Grace Period, Inc.

Review: I took out a loan for $200 with an agreed upon repayment of $225. At this time,$540 has been collected. After attempting to reach Grace Period and not reaching a person, but getting stuck into their automated system only to either be disconnected or get a voice mail prompt and leaving messages that were not returned, I placed a stop payment to cease the deductions from my account. Once the stop payment was placed, a week later a call from Grace Period was received threatening collections. When I returned the call, I again reached a voice mail box and never received a call back. I did not want to be a part of their program. I wanted to payback the loan a week after it was taken out. This option was never given to me by the employee with whom I initially had contact when the loan was taken out.Desired Settlement: I would like my $315 refunded and to be taken out of collection status. I have fully paid back the loan.

Review: The company closed down, I want to know where the money went to that the withdrew automatically out of my checking account every 2 weeks, as my loan was paid off?Desired Settlement: I would like to have my money refunded.

I'm so sad this company is no longer in business. I have used them twice and have also referred several friends to them. They have helped me out so much in the past. It's a shame other people did not have the same experience.

Review: I had a loan with a loan company and paid it off. I continued to allow them to withdraw fund from my checking account that went into a savings account called "Emergency Funds" that I could access in 24 hrs. On Mar11,2015 I tried to withdraw my funds and was told they could not return my funds because they were under investigation by The Pa. Dept. of Banking. I called the Pa Dept of banking they said there was nothing stopping them from returning my funds, in fact they encourage them to do so in there Agreement.Desired Settlement: Return my emergency funds immediately.

Review: Grace Period is a savings plan/Payday loan service. I received notification in February that they were no longer allowed to operate under regulations from the PA Dept of Banking and were not allowed to accept any more savings deposits or to make any future payday loans. Enclosed you will see the correspondence from them:

Dear Members:

It is with a heavy heart that we must inform you that by an agreement made with the PA Dept. of Banking; Grace Period, Dime-A-Day Solutions and Graced Lending will no longer be able to perform the club functions you have become accustomed to receiving.

Specifically, we have been instructed to imediately suspend the making of loans, both "club loans" ans "self loans".

We recognize that our inability to make funds available to you immediately could create the very cash access problem we have attempted to correct by this program’s existence. While we empathize, we were unable to negotiate any arrangement in which operations could continue, even in the short run.

Our function now is to collect all outstanding loans for fair and equitable distribution among our Members.

Our hope is to be able to begin distribution of funds to our Members by March 31st 2015.

This is all the information we have at this time. Please check this site for further updates.

Please know that all of us here are deeply saddened by the Dept. of Banking’s decision and will keep this site updated as more information becomes available.

Due to this situation we have streamlined our operations and have created a single email address for your use, [redacted]

Thank You for being a Member!

The funds I had accumulated by making biweekly payments into the savings plan of $70 per pay have not been refunded to me, nor have I received an itemized statement of deposits as I requested. All I keep getting are generic e-mails stating my refund will be processed as soon as possible but they have no idea when.Desired Settlement: I would like the full amount of funds that I have paid into this plan to be refunded to me within the next 15 days.

Review: I had money saved up with Grace Period and after they were forced to shut down by the PA banking department they listed on their website the disbursement dates when consumers would receive their money. The last disbursement date they have listed is today, yet I have still not received my money!!Desired Settlement: To get all of my money back and any money that I was overcharged in dues.

Review: Entered into loan agreement with Grace Period for 6 month repay at $55.00 a month. EFT on select day was incorrect and was aware of errors.Desired Settlement: Pay penalty fee as under the law.

Business

Response:

Our records indicate Mr. [redacted] has never made successful payment towards his loan balance. Mr. [redacted]’s account is being processed in collections but we would be more than willing to work out payment arrangements. If you have any further questions or concerns regarding this matter I can be reached at ###-###-####. Sincerely, [redacted]

Review: I am fully disabled with brain damage on a limited Social Security income with 3 children. I was in the payday trap when a saw an advertisment for Grace Period "Faith Based" Free Loans. I signed a bunch of paperwork and got a $200 loan. That was a year ago. They are still taking $175 a month out of my bank account and I can not get a straight answer. I need help!Desired Settlement: I want my money back or at least for them to stop taking more.

