LEADERS

Review: This message is to notify and file a complaint in regards to leaders. After signing on with them I then canceled my account. They mentioned that there would be no fees if I were to cancel. I canceled and they charged me $350 cancelation fee that was never mentioned.

In addition, when I call to get reimbursed the rep put me on continuous hold and then they kept bouncing me off to different reps to talk to. I had to repeat myself over and over on the same issue. Finally spoke to one rep that said she would have to talk to her manager that was not there at the moment to look into this issue and they would call me back. This is terrible customer service and bad way to conduct business.Desired Settlement: Cancel and refund $350

Business

Response:

LEADERS has been serving our merchants since 2000.We strive to resolve all complaints our merchants have as quickly andaccurately as possible. In our efforts to resolve this merchant’s issues,LEADERS has thoroughly reviewed our Merchant Service records, which include theMerchant’s signed Agreement. All rates and fees have been clearly indicated inthe contract for the merchant to see prior to signing. If for some reason thesales representative failed to go over any fees the merchant will be charged,the contracts detail the fees so the merchant can clearly see them beforesigning. This merchant’s signed agreement acknowledges they read the agreementand agreed to all rates and fees. As a good faith gesture, LEADERS will refundthe $350 Early Termination Fee. The merchant should see this refund inapproximately 7-10 business days. LEADERS wishes the merchant good luck andconsiders this complaint resolved and closed.

Consumer

Response:

Thanks.

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 10726314, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,

A[redacted]

Review: Leaders Merchant Service is withholding $3,540 from me and failing to respond after multiple weeks. When opening the account a daily spending limit of $4,000 was set by the sales representative who had informed me that the process was as simple as swiping the credit cards through the provided reader and mobile application, and staying below the daily limit and/or calling for an increase if high volume was expected. The service was used on 12/15/2013 for a charity auction event at which the items were received by donors on premises. The following day I received an email from the Risk Management department of Leaders Merchant Services stating that I need to provide the following information : First and Last Name, Business Name, Person in Charge, Billing Address, Phone Number, and Detailed Description of Services. Being that I was instructed that I only needed to swipe and stay under my limit, I did not collect this information from each customer at the event. Finally, after multiple tries calling and getting transferred and hung up on by multiple different customer service representatives, I was able to get ahold of the representative in the Risk Management department who informed me that I would need to send over bank statements if I wanted my money released. I sent over the bank statement (which had enough money to cover the charges) and was then informed that this was not enough to have the money released. They now requested that I send over a detailed description of each item sold as well as the event itself. At this point I informed them that this was not part of the agreement my company entered into, and the process was extremely frustrating for a business owner. Beyond this issue, the sales department pulls a bait and switch with the rates. They inform you that most cards swiped will fall under the low-level category ( less than 1%), however in reality most of swipes fall in the highest category which amounts to (~6%).Desired Settlement: I would like for the money I earned to be released, and any contract with this company to be nullified.

Business

Response:

Since 2000, Leaders Merchant Services, LLC, has upheld one of the largest Chargeback and Fraud departments in the industry. While LEADERS can appreciate all of the merchant’s frustrations, our Risk Management department has followed Industry-wide standards and protocol by holding and validating the merchants monies and transactions in order to protect against the threat of high risk transactions and fraudulent activity. In our efforts to resolve the issues stated in this complaint, LEADERS has thoroughly reviewed our copy of the merchant’s signed Agreement (formed by the 4-page Merchant Application, and the Merchant Services’ “Program Guide”). LEADERS would like to refer the merchant to the Merchant Services’ “Program Guide”, page 20, section 12 “Association Compliance”: ‘MasterCard, Visa and Discover have established guidelines, merchant monitoring programs and reports to track merchant activity such as, but not limited to excessive Credits and Chargebacks, and increased deposit activity. In the event you exceed the guidelines or submit suspicious Transactions as identified by an Association or any related program or reports, you may be subject to: (i) operating procedure requirement modifications; (ii) incremental Chargebacks and/or fees; (iii) settlement delay or withholding; (iv) termination of your Agreement; or (v) audit and imposition of fines.’ It is the merchant’s responsibility to know and to understand the terms of the signed Agreement prior to processing credit cards regardless of the overview of how it would work given by his sales representative. It is also the merchant’s responsibility to abide by these terms in order for the terms of our business relationship to be advantageous. LEADERS risk department flagged and held the merchants’ transactions to verify the suspicious transactions that were brought to the attention of our risk department. At the time the risk department spoke with the merchant it was discovered that the merchant was not utilizing his account for marketing and consulting as he was approved, but the merchant held a silent auction. Due to V/MC regulations a merchant can only utilize their merchant account for the activities they have been approved for and how the account is coded by V/MC. LEADERS has requested bank statements from the merchant and also a list of all items sold and the cardholders information who purchased items at the auction via credit cards in order for LEADERS to work on getting the merchants’ funds released. Until the merchant complies with what is needed the funds will be held. As per the merchants request in this complaint, LEADERS has closed the merchants account with no Early Termination Fee. LEADERS wishes the merchant well with his business and considers this matter resolved and closed.

Review: I asked the sales representative what the fees were before the figure skating club signed up. They did a bait and switch. We need to have credit card sevices for the Christmas program and they charged us a $129.00 annual fee after the fact.Desired Settlement: We would like a refund of the $129.00 fee. I told the representative that we only wanted to use their service for the Christmas Show.

