It's Just Lunch

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2016/04/20) */
It's Just Lunch regrets to learn of any dissatisfaction the consumer has experienced with her membership thus far as that is not the norm with IjlThe consumer joined March 13, Her membership provides dates over the course of months,
whichever comes lastThe following day March 14th she was contacted to welcome her aboard and start the process and followed up with again march 15th at which time she was welcomed and started working with her matchmakerHer Initial Dating Coaching session was scheduled for March 17th at 12pm and her first match was presented the same day she was welcomed, March 15th March 16th her first date was scheduled for March 28th with ***IJL attempted to contact the consumer at the scheduled time multiple times and the call was not answeredHer session was then rescheduled for March 21st
Her date was also rescheduled from March 28th to March 29th on March 18th The consumer did not attend her scheduled Dating Coaching session which based on her membership agreement signed when she initially joined IJL forfeits the sessionIf she would like to reschedule there is a fee surrounding a reschedule of this appointmentIJL has provided the services under the terms of the consumer's membership agreementWe are currently in the search and select process for her next match and will contact her once her next match is availableWe look forward to working with the consumer and providing a positive dating experienceThank you
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 8, 2016/04/25) */
From: *** (mailto:***@gmail.com)
Sent: Monday, April 25, 4:PM
To: Revdex.com
Subject: Re: Revdex.com Complaint Case# *** (Ref*)
There are many incorrect statements made by It's Just LunchAnd a number of my statements were not responded toI believe a full refund is due me with cancellation of contract effective immediately
Mike was scheduled to call me on March at noon and did not call as I stated in my original complaintThat was to be my first contact with himI was also scheduled to have a coaching session with Sheri after the call with MikeI did not receive a call from Sheri either
I received a scheduled call from Heather on March at 5:30pm via FaceTime at which time my photograph was taken and I showed my driver's license to the cameraAfter this call I received a request from Heather to fill out a feedback form regarding our callIt was filled out by me as all positive
My date with Allan was originally scheduled for March 21, not March I rescheduled for March There were no unreturned calls from me to IJLIn fact, I initiated most calls and complained to Mike that he does not return calls
I initiated a scheduled coach dating session for 9:15am with Sheri on March I requested this coaching call from MikeSheri did follow through
I have documented communication between me and IJL employees providing evidence that my statements are all correct I will gladly forward them
IJL has not responded to my complaints regarding my and Allan's incorrect profiles which they posted
IJL did not respond to my request to Mike regarding whether or not Allan was Jewish
IJL did not respond regarding my email to customer serviceI received an email from customer service saying I would receive a phone callI did not get a call
I am amazed by the statements and disregard related to some of my complaintsShort of actually accusing me of misrepresentation, IJL's lack of professionalism and integrity in response to my very clear complaints convinces me even further that this is a company to avoid As I stated previously, I have correspondence I can forward validating my complaintsThe best outcome will be cancellation of contract effective immediately and a full $refundI cannot put my trust in a company which operates in this manner
Final Business Response /* (4000, 16, 2016/05/24) */
It's Just Lunch apologize that the consumer has not enjoyed her membership thus far, as this is not the norm with IJLWe have several members of our management team contact her to work through each concern she has raised, however, she is unwilling to work with IJL towards a resolutionIJL is able to provide the services under the terms of the membership agreement and accordingly a refund is not appropriateThank you

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2016/01/20) */
Its Just Lunch regrets to learn of any dissatisfaction the consumer has experienced as this is not the norm with IJLThe consumer's membership is expiredHer membership was cancelled under the terms of her membership agreement and is no longer
a member with IJL, however, her initial fee is non-refundable, which is outlined in the client membership agreement We wish the consumer the best in her dating journey

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2016/02/16) */
It's Just Lunch regrets to learn of any dissatisfaction the consumer has experienced with her membership as this is not the norm with IJLIJL has cancelled her membership under the terms of her contract and her account is now expiredShe has
utilized the services under the terms of the agreement and a refund is not appropriate
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 8, 2016/02/17) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I was misrepresentedAll of the gentlemen I was matched with did not pay a membership fee and were not committed to finding a relationshipOne lived in Florida and was older than I requested in my profileI live in North Carolina and specified I wanted someone in my regionThis looks like a scamWomen pay a membership fee and men don'tThis service picks on vulnerable women believing In their serviceI paid for Months and only used months
Final Business Response /* (4000, 23, 2016/05/17) */
It's Just Lunch apologizes for the delay in response to this complaint as we received the response from the consumer that was provided to the Revdex.com on March 18th on May 12thThe consumer's membership is expiredHer membership agreement was cancelled based on the cancellation terms of the agreement and all dates paid for under the terms of the agreement were fully servicedWe wish the consumer the best in the futureThank you
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 25, 2016/05/24) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I did not receive the quality of service promisedThe male candidates did not pay for service and did not fulfill the requirements I asked forAccording to contract, IJL can reimburse $for non satisfaction