Business

Response:

We have unsuccessfully attempted to contact Mr. [redacted] on several occasions and once leavinga message with his wife with no return call. Per his instructions Mr. [redacted] was exited from ourprogram on 11/21/2014. We regret any misunderstanding Mr. [redacted] may have had regardingour program and all it has to offer. We’ll continue to reach out to Mr. [redacted] in an attempt tohelp him gain a complete understanding of our program.We thank you for your assistance.

Consumer

Response:

After opening this case they excited me from the program with out contacting me and kept all my money. I can not believe this scam and that it is legal to continue. No one ever contacted me and in fact I left several messages.

Regards,

Review: This company seems to be a scam of some sort. I joined this program because they stated it was an emergency fund and I would essentially be borrowing off of myself because they take transfers directly from my bank account on my paydays. However, this is not the case. I started this program in early April. I borrowed $250. They have taken a total of $415 from my bank since April and they tell me that I still have a balance of $256 that won't get paid off until September. Somehow, those numbers do not add up. When I requested an explanation and breakdown of how this is so, I have received no response. In the past, when I have asked questions, I get one sentence responses with very minimal information.Desired Settlement: I would like my membership to be discontinued and the transfers to stop. How I end up paying over double the amount that I borrowed is unheard of and this program is a scam.

Business

Response:

We recently spoke with Ms. [redacted], and it is to our understanding that she has dropped the

complaint against Grace Period. She wishes to continue her membership and stay in the program.

If you have any further questions or concerns please feel free to give me a call at ###-###-#### X: [redacted]

or email my assistant at [redacted], whom will bring any questions or concerns you may

have to my immediate attention.

Consumer

Response:

Hello.

Can you tell me how to reactivate my complaint against this company? Or any other way to file a complaint??? Now they are flat out stealing my money. According to a recent email, my account balance due was $96. My transfer amount is only supposed to be $70, today they took $140 without my authorization. No one will call me back or return my emails. I signed up for this thinking I was going to accumulate $$ into an emergency fund, however this is not the case. They have been taking $70 from each of my paychecks since April - I only borrowed a total of $250 - so that's roughly $625 they have taken, yet they say I'm still paying off my balance. I don't understand where my money has gone and now they are taking whatever they want out of my bank account. I have 5 children, we live paycheck to paycheck and I am the only one employed in our home. This company is definitely a scam and thieves. I don't know what to do.

Thanks for any help.

Review: I went to grace period on september 3 to check on the status of my loan; they told me that my loan was paid off but refused to give me paper work to show it; was told I had to sign exit papers before they would give me the papers; signed a form on the computer to exit the program that night received a email from Jim that I had not signed the paper work and that I would have to go back to the office again to sign a exit paper ; again was told my loan was paid off; on september 12, 2014 they still went into my bank account and took $70 out; I want proof that my loan was paid off like I was told on September 3, I want my $70 back the took out of my account and I JUST WANT TO LEAVE THE GRACE PERIOD PROGRAM I AM NOT HAPPY WITH THEIR SERVICES THEY ARE LIARS AND SAY THEY ARE NOT LIKE OTHER PAYDAY LENDERS BUT THEY ARE TOOK OUT A LOAN FOR $250 PAID BACK $420 THEY LIED AND TOLD ME IT WAS $360 I KNOW HOW COUNT AND HOW MUCH MONEY CAME OUT OF MY BANK ACCOUNT; THEY CLAIM THEY ARE A CHRISTIAN BASED COMPANY AND THEY ARE NOT LIKE OTHER PAYDAY LOAN COMPANIES AND THAT THE PUBLIC SHOULD NOT GO TO OTHER PAYDAY LOAN COMPANIES AND TO DO BUSINESS WITH THEM BUT THEY ARE WORST THAN THE OTHER PAYDAY LOAN COMPANIES BECAUSE THEY ARE LIARS THE CLAIM THEY ARE A CHRISTIAN BASED COMPANY BUT THEY ARE LOAN SHARKS JUST LIKE THE OTHER PAYDAY LOAN COMPANIES OUT THERE; AND THEY ARE WORSE THAN THE OTHER PAYDAY LOAN COMPANIES OUT THERE BECAUSE THE DON'T LIE WHEN YOU WALK THROUGH THEIR DOORS THEY TELL YOU THE TRUTH ABOUT HOW THEY ARE LOAN SHARKS GRACE PERIOD USES GOD AS A FRONT AND USES SNEAKY TACTICS TO GET YOU TO USE THEIR SERVICESDesired Settlement: I WANT A LETTER FROM THEM SAYING MY LOAN IS PAID OFF; I WANT TO EXIT THIS PROGRAM AND I WANT MY $70 BACK THAT THEY TOOK OUT OF MY ACCOUNT ON SEPTEMBER 12, 2014.