Business

Response:

As a one of the fastest growing merchant service providers in the nation LEADERS takes pride in resolving any issues a merchant may have with LEADERS as quickly as possible. LEADERS has reviewed the merchants’ complaint and pulled the signed contract. To ensure full disclosure during the application process, LEADERS created an Online Application. During this Online Application process, a merchant can clearly and easily see on their computer screen, each and every rate and fee as well as the complete terms and conditions applicable to the Merchant Account they will be opening with us. In addition, once the merchant completes the Online Application, they are sent a link via email that will allow them to print a hard copy of the documents they signed. These documents also include the Rates, Fees and Terms and Conditions for their Merchant Account. If the rates and fees did not match what the merchant and the sales representative discussed then the merchant should not have signed the contract. As a good faith gesture, LEADERS will waive the balance owed of $136.95 for the February month end fees the merchants bank returned as unauthorized. This amount includes the $129 annual PCI compliance fee that was clearly stated in the merchants signed contract. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: When I signed up for their service via phone and computer on 1/16/2013, the phone sales person confirmed many times that all I would be paying for their service was $7.95/month along with the credit card processing fees when a credit card was swiped. He said there was no annual fee and the contract was month to month and I could cancel at any time with no penalty. I was unable to receive/read the contract on my computer so he offered to read it to me over the phone. Again he stated there would be no additional fees and I could cancel at anytime without no fees when I asked about this. On my 3/31/2013 statement I was accessed a $129 regulatory fee. I called them up and they said there was nothing they could do, it was the annual fee. I have attempted to use their credit card charging equipment 5 times. Four of the times the credit cards were declined and the 2nd time worked after the customer's bank declined the initial charge, canceled her card, reissued her a new one, and then when she okayed the charge it was able to be processed. The 3 next attempts were declined and my customers wrote me checks later in the week.After 3 unsuccessful charges in a row, I called to cancel the service, because I couldn't charge credit cards as I wished. I was informed that I had been signed up for a 3 year contract and would be charged $350 to cancel my service early. The service I signed up for has not worked when the cards are initially swiped at the time of purchase for my customers. I never saw a copy of the contract before I signed and was lied to about the annual fee and the cancellation fee when I asked about these items several times before signing online. I have since looked online and this seems to be a common practice for the sales people to lie to get contracts signed.Desired Settlement: I would like the company to adhere to the agreement verbally set by the sales person when I originally signed up and be able to cancel my service with no penalty (paying $350 cancellation fee)and be refunded the $129 annual fee that I have been charged. Their service does not work as promised and I did not agree to the $129 annual fee or a 3 year contract with a $350 early cancellation fee.

Business

Response:

A complaint of this nature is taken very seriously by LEADERS. We have tried to review the phone conversations between the merchant and the sales representative to see what exactly was said during the application process as we do not want to receive any further complaints of this nature. Unfortunately we were unable to locate any sales call for this account. LEADERS does have a signed application on file from the merchant with all fees she has been billed clearly stated on the application. We are a little confused as to why the merchant is saying she could not read the contract during the application process as the application is sent electronically and if the merchant had access to sign electronically she should have been able to read the application as well. A link to download and print the application was sent to the merchant as soon as we received the signed application. The merchant mentions that her machine only declined transactions. We do not have any technical support call notes from the merchant for assistance with the declines. Typically a decline comes from the issuing bank of the credit card being swiped and has nothing to do with the processing software. As a good faith gesture LEADERS will refund the $129.00 PCI compliance fee she claims she did not know about and will close the merchant’s account with no Early Termination Fee saving the merchant $350.00 via the request in this complaint. The merchant should see her refund in 7-10 business days. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Consumer

Response:

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 9559411, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,

Consumer

Review: As a small business owner, I needed the ability to process credit cards. I came in touch with this company via a 3rd party website, proporting to list the best priced credit card processing companies. Leaders was ranked number one, advertising under 1% on debit card transactions and under 2% on credit card transactions. I inquired via their website and received an email back (which I still have). The email states: Below is the program recommended for your business-PayWareVisa and MasterCard Reg. Debit: 0.35 %Visa and MasterCard Credit: 1.55% Transaction Fee: 0.18Regulatory Fee: $7.95Monthly Service Fee: $5.00Equipment: FREE (1st free all others $15)Setup Fee: WAIVEDApplication Fee: WAIVEDIt went on to boast an A+ Revdex.com rating. (this is untrue. Not even a Revdex.com accredited company)To my dismay, the fees for the credit and debit cards I was processing were much higher. In addition, I was being charged "additional fees" without being provided an explanation. The total fees usually amounted to around 7-8% of my transactions, a vast difference from what they advertised. There was another fee for "PCI noncompliance". Their instructions to become compliant were inaccurate. I called customer service to see what the issue was and they told me to contact their IT department. I learned later that they do not have one, so I was forced to pay the fee with nothing to do about it. (The company I am with now executed the compliance scan themselves with no problem)When I decided to cancel my services, I learned I had signed a 3 year contract, and My cancellation fee would be $350, no exceptions. I feel strongly that Leaders' advertising was misleading and in fact, misrepresented the terms of service.Desired Settlement: I am asking for a refund of the $350 cancellation fee, as well as the monthly fees charged for PCI-noncompliance, as Leaders made it impossible for me to become compliant. My agreement to engage in business with Leaders was prefaced upon the terms represented to me at the outset. In fact, there was a significant difference in the true terms, which were concealed from me before I entered the contract.