My experience with It's Just Lunch, Washington DC was very positive. Everyone there from the matchmakers to the date coordinators was highly engaged and committed to a successful outcome for me. I am a believer in their process. They responded well to feedback and over time the more information I gave them to work with, the better my dates became. The caliber of their clients is also impressive. A big shout-out to my matchmaker Patti, to Nicole who coordinated many great dates for me, and to Chelsea who coordinated my last and best one!

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/09/01) */
To Whom It May Concern:
The card member, Mr. [redacted], joined It's Just Lunch on 2/11/15 under a membership that provides for twelve (12) months or fourteen (14) dates, whichever comes later. In the state of California the card member had...

three (3) business days from the date of the agreement to cancel his contract. The card member did not cancel his agreement within the statutory period. Mr. [redacted] also signed the contract on February 11, 2015 at that time he entered his California State Drivers License Number which is XXXXXXXXX.
Since joining IJL, Mr. [redacted] has met 4 women, [redacted]. There was also a 5th date that was set up for Mr. [redacted] with a woman named [redacted] which he cancelled and then placed his account on hold for a month.
I understand that in Mr. [redacted]'s complaint he states that their were some matches that fell just outside of his parameters in any one area. Our agreement states, "IJL introduces members based on the judgment of IJL's employees who may take into account the general criteria and guidelines specified by its members." This means that based upon the professional opinion of our matchmakers, we will select any and every possible option for our clients that we feel will be a fit in an effort to maximize their membership. With every match that has been selected, Mr. [redacted] was contacted by our office and was given a full description of that match. We only count the matches that result in a date set up, and Mr. [redacted] agreed based on the description to move forward with these set ups. We make it clear through our advertising and our initial conversation that all of the dates are blind introductions.
We do offer, by invitation only, an Elite Membership option which starts at $6000, where a client would be able to review photos of candidates that are personally recruited for each specific client. Along with this personal recruiting, we also provide additional date coaching.
On average our clients go out once every 2.5-3 weeks, some go out more often, and some go out less. Mr. [redacted] is dating within this pace and we are ready to move forward as soon as he resumes his account.
In response to Mr. [redacted]'s claim that there was no response to his August 5, 2015 email, this is false. Our response was,
"Hi [redacted],
I did try calling you at 2:00 today and your phone went straight to voice mail. I would be more then happy to discuss you terms of your contract with you. fell free to give me a call, I have about 15 minutes before my next appointment.
Warmly,
[redacted]
XXX-XXX-XXXX"
We then proceeded to reach out to Mr. [redacted] on 8/13, 8/17 and 8/18 to tell him about his next match Kat. After 3 attempts with no response, Mr. [redacted] was placed on a courtesy hold so he did not waste any active time. We informed Mr. [redacted] of this hold both through a phone message as well as a hard copy letter sent in the mail.
We have made a strong effort to help Mr. [redacted], and have been delivering service as contracted. Mr. [redacted] also came into our San Francisco office for his in-person interview and has met with our team.
Mr. [redacted] is not eligible for a refund per the terms of his agreement which state, "You, the Client, may cancel this agreement, without any penalty or obligation, at any time prior to midnight of the third business day following the date of this agreement, excluding Sundays and holidays. To cancel this agreement, mail or deliver a signed and dated notice, or send a telegram which states that you, the Client, are canceling this agreement, or words to similar effect. This notice shall be sent to It's Just Lunch!, [redacted] XXXXX." In addition to signing the agreement, Mr. [redacted] specifically signed and acknowledged our cancellation policy. I have included a signed copy of his agreement for your reference.
As previously mentioned, Mr. [redacted]'s account has been placed on a courtesy hold. We are happy to continue his membership and move forward with his next match as soon as he is ready.
Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions.
Best Regards,
[redacted]
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/09/17) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The IJL states that they made it clear through their advertisement and initial conversation that all the dates are blind introductions. This is not true. I was led to believe during the initial conversation prior to signing on, that IJL would go over the potential matches with me and they did not exclude sharing of face-photos as part of going over the profiles. They also led me to believe that they would provide me more than one choice at a time which later on turned out to be untrue. If I had known upfront that all the matches would be blind dates and that IJL would do the matching and provide just one choice of match, I would not have signed on. At the time of signing on I was offered 3 choices and they misled me willfully into thinking that this was the way it would be every time they matched me which turned out to be untrue. When I was subsequently told that there was one single match it left me feeling cornered and coerced into accepting that one single match. IJL added a lot of advertisement to every match by using high-sounding adjectives like 'Stunning', 'Amazing' etc., instead of stating what it was that IJL felt was the grounds for deciding that it was a good match. They would read the physical description and personality of the person over the phone and add many high-sounding adjectives to push me to accept the match. On one or two occasions when I felt that some of the filter criteria that I had set up in terms of a compatible ethinicity and age and marital status were blatantly mis-matched, I flatly refused to accept the match. This had the side-effect of IJL putting me on a long wait period of more than a month. I would call within that time frame to inquire on updates and IJL would entertain the phone call for as short as 30 seconds stating that there were no updates and that IJL was 'in the process of matching'. I would get no insights into this process of matching which was quite vague and open-ended with no end in sight. This indefinite wait period added to my frustration as well since I felt that IJL had forgotten about me.