Business

Response:

I have reviewed the customer’s statement, our internal records show that we have attempted to

contact Ms. [redacted] by phone. A summary of my findings about this matter is as follows:

It appears on Sept 3, 2014 Ms. [redacted] came into the office requesting an account summary

and to exit the program. She was told by a staff member that an account summary would be

made in conjunction with the exit and that she could use our computer to electronically sign an

exit request.

It appears Ms. [redacted] did begin filling out the form electronically, but never finished (though

it is possible she believed she completed it as the form has two parts). The following day a staff

member responsible for processing exit request noticed an alert stating that Ms. [redacted] had

viewed the e-form but had not completed it. The staff member sent an email informing her that a

completed form would be necessary to process her exit. She responded saying that she would do

so.

Ms. [redacted] never did complete the form. Subsequently, the all transfer are prearranged, so

her transfer scheduled for Sept 1215 transpired.

We regret any inconvenience this has caused Ms. [redacted] and will process her exit which will

include the return of any ACH transfers collected when the exit form is completed as originally

requested. We will continue to reach out to her in an attempt to resolve this matter.

We thank you for your assistance.

Sincerely,

Review: I took out a payday loan with this company October 17, 2014 for 425.00 they told me I still owe them 220.00 as of Feb 17,2014. They have been debiting my account every two weeks for $80.00. This has totaled 800.00. I have attempted to speak to someone name [redacted] and have not receieve a returned telephone call. I received an e-mail from [redacted] with this amount owing this balance which I still not owe a balance at this time. I was told I would have a saving account with a credit union. I contacted the credit union which I was told I have a total of 25.00 in the account. At this time I would like my account to be closed from the credit union and Grace Period. I was told by the young woman the the credit union my account could not be closed at the credit union until after my acount was closed with grace period.Desired Settlement: I would like a refund of at least 160.00 of my money back and my account to be closed. Could someone from your office contact me. This would be appreciated.

Business

Response:

I have reviewed Ms. [redacted]’s complaint. We had a chance to speak with Ms. [redacted]’s on March 7,2014 in regards to any questions or concerns she about her membership with Grace Period. After explaining our program and answering any remaining question, Ms. [redacted] decided she would like to come in the office to complete the process in order to opt out of our program. Ms. [redacted] was also explained the direct impact it would have on her club balance by not completing the annual plan. Ms. [redacted] is in no way forced to end her association with our organization and is encouraged to stay in our program to reap the full benefits. Her decision to stop participating is regrettable. Regardless of her decision, the door is always open for Ms. [redacted] to continue her membership and reclaim the benefits that come with the completion of her commitment, her previous time as a member will remain on record permanently.

Consumer

Response:

RE: Argument to Grace Period- I do not owe Grace Period any more money - Please ask them to stop debiting my account. I would like to be terminated from their program immediately.

Review: I was told when taking out the loan I would be repaying in two installments of $193.00 for two months and that a $25.00 monthly would also be deducted. However they are randomly deducting money from my account and at no consistant time. They have taken $60.00, $50.00 and will not return my phone call to discuss. They advised me if I wanted to stop the $25.00 monthly charged that would be used for me if I ever needed to take a loan again all I needed to do was send an email which I have done and I sent a letter. My next step is to send them a certified letter requesting them to stop. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.Desired Settlement: $130.00- Money they were not authorized to take from my checking account

Business

Response:

We have tried to contact Ms. [redacted] via phone and email to no avail. We would be

happy to talk to her about her account and look forward to doing so.

