. old grandson for mixed martial arts. I wanted to cancel after four months, but they won't let me and told me to read my contract. I can't read it if I don't have it, and they won't send me a copy so that I may read my cancellation options. I've sent numerous emails and made phone calls, only to be promised a copy, but never receiving one. I still make my payments so they can't say I'm in breach of contract. I don't know where to turn next. If I have to go to a lawyer, I'll probably pay more than I owe this school. Where do we go when these companies take advantage of people who only want answers. If there is no way out of the contract, then I'll just have to pay, but I know there are options, but I'm not being allowed to know what those options are. read more

I just filed a dispute with my credit card company, the Better Business Bureau and Consumer Affairs against this company. I signed a contract with them for Rising Sun Karate school in Toms River in March of 2011. The contract automatically renewed in March 2012. In December of 2012, I contacted the company directly because I was having financial difficulties and could no longer afford the tuition. The rep. I spoke to Joseph was one of the most discourteous, unhelpful customer service people I've ever had the displeasure of dealing with. He advised me my only option was to pay almost $400 to get out of the contract. This amounted to more than I owed on the remainder of the contract so I had no choice but to keep paying. I sent a certified letter per their cancellation requirements 60 days in advance of the next renewal and lo and behold, a charge shows up on my card again in March. They are not accredited by the BBB and their rating with them is an "F". If you sign up for a martial arts school and this is the company theu use to handle their tuition billing, be wary! read more