Therefore, their claim to Revdex.com that their clients go out on dates once every 2.5 to 3 weeks and that I am dating within this pace is certainly not true. I have stated clearly that I went out dates with 4 separate individuals matched through IJL over a 5 month period which is definitely not in accordance with IJL's claim of providing dates every 2 to 3 weeks. In fact, [redacted] who is the Director of IJL who handles my case, told me on the phone that she too felt that things were moving rather slowly for me compared to other clients and that this would be remedied.
I understand that match-making is not easy. But I would have appreciated transparency and honesty in terms of the challenges faced by IJL in matching instead of the sales pitch which was misleading and manipulative. I was manipulated and coerced into paying upfront the annual service fee of $2200 when I would have in fact, preferred a flexible monthly payment option. This payment option was not even offered for consideration. After making the upfront payment I feel helplessly locked into a service which is continuosly falling in quality. I do not have a dedicated customer service in IJL to seek redressal too. Why should I stay on with a service when I am unhappy about the service?
IJL did not provide me the various levels of service and their associated price and instead determined the membership fee and level for me automatically. Later on, when I raised a red-flag about not being to see the photos in order to determine whether I liked to meet the potential match or not, they proposed an additional service level which would allow IJL to share the photos and it would cost an additional $4000. They have not answered my question raised through Revdex.com as to why they did not cover this point during the initial conversation. The various service levels are also not mentioned in the contract. These hidden costs go against consumer rights and IJL has violated my rights to full information before signing on, and misled me to commit to a year-long service by offering me partial information.
On Aug 5 I was waiting for scheduled call at 2pm. Since I did not get the call (phone records can prove this), I wrote an email around 4pm to deregister my service. As a knee-[redacted] reaction to this email IJL tried calling me but it was too little too late since I was convinced that they were not committed to helping me find a suitable match.
I thank IJL for providing me the service for the 5 months that I was with them (Feb 11 to Aug 5 when I opted out of the service, with the exception of April when the account was on hold). They may have tried to reach me on a few occasions after I expressed my desire to deregister but since my mind is made up I do not wish to be manipulated by empty assurances and hence have not responded to their calls.
I humbly request Revdex.com to provide an arbitration and settle this case favorably. In all fairness, I gave IJL a shot and IJL gave me a shot and while I do feel unhappy about the latest developments and the fall in the quality of service I also acknowledge their service and therefore I am open to settling for the middle ground of deducting 5 months worth of the membership fee from 2200 and claiming the remainder ($1283) as final settlement amount due to me. This is a very fair settlement in my mind.
If IJL is willing to provide this settlement amount and close my service that would reinstate the good faith and trust in the business in my mind. This will give me closure in this matter. If IJL does not honor this settlement request then I will be convinced that they act with malafide intentions and only hope to 'keep the meter running' without providing the contracted service and I will pursue every possible legal avenue available to me to recover my money and I shall also spread the word in every forum that IJL had meted out an unjust treatment to me which has created emotional trauma from which I will take many months to recover. I will also submit my case to the Federal Trade Commission and other bodies which have a supervisory and regulatory role seeking a positive intervention. I sincerely hope and pray that IJL would meet me half-way and facilitate the requested settlement.
I am very grateful to and appreciative of Revdex.com for providing this forum to voice my concerns and creating a place for me and IJL to resolve the situation.
Closing with kind regards
[redacted]
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/10/05) */
To Whom It May Concern:
We are glad to hear that Mr. [redacted] agrees that we are providing him the service as contacted.
We want to reiterate that on AVERAGE our clients go out once every 2.5-3 weeks. This is an average and not a guarantee. Some clients go out more often, and some go out less. This pace it completely dependent on an individuals parameters and the availablity of their matches. We always try to get our clients out as often as possible to maximize their membership.
To address Mr. [redacted]'s concern about not being offered a membership with our affiliate program Elite, those membership are typically offered to existing clients by invitation only. In these memberships, clients are able to review photographs prior to their date set up. Because of the amount of work involved in these memberships, our Elite team works only with a specific number of clients at a time and it is completely based on IJL's decision who will be eligiable for this type of membership.
As previously mentioned, and as stated in our agreement, "IJL introduces members based on the judgment of IJL's employees who may take into account the general criteria and guidelines specified by its members." Mr. [redacted]'s matches were selected by his director who made her selections based on her professional opinion of who she felt was best suited for him.
Mr. [redacted] is not eligible for any type of refund, full or pro-rated, and his account will remain on hold until he is ready to resume (not to exceed 365 days after which his account will expire on hold).
Mr. [redacted] has almost 7 months remaining in his membership and we are eager to continue introducing him to even more incredible women.
Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions.
Best Regards,
[redacted]
Operations Manager