Business

Response:

Tell us why here...As a one of the fastest growing merchant service providers in the nation LEADERS takes pride in resolving any issues a merchant may have with LEADERS as quickly as possible. LEADERS has reviewed the merchants’ complaint and pulled the signed contract. To ensure full disclosure during the application process, LEADERS created an Online Application. During this Online Application process, on their computer screen, the merchant can clearly and easily see each and every rate and fee as well as the complete terms and conditions applicable to the Merchant Account they will be opening with us. In addition, once the merchant completes the Online Application, they are sent a link via email that will allow them to print a hard copy of the documents they signed. These documents also include the Rates, Fees, Terms and Conditions for their Merchant Account. If the rates and fees did not match what the merchant and the sales representative discussed then the merchant should not have signed the contract. All rates and fees LEADERS has billed the merchant are in their signed contract including the early termination fee and the PCI compliance fees. All LEADERS merchants also receive a welcome packet via mail when they open their account with us. In the welcome packet PCI compliance is explained to the merchant. It is also explained that all merchants must take a PCI compliance survey within the first 3 months of their account being open and annually thereafter to ensure they are processing their credit cards within industry guidelines to prevent fraud and abuse. LEADERS sends reminders to take the PCI compliance survey via the merchants statement message every month. The statement message reads “ [redacted]IMPORTANT PCI AND IRS/TIN REMINDERS[redacted] AS A REMINDER MERCHANTS ARE REQUIRED TO ADHERE TO PAYMENT CARD INDUSTRY (PCI) DATA SECURITY COMPLIANCE AS A CONDITION OF THEIR MERCHANT AGREEMENT. IT IS CRUCIAL THAT MERCHANTS COMPLETE THE PCI SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONNAIRE (SAQ) ANNUALLY, OR AS OTHERWISE REQUIRED AND IF NECESSARY UNDERGO SCANNING SERVICES ON A QUARTERLY BASIS. MERCHANTS MUST UPHOLD THEIR PCI COMPLIANT STATUS AT ALL TIMES TO AVOID NON-COMPLIANCE FEES AND OTHER POTENTIAL RELATED CHARGES AND ASSESSMENTS WHICH CAN BE CHARGED AND/OR INCREASED AT ANY TIME. TO BEGIN AND MAINTAIN YOUR PCI COMPLIANCE PLEASE VISIT HTTPS://COMPLIANCE.MERCHANT-INFO.COM....” The merchant can also contact customer service who will assist the merchant in getting in contact with the PCI Compliance administrators. LEADERS has no record of the merchant calling in to customer service about the PCI compliance survey. The merchant did not complete his survey annually and was billed the $40 non-compliance fee because of his non-compliance per his statement message. LEADERS would like to resolve this complaint with the merchant so as a good faith gesture LEADERS will refund the $350 Early termination fee he was billed because he closed his merchant account prior to the end of his 3 year contract with LEADERS. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 10407334, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,

Review: I contacted Leaders for credit card services using a simple phone app type reader and service. They lied and signed me up for a different service. I expressed thoroughly to the sells person I wanted a phone app type service with a pay per swipe fees, no monthly fees. he said he understood, but instead he signed me up for an advanced service with monthly fees and sent a card swiper by FedEx next day. I did not want or ask or agree to this.I was unaware of what he had done until I started the final agreement process online and was asked to agree to a monthly fee, I did not agree and stopped the agreement process. Leaders acted as if I had agreed and started billing me of for their services. I never used their services and contacted them by phone and was told the service would stop. It did not and continued for more than months. I called their customer service every month after seeing that they again withdrew money from my checking account for services I never agreed to. They charged me penalty for no charged being made! I was never given a final statement showing ALL CHANGES had been returned to my account. they never apologized for their shady sales practices.Desired Settlement: I want a statement and apology. I want every penny and more for my wasted time and energy.

Business

Response:

LEADERS has reviewed this complaint and the merchants’ account. We would like to apologize if the merchant was not set up with what he thought he was getting. LEADERS set the merchant up with a merchant account that utilized PAYware software that he could use via a swiper on his smart phone or computer. This is exactly what the merchant was asking for, he was not required to utilize his computer for processing if he did not wish to do so. The merchant agreed to the fees associated with the PAYware software when he signed his intake form during the application process. This type of account also asks the merchant to log into the PAYware software and agree to their terms, conditions and charges and download it onto their phone. Since the merchant agreed once to the charges on his intake form he was billed $10 a month for 4 months from PAYware. The merchant also had an approved and opened merchant account with LEADERS on 7/30/2012. LEADERS billed the merchant for his open account according to the rates and fees on the contract the merchant signed. If the fees on the contract did not match what the merchant and the sales representative discussed then the merchant should not have signed the contract. The merchant called customer service on 9/30/2012 and requested that the account be closed. LEADERS sent him a closure letter to be signed and returned to us, we also advised the merchant it can take up to 30 days to close the account once the letter was received. The merchant called back on 10/9/2012 upset account was ever opened, we advised we could close the account but we needed the signed closure letter. LEADERS received the closure letter from the merchant on 10/17/2012. LEADERS refunded Aug and September monthly fees in two separate refunds on 10/24. The refund amounts were $81.80 and $129.00. Due to a technical error the account was not closed within the 30 day window of receiving the merchants’ closure letter and for that we apologize. When the merchant called on 12/11/2012 and brought this to our attention we had his account immediately closed. LEADERS issued a refund for the merchants’ month end fees for both October and November on 12/17 totaling $138.85. LEADERS has refunded the merchant all fees billed to him by LEADERS for a total in refunds of $349.65. On 12/24/2012 LEADERS received a notification from the merchants’ bank that the fees billed to the merchant for his November month end fees were returned to us unpaid by his bank. The merchant technically owes LEADERS $67.95 since we never collected the November fees but refunded the merchant for them. As a good faith gesture LEADERS has waived the $67.95 owed to us since there was a mistake in closing his account in a timely manner, this amount should also cover any fees the merchant was billed by PAYware.

