U.S. Vessel Documentation

I was solicited by mail for renewal of my vessel documentation. I had no reason to question this as I have been renewing my vessel since 1998. They don't explicitly state they are the USCG, however, they present themselves very much like them. They talked me in to renewing for 5 years $375, three times more than what the USCG would have collected. I emailed them requesting a refund after speaking with the USCG who explained they are a fraud. They too have been trying to shut down these businesses. *** Hunter Billing Associate Office: Fax: Email: ***@vesselrenewal.us replied to my request, was extremely rude, furthermore, they explicitly stated they are not refunding my money.

This is a totally phony business. They ask for money that matches the exact amount of money required to register a plane with the state of WA. The cost of registering a plane with the FAA is only five dollars but they are asking $65, the same amount as registering a plane in the state of WA. If you're not paying attention you'll pay them for a service you'll never receive and never get your money back. This business should be stopped.

First of all, this company presents itself as a USCG government entity, which is surely not the case. This company said that I could file multiple year renewals in 5-year intervals but after I paid it, the following year they sent an email saying it was due again. I have paid them $2625.00 for the fee that the USCG would have charged $78.00. In addition, they didn't even do what they said they would do in renewing my vessel documentation and when my vessel expired, I had to pay $339.00 to get the boats' documentation reinstated. It was a complete scam.

This business conceals the fact that it is not the US Coast Guard. Specific internet searches lead to pages where the information is concealed. Placed and order on Sunday. Tried to cancel 2 hours later, business was closed, would not refund a transfer fee that was triple the actual cost. Business is used to dealing with folks it his deceived and offers not refunds. Surprised banks do business with them. Obviously a deceptive business practice that has been reported on and government agencies are aware of.

We contacted this business by phone and told them we had a boat that was manufactured in Costa Rica and wanted to get a Certificate of Documentation issued by the US Coastguard. This is a requirement in Mexico when importing a boat on a Temporary Importation Permit. I explained this to the person on the telephone and was assured that we should have no problem. After answering several questions by phone, this service rep filled out the application and accepted my credit card information. I was charged $550 USD. After several emails back and forth, it was determined that they could not in fact, provide this document since the boat was not manufactured in the US which was told to them at the time of our initial conversation.

We then filed a dispute with our credit card company and the Vessel documentation center sent them a terms and conditions form with a forged signature. We were never informed of nor saw or signed a term and conditions form.
So they changed us the $550 and did not provide us with any registration documentation. They did absolutely nothing but steal our money. This company is a fraudulent bunch of rip of artists and should be stopped and go to jail.

This company uses a .us url name and poses as the US Coast Guard. Not only that, but they charge $75 for the same thing the ACTUAL Coast Guard charges $25 for. I made the mistake of thinking they were the USCG because of the .us url, but I was wrong. They also charged me $75 for an expedited request that (only after I paid and inquired about timing) was told that it would be 7-14 business days, as an expedited request. I cancelled the request the same day that I paid for the "service" and they told me it was too late.

These people pose as the USCG, charge 3 times the amount, an egregious charge and refuse to refund the money. They misrepresent themselves, perhaps fraudulently. I am in the process of disputing this charge with Mastercard. I have already located the ACTUAL USCG and paid $25 per abstract of title.

I wanted to alert you to a business called Vessel Documentation Online located in *** California. The company is a private firm that imitates the US Coast Guard and lures boat owners to document their boats through the private company at 3 times the rate charged by the US Coast Guard. For 2019 the Coast Guard charges $26 to document a boat for 1 year. The company uses the US Mail Service to send documents that cause boaters to believe they are from the Unites States Coast Guard rather than a sleazy company that should be shut down.

In March of 2018 I fell prey to the scam, with their documents that led me to believe I was dealing with the US Coast Guard directly I paid the $75.00 for what they represented as a two year renewal. Much to my surprise I received notification in December 2018 from the US Coast Guard that my documentation fee for 2019 was due. When I called the Coast Guard I was informed they do not offer 2 year renewals.

On 1/3/19 I called the Vessel Documentation Online and requested a refund for the fraudulent 2 year charge. They refused saying the payment was for 1 year only and no refund would be issued and hung up. The company charged $75.00 for s service I can receive for $26.00. They are very misleading with the documents sent to boat owners which imitates the actual Coast Guard official material and lead unsuspecting consumers into overpaying.