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/07/29) */
Revdex.com
1000 Broadway Suite 625
Oakland, CA XXXXX
7/29/15
RE:Case # [redacted]
To Whom It May Concern:
No Credit is Due
The card member, Ms. [redacted], joined It's Just Lunch on April 22, 2015 under a membership that provides for...

twelve (12) months of service. While the card holder claims that she is due a full or partial refund, no refund is due per the terms of our agreement. In the State of California the card member had three business days from the date of the agreement to cancel her contract. The card member did not cancel her agreement within the statutory period. Ms. [redacted] also signed the contract on April 22, 2015 at that time she entered her California State Drivers License Number which is DXXXXXXX.
Ms. [redacted] was contacted the very next day after joining and was told about her first match [redacted]. Their date was originally set for 5/7/15 at 5:30pm at Cilia's in San Francisco, CA. [redacted] then had to reschedule the date for 5/14/15. This date was again cancelled by [redacted] as he found out his company was relocating him and he would be moving.
In response to this, we selected a new match for Ms. [redacted]. Ms. [redacted] was told about [redacted] on 5/19/15 and their date was set on 6/1/15 at 12:30pm at Café de la Presse in San Francisco, CA. After the date Ms. [redacted] called with feedback. She indicated that the date went ok and he was nice but seemed a little reserved. She did not feel chemistry and so we made note and told her we would move forward with the next match.
During the set-up of Ms. [redacted]'s first date, we also met with her in our San Francisco office for her in-person meeting on 5/26/15. During this meeting we informed Ms. [redacted] that we would be adding on one (1) extra month of active time to her membership in an effort to preserve goodwill. Although the initial cancellations from her first match, [redacted], were out of our hands, that is certainly not how we would like our client's membership to start out.
On 6/10/15, I also attempted to reach out to Ms. [redacted] to ensure that she was having a good experience. I continued to reach out with no response until 6/29/15. When we finally connected, we reviewed her membership and I let her know that we have many wonderful men to match her with and that her membership was for 12 months so we have plenty of time remaining. I also reminded her that we added and additional month of active time onto her account.
On 7/8/15, we called Ms. [redacted] to tell her about her next match [redacted]. We called [redacted] 3 days in a row and did not receive a response, and as protocol, and to not keep Ms. [redacted] waiting, we placed his account on a courtesy hold and continued to match Ms. [redacted].
On 7/13/15, we received a letter from Ms. [redacted] requesting a refund and stating that we breached her agreement because of the pace in which she was receiving dates and that the matches were not to her exact specifications. In our immediate response back to Ms. [redacted], we communicated that again, even though her membership was slow to start, we had added an extra month of active time onto her account to compensate for that. We also reiterated the terms of our agreement which state, "IJL introduces members based on the judgment of IJL's employees who may take into account the general criteria and guidelines specified by its members." In this conversation it was also emphasized that we understand that not every match will be a fit, and based on each client's parameters and availability the pace in which they go out may vary. This is why we allow a full year to work with our clients and why we cannot guarantee the exact pace in which they will have dates.
Ms. [redacted] is not eligible for a refund per the terms of her agreement which state, "You, the Client, may cancel this agreement, without any penalty or obligation, at any time prior to midnight of the third business day following the date of this agreement, excluding Sundays and holidays. To cancel this agreement, mail or deliver a signed and dated notice, or send a telegram which states that you, the Client, are canceling this agreement, or words to similar effect. This notice shall be sent to It's Just Lunch!, San Francisco [redacted] XXXXX" In addition to signing the contract, Ms.[redacted] specifically signed and acknowledged our cancellation policy. I have included a signed copy of her agreement for your reference.
As we have repeatedly told Ms. [redacted], we have lots of time remaining on her membership and many wonderful gentlemen to introduce her to. We are excited to move forward and get her out on her next date. Our hope is that we are able to help Ms. [redacted] find a loving an lasting relationship. Her membership is currently on hold per her request, and we are happy to resume as soon as she is ready.
Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions.
Best Regards,
[redacted]
Operations Manager
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/08/04) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I have read [redacted]'s response to my complaint and she has refused to refund the rest of my membership monies. Ms. [redacted] only focuses on the part of the contract that states "the client is entitled to a full refund if the client cancels this agreement by the third business day". I am reading the first part of the contract that states, "If, despite It's Just Lunch's (IJL) efforts, IJL is unable to provide Client with introductions as agreed to under client's membership, then all remaining monies will be refunded on a pro-rated basis, less a Two Hundred Dollars ($200) interview processing charge."