As a statement to the merchant, LEADERS billed the merchant:

$40.90 Aug 2012 month end, refunded on 10/24 in refund of $81.80

$169.90 Sept 2012 month end, refunded on 10/24 & 11/8 in refunds of $81.80 & $129.00

$70.90 Oct 2012 month end , refunded on 12/17 in refund of $138.85

$67.95 Nov 2012 month end, refunded on 12/17 in refund of $138.85

$349.65 total fees billed to merchant by LEADERS--$349.65 total refunds issued to merchant

LEADERS wishes the merchant much success with his business and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Consumer

Response:

Review: 9740902

I am rejecting this response because:

The response contains what can only be referred to as lies. Leaders records the salesman conversations and a review would easily show that I requested a simple pay per swipe, as Square and gopayment offer. No monthly fees or minimums. Anyone with a minimal amount of merchant services experience would understand this. Leaders apparently cannot. When the swiper arrived and I was COMPLETING the agreement online, the service that this shady salesman had set me up with was revealed. I then refused to agree to the monthly charge and of 10.00 and then stopped the agreement process. It was never completed. The salesman was on the phone with me at the time and said he would undo this process. He again lied and the next month the fraudulent billing began. What should have never happened took 6 months to terminate! leaders customer service lied and said in 30 days they would terminate the billing. Month after month billing continued and monthly customer service conversations started as if I had never called before. Remember the movie "Groundhog Day"? Every month it stared over again. This company needs to be held accountable for deceptive business practices. This is not over. The attorney general of the the state of Calfornia is being notified as well as other governing agency's.

Regards,

Business

Response:

LEADERS would like to note that not all calls are recorded, only a select few are recorded for quality purposes. The call(s) between the this merchant and his sales reps were not recorded so LEADERS can only go by the signed contract. Our PAYware software and swiper are comparable to the other companies offering merchant services through a smartphone. LEADERS realizes the merchant never used their account and never signed the terms and conditions through the PAYware software and that is why LEADERS has already returned every penny LEADERS has ever charged this merchant, plus the $40.00 PAYware charged the merchant, plus an extra $37.95 that we refunded but the merchant never actually paid and technically owes LEADERS. LEADERS has also apologized for the technical error made when we he tried to close his account. Since LEADERS has already satisfied all the merchants monetary and apologetic requests as well as giving him a statement of what was billed and refunded by LEADERS per his request, LEADERS consider this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: The product/service that is provided was misrepresented to me by Ryan Moss. I have closed my account and I am being charged to do so while this was never disclosed to me when we spoke nor was there any mention of monthly charges.Desired Settlement: I want a refund for the charges.

Business

Response:

As a one of the fastest growing merchant service providers in the nation LEADERS takes pride in resolving any issues a merchant may have with LEADERS as quickly as possible. LEADERS has reviewed the merchants complaint and the signed contract. To ensure full disclosure during the application process, LEADERS created an Online Application. During this Online Application process, on their computer screen, the merchant can clearly and easily see each and every rate and fee as well as the complete terms and conditions applicable to the Merchant Account they will be opening with us. In addition, once the merchant completes the Online Application, they are sent a link via email that will allow them to print a hard copy of the documents they signed. These documents also include the Rates, Fees, Terms and Conditions for their Merchant Account. If the rates and fees did not match what the merchant and the sales representative discussed then the merchant should not have signed the contract. As a good faith gesture, LEADERS will refund the $350 ET and the $89 PCI annual fee. The merchant should expect total refunds in the amount of $439 in 7-14 business days. The refund may come in two separate deposits. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: When I looked at the fees for services on this site I saw that Leaders has no gateway fees, no cancellation fees, an $.18 transaction fee, a $7.95 account fee and discount fees ranging from .75-1.55%. These numbers were confirmed by the sales person I subsequently spoke with and so I signed up for Leaders virtual terminal services. My first month, I processed 3 cards totaling $600. My card fee was $32.44, or 5.4%, plus $9.61 in miscellaneous charges, bringing my total rate for these three transactions to 7%. On my second statement, I had 2 charges totaling $695.28, and my card fee was $41.58, or 6%, plus $56.04 in other charges, or a total rate of 14%. The next month, I had 2 charges totaling $2606.53 and my card fee was $116.99, or 4.5%, plus $59.57 in other fees for a total rate of 6.77%. These charges are a far cry from what I was told they would be. I learned after this last statement that I was being charged $40/mo. for PCI non compliance - a fee I was never told of for a reason that does not appear on the statement. Only when I called customer service was I told of this fee. Feeling I had been deceived on numerous counts (nonqual discount rates of 6% for most charges, processor fees, network coupon fees, etc.) I cancelled my account. I then received a $350 cancellation charge! Again, this Leaders web site and the sales person I spoke to assured me that there was no cancellation charge, regardless of the reason for cancellation. Today, immediately after being notified by my bank of this charge, I again called Leaders and spoke to a sales account executive who again assured me (posing as a prospective client) that there is no cancellation fee, regardless of the reason for cancellation. Based upon my experience, I believe this company engages in fraudulent practices. I called Customer Service after speaking to the Sales Rep. They had no explanation as to why Leaders web site and sales rep both tell prospects there is no cancellation charge.Desired Settlement: At a minimum, I would like the $350 I was charged for cancelling my account returned. Preferably, I would also like the $120 I was charged for PCI back also, since I was never informed there would be a charge for this.