Is it possible to post some type of consumer warning to beware about Vessel Documentation Online and their sleazy business model?

Sincerely

This business is a complete scam. Not only do they advertise to attempt to trick the consumer into believing they are a government entity, they charge 300-500% more than actual US Coast Guard fees for the same service. When I discovered their fraudulent methods, I submitted a cancellation of my application (on the very same day I submitted it to them). They charged $370 to my credit card, which they refuse to refund--while also refusing to perform the service. They should be shut down.

SCAM ARTISTS. I knew that the US Vessel Documentation Center was a 3rd party private company, that was meant to provide a service. As a first time owner of a vessel, I was prepared to pay their exorbitant fees, to make sure everything was done correctly. They basically take your money, ask you for more forms, their website doesn't work, and when you call or use their online chat for help, you are basically stonewalled and told that eventually a case manager will contact you. I asked for a refund, and Jackson ***, a representative of the company emailed me, accusing me of being under the impression that they were the US Coast Guard...... why? Because their website is intentionally designed to look as if they are an agent of the US Government. They basically took my registration fees, and did not register my boat, AND took the fees for the renewal of the registration they never processed. The sooner this scam outfit is out of business, the better.

US Vessel Documentation is misrepresenting itself and purporting to be the US Coast Guard Documentation Center. Instead of the regular $26 per year fee, they charged me $225 fee for a 3-year renewal, but after issuing the documents for the first year (thought the Coast Guard), they never renewed them for the second year.

We have been through the same thing all these people have experienced. We got a letter from this company stating our Documentation was Set to Expire. We paid it also but we have disputed it with our credit card company so they have held the funds. This company needs to be stopped. Even it isn't fraud it is very deceptive. Lots of boat owners are older and very trusting and he is taking advantage of this.

U.S. Vessel Documentation advertises the management of vessel documentation services. When I went to renew my vessel application they stated that the boat was not registered and that a $475 dollar fee was required to reinstate the documentation. I did some checking and found out that this is not true. I asked for the service to be canceled and for a refund within two hours. They denied the request stating small print. I alleged that they lying to customers in order to scam them out of money. This is not an acceptable practice.

I received a very official looking letter from this company about the pending expiration of my vessel registration. I went to the designated web site and completed the process to renew the paperwork the evening of 10/3. This morning, 10/6, I received a note from a fellow boater warning about this company and that they were charging 300% of the actual cost charged by the Coast Guard. I looked up the Coast Guard process and fees and found that this was correct. I also reviewed the Revdex.com site and found a number of similar complaints about this company on both the Revdex.com and the RipOffReport sites. I then contacted the company via their chat app on the company web site asking to cancel the process and refund my money. The agreed to stop the registration process but refused to refund both the documentation fee $26 and their service charge $49. I told them I would then file a dispute with my bank and a claim with the Revdex.com. They then threatened to send my case to collections and place a lien on my boat.

This business is not what it comes across as. It looks like an official Coast Guard site for renewing documentation. It is a third party site disguised to look like the Coast Guard site. They need to be shut down. Charged more than double the fee!

I received a letter in May 2017 from this company, which appeared to be from the United States Coast Guard National Vessel Documentation Center, stating that my vessel documentation was expired. In order to reinstate it I was prompted to submit my information on their website which again appeared to be that of the actual US Coast Guard. This was very misleading and they led me to believe there would be serious fines if this was not executed immediately. I began filling out the form on their website until I got to the bottom and saw that it was a third party company not affiliated with the USCG. I got off the site and did not complete the transaction and then called them and left a message to cancel the transaction, if it had actually gone through. You cannot talk to a real representative on any of their phone numbers and the email address on their website bounces. Upon further research I found that this company was in fact NOT an official government agency and that they were taking advantage by deception and charging exorbitant fees- they charge $75 for a $26 fee on the real USCG NVDC. Since no charges showed up on my account, I thought it had been stopped if indeed it had gone through. On 7/10, they charged my account and forwarded a renewal plus late fee to NVDC without my consent. Fortunately, NVDC noticed it since I had already renewed my documentation and contacted me. This is a scam company. I am considering a lawsuit for wire fraud. FOR ALL BOAT OWNERS, DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!