I am completely dissatisfied with the level of service provided by It's Just Lunch. Not only was I matched with one date within 3 months, the person I was matched with did not meet my criteria.
How can IJL justify charging an obscene amount of money for one date in 3 months? This is NOT what we agreed upon during the interview on 4/22/15.
I disagree with the events that unfolded in the 3 months that I have been a client with IJL. Ms. [redacted] states that [redacted] canceled the date after 2 weeks of phone calls because his company was relocating him. This is not what [redacted], my previous matchmaker and Senior Director of IJL, informed me. [redacted] decided to put his contract on hold because he found someone he liked and did not want to continue dating.
Ms. [redacted] is not completely honest with her statement that she attempted to reach out to me from 6/10/15 to 6/29/15. It was I who called IJL to find out about my next date. I was the one who had difficulty trying to speak with Ms. [redacted], who did not return my phone calls. When we did speak, she told me she would have a match by the end of the week and promised to call me with the details, but failed to follow up. I then had to call her again and try to connect with her. I was told that she was on holidays and no-one else in the company would be able to help me until she got back. Other times, the receptionist would tell me after placing me on hold for 5 minutes that [redacted] was "in a meeting". Only when I sound upset that miraculously, [redacted] would call me back within 15 minutes that same evening.
Ms. [redacted] failed to add that she matched me with a person who was completely not what I wanted. He was not of the right ethnicity, not the right height and not what I had requested despite my telling Ms. [redacted] and the date coordinator twice what my specifications were. I then had to call Ms. [redacted] the next day to reiterate what my specifications were.
The next match was a man named [redacted]. This was set up on 7/8/15 but only because I was very upset about how slowly things were progressing especially since I had invested $5200 in this company. I told Ms. [redacted] in clear simple language that I wanted a refund of the remainder of my contract if I did not have a match by 7/10/15. That is how I was finally set up with [redacted]. Apparently, the date coordinator couldn't reach [redacted]. I had to call IJL again the following Monday, 7/13/15, to follow up on my potential date. It was at that point that, like [redacted] had decided to put his contract on hold and was off the market. I believe that these 2 scenarios were no coincidence. IJL does not have enough men that fit my criteria and is trying to pull a "bait and switch" scam on me. IJL will entice you into believing that there are "many wonderful gentlemen" ([redacted]'s words, not mine) that fit all my criteria, then after 2-3 weeks of trying to reach this "wonderful gentleman", will find out that he has found someone and decided to place his contract on hold. Thus, another 3 weeks have gone by and they have 3 more weeks of the client's money in their pocket.
Ms. [redacted] then states in her reply that "not every match will be a fit, and based on each client's parameters and availability the pace in which they go out may vary. This is why we allow a full year to work with our clients and why we cannot guarantee the exact pace in which they will have dates". I believe and I think many other people who have of sound mind and reason, would determine that one date every 3 months is completely unreasonable, especially if IJL is charging $5200 per year. That amounts to $1733.33 for one date. I could have joined over 50 online dating sites for that much money!
I therefore, decided to put my contract on hold so as not to let the clock continue ticking and find out I am entitled to less and less money, in the event, I am able to secure a refund.
It is also completely unreasonable to stipulate in the contract that "client guarantees at this time that he/she does not work or consult for another matchmaking/dating/introduction company". How does a reasonable person expect to put his/her life on hold while IJL takes its sweet time to come up with a match for a client? I believe IJL is holding clients hostage by forbidding them to enroll in other online dating services, making them completely dependent on IJL and emotionally very vulnerable.
I am not the exception with regards to how I have been mistreated by IJL. I decided to look at Yelp to see what other Clients thought of IJL. It turns out that there are more than 70 negative Yelp reviews for IJL. Many of the complaints are similar to mine. Bait and switch scams, refusal to refund the remainder of the contract, poor customer service etc etc.
Not only that but the Attorney General of New York successfully settled with IJL International regarding poor business practices. The company paid fines and costs to the state and agreed to reform its business practices. State Laws limit how much a dating service may charge, and also require that consumers be provided with numerous other protections. State law limits the amount a consumer can be charged for a social referral services contract at $1000 per year. If IJL agreed to implement policies and procedures, then why is IJL San Francisco still charging outrageous amounts of money to its clients???
I have tried to be reasonable in terms of having the remainder of my contract refunded less the $200 interview processing charge. I am not requesting the full $5200 but rather $4400. I think that is a good compromise especially since I have gone through a lot of emotional turmoil in trying to work with IJL, not to mention the time wasted on this scam of a company.
I would appreciate any help Revdex.com can give me in resolving this dispute.