Business

Response:

As a one of the fastest growing merchant service providers in the nation LEADERS takes pride in resolving any issues a merchant may have with LEADERS as quickly as possible. LEADERS has reviewed the merchants’ complaint and pulled the signed contract. To ensure full disclosure during the application process, LEADERS created an Online Application. During this Online Application process, on their computer screen, the merchant can clearly and easily see each and every rate and fee as well as the complete terms and conditions applicable to the Merchant Account they will be opening with us. In addition, once the merchant completes the Online Application, they are sent a link via email that will allow them to print a hard copy of the documents they signed. These documents also include the Rates, Fees, Terms and Conditions for their Merchant Account. If the rates and fees did not match what the merchant and the sales representative discussed then the merchant should not have signed the contract. LEADERS has several different offers with different rates and fees for each offer. The offer the merchant accepted included an Early Termination Fee and the rates and fees he was billed. The Early Termination Fee billed to the merchant was in his contract and is billed to the merchant if the merchant closes their account prior to the end of their 3 year contract. The merchant was billed the $350 ETF because he closed his account after 6 months of service. As a good faith gesture, LEADERS will refund the $350 ETF. As a final good faith gesture LEADERS will also refund the $120.00 in non-compliance fees the merchant was billed. The merchant was reminded to take the survey or be billed the non-compliance fee each month in his monthly statement message. The merchant should expect a refund in the amount of $470.00 in 7-14 business days. The refund may come in two separate deposits. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: I signed up on the internet. I was quoted a rate of $12.00 per month ( all other fees would be waved). I requested the service not start for five weeks, they said no problem delaying the start date. I received several emails asking me to take a training cession five minutes long. After the second email, I call the see why the rush. They then told me that my service had already started. I told them I had a delay date in place, they told me sorry, but it had started and they would not honor the delay date. At that point I requested what the amount due was, and they told me it was $43.00. $43.00 minus $12.00= $31.00 over the price quoted. I then requested to cancel. At the time of signing up I was told I had 30 days to try it, and I could cancel for free within the 30 day period. I called back 3 more times to check on the account. They just kept delaying me for 2 weeks after I faxed the cancellation request. My fax was before the delayed start date.On one call they told me there would be no cancellation fee. They charged my account $350.00.At no time did I use their service.Desired Settlement: A total refund of $350.00.That does not cover the time and effort spent on canceling my bank account. I had to open another bank account, and have additional funds tied up for 7-10 days without my debit card to pay for fuel. My pay rate is $50.00 per hour. I have spent 9 hours at this point trying to get this problem handled. 9 hours X $50.00 = $450.00 plus The $350.00 charge plus return postage of the card reader (unopened), total is $800.00 plus the return postage.I want $350.00 refund

Business

Response:

Leaders Merchant Services, LLC, endeavors to provide superior merchant processing services. In our efforts to resolve this merchants issues, LEADERS has thoroughly reviewed our Merchant Service records, which include the Merchant’s signed Agreement. LEADERS has it’s merchants sign a contract so there is no confusion about what they are going to be billed. The agreement did not mention anything about holding the account before opening it. Once the merchant stated he wanted the account on hold, LEADERS sent the merchant a seasonal hold form so the account could be placed on hold but the merchant never returned it. LEADERS installation department spoke with the merchant on 3/6/2014 so that they could help the merchant set up his account and verify the address he wanted his equipment sent. The merchant informed our installation department at that time he did not want the account on hold. The representative sent the merchant his equipment after verifying the address to send it to. The Program Guide sent to the merchant explains that the account closure process can take up to 30 days due to settlement on the account. This merchants’ account was closed in less than 30 days. As a good faith gesture LEADERS will refund the $350.00 ETF. The merchant should receive his refund in 7-10 business days after the charge clears our reject report. LEADERS considers this complaint resolved and closed and would like to wish the merchant much success in their business.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 9983742, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,

Review: The person I spoke to to sign up flat out lied about the service. I had issues with incorrect billing from the beginning ( I can document through emails ). My monthly fee increased 350% this past month. When I questioned it, they said it was mentioned on my last statement that the fee would increase, but I was traveling and never saw the statement. They offered to cancel my service all together at no charge, but will not refund any of the latest increase. I feel like they put me in a bind. I paid a fortune to set up the service on my internet site, and now have to remove it from my site and pay more.Desired Settlement: I want a refund on difference in the last months services I paid. I want a refund on the web company's time who charged me to put on the service and now will have to take it off. I also want a refund on the survey fee I had to pay to be set up (required by the credit card companies). Basically, they are pushing me out because they aren't making "enough" money off of me!

Business

Response:

LEADERS has tried diligently to work with this merchant concerning her issues with our company. The rates and fees the merchant has been billed were correct according to her signed contract. We notified the merchant of our rate and fee increases per her monthly statement. Mail is our standard form of communication with our merchants. As a Good Faith Gesture LEADERS has already closed the merchants account per her request and waived her Early Termination Fee of $350.00 that she was responsible for per her signed contract. We are not responsible for any other fees the merchant may have incurred due to a change in merchant service processors. LEADERS wishes the merchant much success and considers this complaint closed.

Review: When I did sign the contract with Jerry Aguilar, I specifically asked him:there is no contract? no monthly fee? and obviously no cancelation fee, since there was no contract, he said NO,denied all those questions twice.First month I got a charge,so I called them,and asked them why I was getting charge, and they said: it was the monthly fee,I explained them what Jerry said to me and they told me:well, we go by the contract,I told them:then Jerry lied to me? and the representative said, well he can say what ever he wants, REALLY ?! is that the professional answer? so they said check,is on your contract,went to check the contract and I found more signatures than I made, totally a FRAUD,they just copied and paste it, called them back few times and explaind them every single detail, and they are just not doing anything about it, they said the manager will call me back and Im still waiting for that call, its being few months already and they keep charging me every month, the charges are going higher and higher, Im sorry but that's a ROBBERY,I did not authorize any of those charges,on top of that,I haven't use not even once that thing, the firs time I was going to use it with my very first client, I couldn't even use it because they closed the account, if you don't use it for a month the close it, I never got a notice about it and I didn't even use to do my first sale. Lost the client and why they are charging me for something they closed it. No body has an answer for me and no body is willing to help. This is a totally fraud company, please for other people if you read this DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH THIS COMPANY, make your self a favor. I need help ASAP.Desired Settlement: I need total refund of every single penny they stole from my account. PLEASE !