The reason for the different amounts is due to the many failed attempts to collect

the loan as agreed which have resulted in additional fees being added to her

account. We look forward to speaking with Ms. [redacted] so we can help her bring

her account current.

Consumer

Response:

I have called them on several occasions and sent email requesting them to stop taking the $24.00 monthly fee out of my account to no avail. I can not get them to return my calls. If there is anything you can do to assist me I would greatly appreciate it.

Review: RECEIVED LOAN FROM GRACE PERIOD A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION IN THE AMOUNT OF 250.00 I UNDERSTOOD 289.00 WITH FEES AND 100.00 OTHER FEES I ADDED ALL THE FEES AND AMONT THAT I PAID BACK SO FAR WICH NOW TOTAL THE AMT OF 480.00. I RECEIVE A BREAK DOWN FROM GRACE PERIOD AND IT STARTS DEDUCTING ON WEEK THE ADDS 60.00 THE NEXT WEEK THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON SINCE OCTOBER OF 2013 THEY STATE THAT I STILL OWE 169.00 AND STATE WILL CONTINUE TO DEDUCT MONEY FROM MY ACCT I DO NOT WANT TO BLOCK THEM FROM MY ACCT BECAUSE I DO NOT WANT TO HAVE THEM PLACE FULL BALANCE ON MY CREDIT REPORT WHAT CAN I DODesired Settlement: STOP PAYMENT FROM COMING OUT OF MY ACCOUNT AND NOT USE THIS COMPANY AGAIN

Business

Response:

We have been in contact with Ms. [redacted] regarding her concerns. To our knowledge, this matter

has been resolved.

Ms. [redacted] is still an active participant in our organization.

Sincerely,

Review: I was over charged for a loan that was through the [redacted]. Found out that the credit union has disconnected ties with this provider Grace Period due to scam and fraud. Grace period over charged plenty of clients. My loan was for 350.00 yet my account was debited well over 500.00 dollars.Desired Settlement: 200.00 was the over charged amount

Review: GRACE PERIOD WAS A LOAN SERVICE AND ALSO ACTED IN THE NATURE OF A CREDIT BUREAU. MONEY WAS BEING WITHDRAWN FROM MY ACCOUNT AND PUT IN A SAVINGS FUND, NOW THE COMPANY IS NO LONGER IN BUSINESS AND MY MONEY HAS NOT BE RETURNED TO ME AND WITH NO DEFINITE TIME THAT I WILL RECEIVE ALL THE MONEY I AM OWED. THIS COMPANY OWES ME $1,180 DOLLARS, WHICH INCLUDES THE 175 REFUNDABLE ENROLLMENT FEE AS WELL AS ALL HOUSE DUES FEES THAT WHERE STATED TO BE RETURNED AFTER 90 DAYS OF SAVINGS PAYMENT WHICH I DID HAVE. AN "UNDISCLOSED" AGREEMENT OF HOUSE DUES, WHICH WAS NOT EXPLAINED AS PART OF LOAN REPAYMENT, THIS WAS SUPPOSE TO BE A FREE WITH OUT INTEREST LOAN BUT YET THEY CHARGED YOU REPAYMENT FEES, HOUSE DUE FEES AND INITIAL ENROLLMENT FEES, WITH OUT PROPER NOTIFICATION OF ALL THESE EXTRA FEES. I WOULD LIKE THIS RESOLVED AND REPAYMENT OF ALL MY DUE MONIES $1,180.00.Desired Settlement: I want grace period to return all monies due to me as explained when I first started business with them.

Includes my savings amount, enrollment fee and house due fees = $1,180.00. This is my money and its being held up for some unknown reason , or as they say agreement with the department of banking and collections VERY upset with this company and it mission for the community has failed us all that used your services!