My IJL experience has been wonderful. The incredible staff of IJL Milwaukee, their utmost professionalism and the quality of dates were beyond my expectations.
Each date was carefully picked out by the staff and the pre and post follow ups were very helpful. I would definitely recommend it to any busy professionals seeking to have a great dating experience and in hopes of finding a true, loving partner.
Special shout out to a dating advisor Kelly K[redacted] for her expertise and sweet, caring helpful insight.

I had a good first date with [redacted] she was a very nice woman . I would like a 2nd date with [redacted] some time.

June 20, 2017
Customer Information:[redacted]Daytime Phone: ###-###-####Evening Phone: ###-###-####Fax: ###-###-####E-mail: [redacted]
ID [redacted]
 
 
Re: [redacted],
 
To Whom It May Concern:                 
 
I am writing in response to Ms. [redacted]’s Revdex.com response complaint: [redacted]1, dated 6/20/17.
 
In her rebuttal, Ms. [redacted]’s claims that [redacted] acknowledged her cancelation via text message and said that she would be receiving a refund.  Again, Ms. [redacted] is choosing to manipulate the facts.  [redacted] did respond via text message that she would ‘cancel it,’ referring to the date that had been scheduled for 10/7, not the membership itself. [redacted] told Ms. [redacted] that our Corporate office would have to handle the cancellation of a membership.
 
Again, when I spoke with Ms. [redacted] on 10/17, I informed her that we had received a cancellation letter from her but that it was post-marked for eight days after she signed the contract – which is when the cancellation policy that she did not follow was provided to her – and a refund wasn’t an option.  I urged her to continue with her membership and told her about her next match, however, she refused to move forward.  Ms. [redacted] then pursued a refund via a dispute with her credit card company – which escalated to pre-arbitration level – and the credit card company sided with IJL both times and the charge was upheld.
 
As was already pointed out, an estoppel defense is not appropriate given the facts of the situation. We would love the opportunity to work with Ms. [redacted] and encourage her to call us when she wants to utilize her membership.
 
Please let me know if you need any additional information regarding this case.
 
Thank you for your time.
 
Sincerely,
 
 
 
 
[redacted]
Operations Manager
###-###-####

Its Just Lunch regrets to learn of any dissatisfaction or confusion the consumer has experienced surrounding the office transition. .  The IJL Seattle office is now part of the IJL Corporate portfolio of offices. The Consumer’s level of service does not change; however, she will now receive...

some new benefits. She will be able to work with a large matchmaking team with many years of experience matching busy professionals!  In addition, if she does travel, she can request to be matched in any one of our 45 other US locations! We are currently in the process of presenting her next match and we look forward to working with her going forward. Thank you!

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
The company claimed to have matches for me in the Richmond area when I signed up in April.  I went on one date, as previously stated, and did not hear from them again for months.  They claimed to hand pick your dates meeting your criteria discussed with the dating coordinator.  They then tried to set me up with a client that wants children as one of his criteria, I am 47 years old, and clearly not a "good match" for this person, so I declined that match.  (With the premier membership you are allowed to decline dates that do not meet your criteria).  4 months went by without a match or phone call.  When I did email my dating coordinator with complaints she took 2 full weeks to respond to my email; the contract says they are responsible for responding in 48 hours.  I was promised a service of 4 dates over a 6 month period and did not recieve this.  In addition, the dating coordinator was unorganized, confrontational and argumentative. For such a highend service and fee of 2000.00$, you expect better service and for them to fulfill their end of the contractual agreement.  I do not want another dating coordinator, I want a partial refund.  I went on one date and would like the remaining 1500.00 back.  Thank you
Regards,
[redacted]

This is not a client of the San Francisco It's Just Lunch! office.  Please remove and forward on to the appropriate office.