Business

Response:

As a LEADER in the industry Leaders Merchant Services LLC strives to resolve any and all issues with our merchants as quickly and efficiently as possible. We have reviewed this complaint along with the phone call that was recorded and the signed merchant agreement. Our secure electronic application is designed so that the merchant only has to sign the application one time, the merchant must click that he agrees to each page of the contract and initials and signs his name electronically one time. The initials and signature are inserted in the appropriate areas of the contract and an electronic version of the application is sent to the merchant. The merchant had a copy of his contract from the very start of his relationship with LEADERS, and if he had actually read it he would have realized it was a contract and could have cancelled his account immediately instead of waiting 2 months to contact customer service when fees had been deducted from his account. Customer Service does not have access to phone records and can only go by the signed contracts to determine if a merchant is being billed correctly. After listening to the only call we have between the sales representative and this merchant we agree that the merchant was mislead into believing he was not signing a contract and that there would not be any fees if he choose to cancel his account. The fees on this account were not discussed during that call but we will side with the merchant in that matter as well. LEADERS will refund all fees billed to the merchant totaling $540.54 and close the merchant account per this complaint with no Early Termination Fee. The merchant should see his refund in 5-7 business days. LEADERS wishes the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: Excessive fees with no use of services. They come up with fees to charge you even when no transactions have taken place. Lock you in a 3year contract and charge a $350.00 cancellation fee. I cancelled my account and was charged that fee. I asked for a refund since I have not used my account even once, but was denied.Desired Settlement: I would like my $350.00 refunded

Business

Response:

Leaders Merchant Services, LLC, endeavors to provide superior merchant processing services. In our efforts to resolve this merchants issues, LEADERS has thoroughly reviewed our Merchant Service records, which include the Merchant’s signed Agreement. LEADERS has it’s merchants sign a contract so there is no confusion about what they are going to be billed. If the merchant did not agree with what was in the agreement they should not have signed it. Leaders incurs costs for all accounts whether they process any transactions or not, however, as Good Faith gesture LEADERS will refund the $350.00 ETF. The merchant should receive their refund in 7-10 business days after the charge clears our reject report. LEADERS considers this complaint resolved and closed and would like to wish the merchant much success in their business.

Review: I informed Leaders Merchant Services that I would be closing my company CS Comfort Sheets and would no longer need their services. That is when they informed me that I signed a 3 year contract. I had no idea, nor did anyone tell me that I was signing any contract with these people. In fact, I was lead to believe that if I didn't like their services I could just stop them.Well, Ive come to find that in order to close my account permantly with Leaders, it costs $350!You have to understand, this is coming from a company who in 5 short months has taken hundreds of dollars from me for a one time use of $40. Even that transaction was charged up the wazoo.Even if I was able to stay open, I couldn't afford to stay with these shisters.They required that I fill out a account closure form and email it in and pay $350. I did everything on 10/7/15. They still havent accepted my money. They say that they have up to 30 days to close the account? I know they are planning on hitting me with more charges at 30 days as well.I have never dealt with such villians. Can you please help in getting my account closed. I have to go in for eye surgery and I will not be able to see to do anything about these is any further. I just read online that one girl's bank account was still charged by them even after they closed it for 350. That would overdraw me.Please help and advise.Desired Settlement: CLOSE MY ACCOUNT AND LEAVE ME ALONE.

Business

Response:

Leaders Merchant Services strives to provide every merchant with

the highest quality merchant services possible, and to receive a complaint such

as this is disheartening. As a result of this complaint LEADERS has

investigated what the merchant has been billed versus what was in their

contract. All rates and fees billed to the merchant were part of their signed

contract. Each merchant has the opportunity to review the contract prior to

signing and agreeing to all terms. In addition, LEADERS ensures each merchant

has a copy of their signed contract e-mailed to them immediately after they

sign and submit the contract. If the information in the signed contract did not

reflect what the merchant and the sales representative discussed then the

merchant should not have signed the contract. As a good faith gesture LEADERS

will close the merchants’ account per the request in this complaint and waive

the $350 ETF. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success and

considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: I applied for credit card services for my business on the promise of their salesman who said he could integrate with our P.O.S. system for $199. When it came down to it they could not do that. It was going to cost $1100. This was found out a day or two after they had approved my application. During the process the salesperson was pushy and unprofessional. At the time I found out it was going to cost $1100 I asked the underwriter, who was still asking me for information, that I wanted to cancel the application. She did just that on the basis that we never got anything installed on my system. Weeks later I saw a $350 payment to Leaders out of my bank account for a cancellation fee. This never should have happened and I need to have that refunded. After asking them to refund it they denied my request even though they never got anything installed on my system. This was a clear bait and switch fraud. I sent in an e-mail trying to fight the decision about a month ago and still have not heard anything from them. At this time I am afraid my personal information along with my banking information are at risk. They have all of my information and already took $350 out without my permission.I want my $350 back due to them not being able to do as promised.Desired Settlement: I want my $350 back due to them not being able to do as promised.