Review: I took out a loan for $350 from this company that was direct deposited into my bank account on 6/16/14. Beginning on 6/20/14, $70 was taken from my bank account and this occurred every two weeks after that. According to the renewal policy on their website, if the loan is not paid back within 13 days then an 18% APR will be added which should have amounted to $63 on the amount I borrowed. On the weekend of 9/20/14, I submitted a request on their website to get my balance information. I received a response on 9/22/14 that including my $125 initiation fee, I still owed a total of $255.48. I had expected to receive a detailed breakdown of what I had paid to date but all I received was an email telling me how much I owed. I did not have the time to look into this as my work was very busy and stressful during that time. On the weekend of 11/8/14, I submitted another request for my balance and received a response on 11/10/14. The email said that I still owed $150.48, not including the last payment on 11/7/14 which was for $30 for some reason. Not including the $30, I had paid $210 between the two balance requests however their accounting was not in agreement. I tried calling to see if I could get someone to explain this to me but never received a callback. At this time, I had paid a total of $730 on a $350 loan. I then called the credit union that they were using to fund the loans because I had seen on my credit report that I still owed $166 to them. The credit union said the amount was actually lower than that, approximately $95. That did not make sense to me because my loan should have been paid off by this time. Since I could not get a response from anyone at Grace Period, I had my employer stop my direct deposit so they could no longer take money from me. Now I am getting overdraft fees of $38 each time they attempt to take money out.Desired Settlement: I want to have all but the principal refunded to me. I believe they are not giving full disclosure of their fees and due to their unresponsiveness I have now incurred $114 in overdraft fees. They do not provide enough detail in the responses to balance inquiries and I believe this is intentional. I want them to pay off the loan to the credit union and to refund to me the amount of $380. And I want the attempts at drafting my bank account to cease immediately.

Review: Grace Period claims to have completed all disbursements of funds to entitled club members as of June 12, 2015; yet though, as a member, I am owed an outstanding amount that was repeatedly withdrawn from my checking account by them (which I was told I would receive in one of the scheduled payouts their organization posted online), I did not receive any payments to date. Grace Period has shut down operations without benefit of forwarding information for addressing this issue, therefore I fear I will have to incur the cost of hiring an attorney to pursue legal remedy of this action, which is financially harmful to my household and other business affairs.Desired Settlement: I desire to be in contact with a Grace Period representative that is able to facilitate a full refund of my savings. My checking account history will provide detail of the amount owed back to me.

Review: paid $125.00 member initiation fee and contract began 3/29/13 paperwork states stay active 1 year to have fee credited back, well I cancelled 4/14/14 which is over a year now they are saying had to have $90.00 balance for 90 days to get refunded and I have prematurely cancelled so I forfeit---nope--not what my papers say nor what I was told, I want my $125.00 backDesired Settlement: $125.00 returned to me asap

Business

Response:

Shortly after the complaint was filed, Ms. [redacted] was notified that her initiation fee of

Review: I enrolled in Grace period in 2012 at that time it was my understanding that a portion of my payments went into a savings account.Time went on and when I contacted Grace Period I was told that it was not savings but club dues something I was totally unaware of at that time 2013 or 2014 the amount of money they were hoping as dues was about $1800 and I was told that it would earned back a small portion per month and it would have taken about 4 years. I suspended my transfers. I was told that when I began transfers again the club dues earn back would began being in a bind at the time I took out another loan and paid it off.I needv Dr heard anything else from them. I know time has passed but I recently saw that the company was closed and then I saw the Revdex.com information. I would like to file a complaint against Grace Period for the funds which they claimed were being held as club dues.It was in fact an employee who pointed out to me that I should take out anymore loans unless my life depends on it she than gave me print out of the cost which I had believed was going into my savings.Desired Settlement: I would like to know if this was a legal practice or predatory in never I would never have agreed to a pay such high dues? And it was not explained To me properly.I would like to have my funds returned to me as it is no longer possible to earn my own money back. I would like to know why there was no communication from the company even though I had suspended transfers my dues were a vested interest in Grace Period. I was very discouraged with how hard it was to contacand emails were not returned