[redacted],As a follow-up to the conversation you had with Jillian A[redacted] on Friday, June 9, 2017, we are very sorry that you are disappointed with the It's Just Lunch Seattle services.  It appeared there was a misunderstanding of how our service works, team member responsibilities, our cancellation...

and non-refundable policy, and the reason for your cancellation, which we understood was that you were in a relationship.  Had we understood there were issues regarding your membership, we would have reach out to you to attempt to resolve the problems.IJL Seattle matched you with two introductions -- one of which you continued to date past the first introduction.  We understand the second introduction did not result in further dates.  As we discussed on the phone, our matching service is designed to take your feedback from your dates and fine-tune the process over time.  With only two introductions, it is difficult for this process to deliver maximum results.  We highly encourage you to continue with the service and we will waive the monthly membership fees for three months.Further as we discussed, our Client Managers (Taylor and Lauren) are an integral part of the IJL Seattle service process.  They coordinate the details of the dates and are here to support you.  However, Jillian continues to be your Matchmaker and selects potential dates for you.As stated in your contract signed on April 1, 2017, our enrollment fee is non-refundable:  "Enrollment Fees and Membership fees are not refundable." Your initials next to this statement acknowledges your acceptance of the cancellation terms… Premier Client Membership: Client agrees to pay $1,600 plus applicable sales tax at the signing of this agreement which is a non-refundable initial Enrollment fee. Thereafter, monthly membership fees of $95 plus applicable sales tax will be deducted on the 25th day of each month from Client’s designated debit/credit card account via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), until Client provides proper notice of termination… NONREFUNDABLE AMOUNT: I understand that I have paid or am obligated to pay $1,600.00 plus applicable sales tax, as an Enrollment fee, and that under no circumstances is any portion of this amount refundable.Should you decide to continue, at any time, with the IJL Seattle service, we will waive the $500 reactivation fee.  We look forward to working with you on experiencing successful dating through IJL Seattle.ShariShari L. M[redacted]CEO(206) 340-0100

I am a small business owner, and have worked with representatives at IJL for more than a year. I mention my business ownership as a precursor to say that I believe I have a general idea of what it takes to run a business successfully. Almost every business requires a focus on being curious as to the problems of what will address new markets, and generous to the customers you have and the ones you want to acquire. IJL, in my view, succeeds in this way. There were some issues early last year, and I had my concerns, but I have to honestly say that in the past several months I have seen a renewed emphasis on customer service and customer needs. And, I always remind myself, this is a business that is about "chemistry" and feelings of the heart- something that is such a delicate topic. Mutual attraction, commitment- these are all things you simply can't manufacture under the best of circumstances. For folks like me, dating in their 40's- with lives and responsibilities- it's so very challenging. Plus, you have everyone who is jaded by experiences on Match, and other sites. I see IJL navigate this well, though. They do, to the best extent possible, go above and beyond. They are also realistic on what they can do and what they can't. I have not had a single rude, difficult or awful interaction with anyone there. Occasionally I have been frustrated, but that's to be expected. And, having read some negative reviews on Yelp and things like that (including from a person who I went on a date with- and I assure you a date with Brad Pitt wouldn't make her happy)- I disagree with many of the negative ones. It's a business, and the best they can promise is potential. To that end, I really feel like they are a good business at doing that.

Good Morning.
We will review the client's situation and contact her to discuss her complaint.
Thank you so much.

Great date with an awesome guy. Thanks IJL!

I have been a member of IJL for several months and truly believe its a great way to meet some very nice ladies, I work long hours and find it hard to reach out and try to date. I really don't believe in the bar scene, IJL takes care of this for me. Diana G[redacted] has been a lot of help she has a positive attitude and follows up with every date