Business

Response:

LEADERS takes all complaints very seriously and would like to address the issues the merchant has brought up in his complaint. LEADERS opens Merchant Accounts for businesses that already have a POS system on a regular basis. Having said that, LEADERS has no control over a merchant’s POS operating system or the provider of these POS systems. The cost to convert the Merchant Account within a POS system is typically a reasonable amount, and is small in comparison to the savings we will be providing the merchant on their processing in the coming months. Unfortunately, in this case the merchant tells us it was substantially more than the norm, but he has not supplied us with any evidence that the amount was in fact $1,100 and could not be negotiated to a reasonable amount with his POS provider. LEADERS has listened to the phone calls between the merchant and his sales rep and we did not hear any portion of a call where the sales rep was pushy or rude. It appears that the merchant and the sales rep built a nice relationship on the calls. We feel this is evidenced by the fact that the merchant signed up for a merchant account with LEADERS based on his conversations with our sales rep. However, if the merchant now feels the sales rep was pushy or rude, we certainly apologize. When LEADERS closed the account per the merchants signed request, the person that processed the closure knew of no reason to waive his ETF, so he was charged the $350.00 ETF that was discussed with the merchant when he signed up. LEADERS did not take this money without the merchants permission as it was in his signed Merchant Agreement with LEADERS. As a Good Faith Gesture, LEADERS will refund the $350 ETF and the merchant should see the refund in his account within 7-10 business days. LEADERS would like to wish this merchant much success with his business and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: My Leaders Account was cancelled before I was ever notified that it was approved, through the sales force. I was still charged for two months and customer service puts you on hold, will not let you speak with a representative, even after asking 3 times and is very rude. I want refunded the $50 they owe me and an apology from the rep for not cancelling it when he should have. I have never even used them.Desired Settlement: I want the money restored to my account immediately.

Business

Response:

LEADERS would like take this opportunity to address the merchants’ concerns in this complaint. The merchant states “My Leaders Account was cancelled before I was ever notified that it was approved, through the sales force.” This merchant’s account was approved and opened within 2 hours of the application being signed. LEADERS would like to point out if the merchant thought she had closed her account but received approval and new account information from LEADERS she should have called LEADERS at that time, not 2 months later when her sales representative called and left a follow-up message with her to see how she was doing. LEADERS installation department attempted to contact the merchant on 6/27/2013 to let her know she had an approved account and help her to get her account up and running and LEADERS sent the merchant monthly statements as well as debited her account for 2 months for her monthly fees. These should have been an indication to the merchant that her account was still open and not closed.

LEADERS would like to apologize for any excessive hold times or rudeness our customer service representatives may have shown toward the merchant. We strive to provide the best customer service and to hear we did not succeed is disheartening. All closures are handled by customer service, not the sales representatives so this is the reason the merchant was not transferred to her sales representative, because he would have had to just transfer the merchant back to customer service to close the account.

LEADERS has discovered that there was an error on the part of the sales representative, the sales representative did receive an e-mail from the merchant a couple of days after application was approved stating she wanted to close her account. The representative tried to close the account for the merchant by sending an e-mail to the account closure department. Since the e-mail was not a signed closure letter from the merchant the closure department did not close the account. LEADERS will close the merchants’ account with NO Early Termination Fee as per the request of this complaint and refund the merchant the funds that were paid for her July and August monthly fees in the amount of $50.00. The merchant should see her refund in 5-7 business days. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: I attempted to use this company to process credit cards for my small business and was scammed. They quickly talked me through the application process. They had me sign a electronic signature after talking to me about the services and fees. From day one my credit card swiper has not worked, they sent me a second one saying it was more updated and should work better. It looked the same as the one I already had. Again it did not work. I tried trouble shooting and still nothing. Meanwhile they have charged me fees that were not disclosed to me durring the sign uo process. I have called and complained and they said theres nothing they can do to help me. I told them they are lying to people by telling them theres to get them to sign up. They said the coversation was recoreded but I cant seem to get a copy of that. I want to be refunded $132.00 for a ISO fee but thet just keep transfering me to other people. I asked to clode my account. Theres a fee for that. I was not disclosed this. I was told there was no contract it was month to month and coould cancel anytime. They always go back to saying I signed a contract. NO! What I signed and what there saying are two different things. It seems they take your signature and just put it on what ever they want. I told them I was contacting the Revdex.com. They again said there was nobody in the company that could help me. I want a refund if $130.00 and I want my accout canceled with no fees!Desired Settlement: I want a refund of the ISO fee and I want my account canceled without any fee.

Business

Response:

LEADERS is a company of integrity and is loyal to it’s merchants. We are very disheartened to receive a complaint of this nature. After a careful review of the merchants’ complaint, account notes and the signed contract LEADERS would like to mention that in good faith we have already worked with this merchant to resolve issues she has had with our company. We have lowered her monthly minimum and her non-qual rate. The merchant states that she was not told about the Annual PCI compliance fee but it is clearly stated in her signed contract. The contract we have on file is the same contract the merchant signed electronically. LEADERS did not and does not have the capability to put her signature anywhere she did not clearly put it when she electronically signed her application. A link to download and/or print a copy of the contract the merchant signed was sent immediately after signing to the same e-mail address the application was sent to. If the merchant had any issues with the contract, fees, rates, or thought her signature was placed where she did not put it she should have immediately closed the account when she reviewed her contract. As a final good faith gesture LEADERS will close the merchants account per the request of this complaint and waive the Early Termination Fee although the contract she signed clearly states she has a $350.00 ETF. As a final good faith gesture LEADERS will refund the $129 annual PCI compliance fee. The merchant should see her refund in 5-7 business days. LEADERS considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Review: IN 2013 I chose Leaders Merchant to handle the credit card processing for my website. I was in that business for less than a year. I called in 2013 to cancel service from Fabulously Essential Oils and was given verbal confirmation that the account was closed. I continued to receive monthly statements with a zero balance or zero amount due. This year, in May 2015, my husband and I had our debt card compromised which caused us to take a closer look at our bank statements. Leaders Merchant had been making monthly withdraws from my account in the amount of 90.19 since 2013 even though they had stated the account had been closed and none of the statement they physically mailed indicated such. We reported their fraudulant activity to our bank. USAA investigated and subsequently blocked them from any further access. We contacted the company and asked once again for the account tho be closed. Paperwork was sent to us via email. We promptly completed the forms and emailed them back. That was the beginning of May. The document was emailed three times. I received a yellow piece of paper from them in June threatening to turn me into collections. I called the company. I spoke to a representative named Bo. He said he was closing the account and would immediately send an email confirmation. 48 hours later I had to follow up and ask for it again. I got a confirmation that it was closed. Two weeks later I got a letter from Credisolve stating I had been turned into a third party collection. I called, that company closed the account. I contacted Leaders yet again and they say I still owe and are not willing to return the monies that they actually stole from me for over a year.Desired Settlement: I would like for them to resolve anything they may have caused to my credit report. I want all of my money returned since December 2013. I would also like this company to stop harassing me and never contact me again after my payment and written confirmation that all ties to me have been severed.

