First, this firm charges 29% as a fee. After paying them for about two years I sold my home of 25 years so that I could become debt-free and asked how much was required to pay off all my debts and pay them their fees.
First, they gave me one amount. Then five days later, after I wired the money to them, they said that they made a math error and it would cost me $22,000+ more. Their fiduciary capacity is inaccurate and amateurish. They made mistakes several times. This is against FTC regulations because their fiduciary ineptitude caused them to misinform me.
Not knowing any better, I paid what I was told to, only to find out that they made errors in math and I had, in essence, overpaid.
I did some research and found out that they were violating FTC regulations that mandate that a credit repair organization cannot take their fee until they have "fully performed." In other words not until they have paid off the debt.
This is mandated in FTC Pub. L. 90-321, title IV, §404, as added Pub. L. 104-208, div. A, title II, §2451, Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009-456.
Gershfeld was taking fees early, before my debt was paid, which is illegal.
Their contract even has this written into it, although it is a violation of FTC regulations. I filed a complaint with the California State Bar and the FTC.
Although this is not an innocent mistake, the firm's owner is not correcting this behavior. Not only that but my attorney found out that Gershfeld paid my last debt off, then called Wells Fargo and took back the money that I paid to pay my final debt so they could take their fee. Again, this is illegal, because they took their fee before taking care of their customer. I have a complaint in with the California State Bar and the FTC. Gershfeld owes me $16,000+. Shame!
My attorney has it on tape that Wells Fargo confirmed Gershfeld paid my Wells Fargo debit and then had Wells Fargo give them back that money, which left me being thrown to the wolves. After Gershfeld paid themselves I was forced to pay another $16,000 to Wells Fargo so that my credit wasn't harmed again. Very disappointing that someone (Mrs. Gershfeld) that makes several hundred thousand dollars a year would "steal" fees from a client that has a limited income as a retired handicapped senior and is just getting their finances back in order. How cheap and greedy. Buyer beware of Gershfeld! read more