Review: I borrowed $300.00 on 7/2/14 from Grace Period. My repayment terms were $65/month at an interest rate of about 5%.Grace Period has debited my account $51.40 on 7/15/14, $65 on 7/31/14, $51.40 on 7/31/14 and $51.40 on 8/15/14.I made a request to payoff my loan and close my loan effective 8/31/14 and they told me my payoff was $287.18. I've sent 7 emails from 8/17/14 to 8/25/14 requesting details and an explanation of funds transferred from my account to Grace Period and where they were applied. A total of $219.20 has been debited from my account; however, my loan payoff for a $300.00 loan is $287.18. Grace Period has not provided me with a statement of fees, charges, dues, and interest applied to my loan balance/account/membership.I've requested an itemized statement of activity on my account to understand where and how my payments/dues were applied, and Grace Period will not respond to my request. On 8/25/14, I notified Grace Period to stop any future debits from my account, and they told me they couldn't do that because I have an outstanding loan balance. I've contacted my bank to stop pay on any future electronic debits from my account. My bank waived both fees of $33 for each stop payment. My bank had to place two. One for the bi-weekly debit of $51.40 and one for the monthly debit of $65. That should keep Grace Period from debiting my account. My question is how can I get the information that I've requested so I can payoff my loan and close this account. I don't want any future charges to my account. Furthermore, I don't want to be contacted about an unpaid loan in the future.Thank you.Desired Settlement: I would like this matter resolved by receiving the information I've requested in writing. I would also like to payoff my loan and close my account. I don't feel that I should be charged $206.38 to borrow $300 for 60 days or less.Thank you for your assistance.

Business

Response:

Our attempts to contact Ms. [redacted] by phone have been unsuccessful.

We have forwarded for her review a summary of account activity via email as was her request.

Ms. [redacted]’s account remains in serious arrears at this time. Regardless of an assertion of

miscommunication, by her own admission, payments made to date are insufficient to cover borrowing

proceeds. Additionally, Ms. [redacted] has elected to restrict bank access which has placed her account

with us in default.

We believe this matter can be settled to a mutual satisfaction and look forward to working with Ms.

[redacted].

Consumer

Response:

I have chosen to correspond with GRACE Period and DAD in writing because my attempts to work with them over the phone were unsuccessful. Once I started my correspondence with them in writing, they were either unresponsive or vague. On 8/22/14, I requested an itemized statement of my account. On 9/12/14, I received the following response:

Business

Response:

My office has provided Ms. [redacted] with all the information she has requested.

The fact remains that the total payments received by both the club and the lender ($219.20) are

substantially less than the amount she received from the lender ($300).

It is pointless to continue to explain and/or discuss the applicatioin of club dues to her outstanding

loan balance, something clearly contrary to the contract she signed, when the total proceeds are

insufficient when simply compared to the original amount borrowed.

She received funds and at the very minimum she should expect repay the Ml amount borrowed.

Sincerely,

Consumer

Response:

I did not receive an offer from either businesses to accept my payments made as payment towards the funds that I borrowed. I borrowed $300 and the fact still remains, I paid $154.20 to grace period. The point is, they refuse to apply my payments to my loan and provide me with a payoff reflecting my payments towards my loan. If this is so pointless, why haven't they accepted my complaint and made an offer to resolve it. My payments made are substantial towards my loan and a clear effort to repay my loan. I am still waiting for a payoff amount from Grace Period reflecting my payments made. I am prepared to pay the balance of my loan once a payoff amount reflecting my payments to date, thereby reducing my original loan amount accordingly, has been provided.

Regards,

Business

Response:

After speaking directly with Ms. [redacted], we are unable to come to terms acceptable

to both parties.

Ms. [redacted] has acknowledged that she now understands the long-term goal of our

club, but stated emphatically that had she been aware that our program involved a

commitment to become better prepared for future emergencies, she would have

made a different choice.

We regret that she feels terms agreed by her in writing are not satisfactory, and are

• disappointed that after exhausting efforts to provide all that she has requested, our

only option is to immediately begin collection activity.