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
March 21, 2014
I am very disappointed in the response from Its Just Lunch. They once again are putting all the blame on me and taking no responsibility for their actions. Yes, I did contact them on 3/20 to request the cancellation form necessary to prevent any future billings by IJL. They neglected to respond to my rebuttal of their denial so I could only assume that they were again showing poor customer service by ignoring this complaint. I took the appropriate step to protect myself from their automatic future billings; in no way should my contacting them be viewed as my approval or willingness to accept what they have done.
The fact that they point out the miscommunication between [redacted] and myself, let's me know that they read my letter but shows that they are not taking any responsibility for anything else that has happened. They are ignoring the fact that most of my matches were selected prior to several of my dates which in no way allowed for my feedback thus leading to several dates being very similar and in no way what I was looking for. If they had done what they said they would do, select my matches based on my criteria and feedback, I can only hope that thus would have been a much better experience.
When [redacted] answered, I reiterated my concerns, making her awake of the complaint I filed. I got the impression she was unaware of this as she expressed her sympathy and offered again that Vince was a great match for me. I stated that I was sure I was stuck, and that I didn't want to waste the money I had spent but that I do not trust the organization and am not comfortable working with IJL. I did mention the only way I would continue would be if I could see my matches ahead of time. To me that is a fair compromise to the awful situation this organization has put me in.
This case is not closed. IJL has breached their contract whether they are willing to admit it or not. I have been given no reassurances from them that anything will change regarding my match selection which does not provide any sense of comfort nor does it make me want to continue to work with them. They have done nothing to earn my trust. In fact, everything they have done has led to this compliant. Their contract doesn't mention anything about the word of mouth conversations and promises made by their employees. I am not denying that they provided several matches for me but the quality of matches was nothing like I was promised.  They seriously misrepresented the clientele they are working with and falsely led me to believe that they would take my criteria and feedback into consideration. For them to think that everything is fine because I called to get a cancellation form is ignorant. The fact that they are unwilling to take any responsibility for their actions is disrespectful. They may be confident that they can provide a positive experience but I have no confidence in the organization. I am very disappointed in their response as it shows they really do not care how they treat their clients. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/08/31) */
Revdex.com
1000 Broadway Suite 625
Oakland, CA XXXXX
RE: Case# [redacted]
To Whom It May Concern:
Ms. [redacted] became a client with It's Just Lunch on 2/11/15 for a 6 month membership. Since joining the service, our team...

has selected 8 gentlemen for her to meet, 5 of which she has accepted and we have set dates for. I have included a copy of her signed agreement for your reference.
Ms. [redacted] also met with her matchmaker in the preliminary part of her membership to go over her parameters in depth and to gain a more personalized connection.
We find this complaint very confusing given that Ms. [redacted] is claiming she has received no service from us when in fact we have been working closely with her and have been providing the service to her as contracted for the last 6 months. Ms. [redacted]'s 6 month membership has reached its expiration at this point, so in order to continue her service, she would have to extend her agreement.
We will reach out to Ms. [redacted] to clarify any confusion and offer her her options to move forward with a second membership.
Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions.
Best Regards,
[redacted]
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/09/02) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
My complaint is they sell the service as something other than it is- they pretend they are an upscale matchmaking service that knows how to match like individuals and that they have thousands of available matches when in fact they are nothing more than an online dating service- they took 3200.00dollars and gave me 5 matches in 6 months- really? Each match was so off it was extremely uncomfortable and I asked for a refund a couple weeks into it because I quickly realized what a scam- I also know from talking to the people I met. That I wasn't the only person that felt this way- these people need to be put out of business
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/09/18) */
Revdex.com
1000 Broadway Suite 625
Oakland, CA XXXXX
RE: Case# [redacted]: [redacted]
To Whom It May Concern,
We stand by our original response which states:
"Ms. [redacted] became a client with It's Just Lunch on 2/11/15 for a 6 month membership. Since joining the service, our team has selected 8 gentlemen for her to meet, 5 of which she has accepted and we have set dates for. I have included a copy of her signed agreement for your reference.
Ms. [redacted] also met with her matchmaker in the preliminary part of her membership to go over her parameters in depth and to gain a more personalized connection.
We find this complaint very confusing given that Ms. [redacted] is claiming she has received no service from us when in fact we have been working closely with her and have been providing the service to her as contracted for the last 6 months. Ms. [redacted]'s 6 month membership has reached its expiration at this point, so in order to continue her service; she would have to extend her agreement.
We will reach out to Ms. [redacted] to clarify any confusion and offer her her options to move forward with a second membership."
We want to re-emphasize that our team worked diligently to select 8 gentlemen for Ms. [redacted], unfortunately, she chose not to meet all 8 individuals. We encourage our clients to take every introduction our team selects for them, in an effort to maximize their membership. We find that clients who trust the process and the experience of their matchmaking team will usually have more success.
I know that in the dates that Ms. [redacted] did have, there was at least one gentleman that she really liked, exchanged phone numbers with and would have seen again. Of course we cannot guarantee that our clients will find love through this process, we certainly were attentive to Ms. [redacted]'s feedback and did our best to find her a great match.
We are always available to discuss this further with Ms. [redacted] and would be happy to continue working with her should she choose to extend her time.
Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions.
Best Regards,
[redacted]
Operations Manger

It’s Just Lunch regrets to learn of any dissatisfaction of the consumers experience as this is not the norm with IJL. The consumer received her membership agreement prior to joining and had as much time as necessary to review and ask any questions pertaining to the service being provided. IJL has...

provided the services and can continue to provide the services accordingly a refund is not appropriate. We continue to work on the consumer’s next match and will contact her once we have her next match available. Thank you.