I needed dental work and paid for most of it out of pocket, but needed $7,000 extra. I qualified for a loan through Care Credit. I filled out the paperwork at my dentists office and was approved. I chose a 12 month promotional offer. I paid $1,000 /month and all was fine until the economy tanked. I only had two payments to go.
I called Care Credit and asked if I could extend my "promotional period" to 18 months - NO. I had not been told that interest would accrue on the total approved. Not only was my interest rate 27.99%, but it was on all $7,000. I did without and it still took two years to pay off as the interest rate made the balance so much higher.
I paid off everything and vowed never to use the card again. I haven't closed it out - never say never.
I received an email and need to know if this is real or a scam:
Date:Mar-26-2014
Re:
Notice of Settlement
Dear CareCredit Customer:
We are sending this notice to you in connection with an agreement between GE Capital Retail Bank, CareCredit, LLC, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”). Under that agreement, certain consumers are eligible to file a claim to recover some or all of the interest assessed on certain transactions that were subject to deferred interest promotions. In a deferred interest promotion, interest accrues on your transactional balance during the promotional period (which can range from 6 to 24 months) but you are not charged that interest if you pay the entire transactional balance off before the promotional period expires.
We are sending you this letter because our records indicate that you may be eligible to file such a claim and may be entitled to refunds on some or all of those charges.
DETERMINING YOUR ELIGIBILITY
Under our agreement with the CFPB, you are eligible to file a claim if you meet
all of the following conditions:
1. You enrolled in CareCredit through a doctor or other healthcare provider’s office and
not directly through our website or by phone, in order to obtain dental or audiology services.
2. You completed a transaction for dental or audiology services with a deferred interest promotion between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2012.
3. You were assessed interest on that transaction.
4. You were not adequately informed about and did not understand (a) that you would owe interest on your account if the balance was not paid in full by the expiration of the promotional period; (b) your interest rate; or (c) that the applicable interest accrues on your balance during the promotional period from the purchase date.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
If you meet these criteria, then you can submit a claim form disputing your deferred interest charge. You may do so using the enclosed form and prepaid envelope, but you must include a mailing address so that we can forward any reimbursement that you are entitled.
You must submit your form by mail within ninety days of receiving this letter in order to be eligible to recover in this claim process.
WHAT WE WILL DO
CareCredit will respond to your claim within sixty days of receiving it. During that time we will investigate your claim and either (a) determine that you are entitled to reimbursement, or (b) refer your claim and information related to your claim to an independent adjudicator for a determination. After determinations have been made on
all submitted claims, we will calculate and issue any reimbursement payments. Reimbursement amounts may be impacted by the number of valid claims received. We anticipate this process will be completed by approximately mid-2015. For information on the status of your claim review process you may call 855-757-8847 for an update.
A copy of this letter, including a prepaid return envelope, will be sent to you by First Class Mail via United States Postal Service.
You may access a printable version of the form below by clicking here.
Enclosure
DEFERRED INTEREST CLAIM FORM
Eligible CareCredit cardholders may use this claim form to dispute certain deferred interest charges to their accounts. You must submit this claim form to CareCredit at
PO Box 628407 Orlando, FL 32862-8407 within ninety days of receiving your notice from CareCredit for your claim to be considered.
This Claim Form will be kept confidential and will be used only for purposes of: (1) confirming that you are eligible to file a claim under CareCredit’s agreement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; and (2) evaluating the basis for your specific claim.
Note: This email was sent to you by GE Capital Retail Bank, the issuer of your account. You may receive account servicing emails even if you have requested not to receive marketing offers by email for your GE Capital Retail Bank account. GE Capital Retail Bank is located at 170 Election Road, Suite 125, Draper, Utah, 84020, USA.
This is an unmonitored email box. Please do not reply to this email. Head off identity theft before it happens. For more information about identity theft, please visit the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) consumer website at www.ftc.gov/idtheft/.
If anyone can let me know if this is REAL, please let me know. Care Credit is not a company known for having a conscience, but the FTC does go after unscrupulous practices.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
JustMike
Cleveland,Ohio,
USA
This isn't scam
#4Consumer Comment
Fri, November 04, 2016
I understand this is a 2-yr old pot but it's not a scam
Anonymous
Raleigh,North Carolina,
Claim Address
#4Consumer Comment
Thu, June 19, 2014
I received the same notice from CareCredit and have a legitimate claim. I have lost the prepaid envelope and what I find interesting is no where on any of the paperwork I was sent is the address to send the claim to! I have tried everything I can think of to get that address and no luck. If I don't get my claim in soon I am out of luck. If anyone has that address and could post it I would be most appreciative.
Anonymous
Florida,Not a scam
#4Consumer Comment
Wed, April 23, 2014
http://www.consumerfinance.gov/newsroom/cfpb-orders-ge-carecredit-to-refund-34-1-million-for-deceptive-health-care-credit-card-enrollment/