Business

Response:

Leaders Merchant Services strives to provide every merchant with thehighest quality merchant services possible. All merchant accounts cannot beclosed without a signed closure form by the owner of the business. After someresearch into this account, we do not show any closure form was sent back in2013 or 2014 for this account, nor do we show any communications from themerchant to verify their account was closed until the owner contacted ourcustomer service team in May of 2015 requesting a closure. Once the form issent back, it takes approximately 30 days for a full closure. The account wasclosed effective June 19, 2015. The call the merchant received regarding acollections balance is due to an amount owed prior to the account being closedin the amount of $90.19. As a good faith gesture LEADERS will waive thatcollections balance, however all other billing will stand. Since the merchantsaccount is closed the merchant should not receive any further debits from herbank account. LEADERS would like to wish the merchant much success andconsiders this complaint resolved and closed

I signed up to have them process our credit card transactions, took forever to get a reader in the mail. Two days after the reader arrived I noticed a $25.00 debit on my account, it is from Leaders. I call them and they tell me it is because there were no transactions in the prior month. I explain to them that I basically just got my reader from them two days ago, they pretty much laughed at me and copped an attitude.

When I told them that I was not told about the monthly fee of $25.00 dollars they again laughed and the gal said "It is HIDDEN in the fine print, you should have read it." Then I told her I did not want to do business with anyone as shady as them and that I would cancel the contract. Again, laughter and sarcasm... "Well it will cost you $350.00." At that point I asked "For what?" "There is a cancellation clause in the contract" they said. Look, I asked the ** guy who talked into this all the pertinent questions about the very same crap they have now charged me for, his answer was always "no no such fees or termination fees". Look, these company is NOT good. Do not do business with them, read the reviews about them. What little you stand to save in transaction fees does not cover the problems and the amounts they will rip you off for. STAY AWAY!!!

Review: When our company signed up to use leader Merchant services for credit card processing we were told that there were no contracts and no cancellation fees. I was also told that the monthly fee was only going to be $8.00 a month if we didn't meet the minimum. After 1 month of not meeting the minimum we were charged $24.99 for a monthly fee. We decided to cancel because of the monthly fee and then we were charged a $350 cancellation fee.Desired Settlement: $350 for the cancellation fee

Business

Response:

LEADERS is one of the fastest growing merchant services providers in the country, we are accomplishing that by our superior customer service and low rates. LEADERS would like to apologize to the merchant if they did not receive the quality customer service that we are known for. LEADERS has reviewed the merchants’ complaint and our records. LEADERS has billed the merchant according to the signed contract. The contract is what governs our relationship with the merchant. The $25 monthly minimum the merchant feels they should not be paying was in the signed contract. The Early Termination Fee was also in the merchants signed agreement. If the agreement did not match what the merchant believed they were getting then they should not have signed the agreement. As a good faith gesture LEADERS will refund the $350 billed to the merchant for the early termination fee owed because the merchant closed their account before completing their agreed term. The merchant should expect their refund within 7-10 business days. LEADERS wishes the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 10287839, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,

Review: The company has numerous hidden fees. I was told that the credit card processing terminal was free. But it turns out that it is not free. I have been charged PCI Compliance fees. I was never informed of these fees. Customer service is very very poor.Desired Settlement: I want my equipment fee of $40 refunded. I want the PCI Compliance fees of $129 and $40 refunded.

Business

Response:

Leaders Merchant Services LLC, strives to provide every merchant with the highest quality merchant services possible, and to receive a complaint such as this is disheartening. As a result of this complaint LEADERS has investigated what the merchant has been billed versus what was in their contract. All rates and fees billed to the merchant were part of his signed contract. LEADERS ensures each merchant has a copy of their signed contract e-mailed to them immediately after they sign and submit the contract. If the information in the signed contract did not reflect what the merchant and the sales representative discussed then the merchant should not have signed the contract. One of LEADERS managers has diligently worked with this merchant to resolve his issues. The manager has returned all phone calls and has repeatedly contacted the merchant to assist him. In an effort to resolve the merchant’s issues LEADERS has already refunded $40 to the merchant. As a good faith gesture LEADERS has agreed to close the merchant’s account with no Early Termination Fee, saving the merchant $350.00. The merchant agreed to this resolution with our manager. LEADERS will close the account as soon as we receive the signed closure request. The merchant needs to be advised that this account will continue to accrue fees until the closure request is received, and the terminal is returned to Leaders in good working order. LEADERS wishes the merchant much success and considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Business

Response:

Tell us why here...The merchant signed a contract with LEADERS and signed an equipment agreement, both explained the fees the merchant would be billed. The contract included the $129.00 PCI compliance fee and the equipment agreement stipulated the amount the merchant must process each month to avoid the $40 fee. The merchant signed both agreements and had copies of the agreements sent to his e-mail. If the merchant did not agree to the rates and fees listed in the agreements then he should not have signed them. As a final good faith gesture LEADERS will refund both the PCI compliance fee and the equipment fee. The merchant can expect his refund of $169 in 5-7 business days. LEADERS considers this complaint resolved and closed.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 10367688, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,