Complaint Review: CIT Lease Finance Group - Michael Brown Lee

I am the co-owner of Mule Mountain Tea Company, a small, generally local-business gourmet tea importer based in Redding, California. In September of 2003, I was contacted by phone by a Michael Brown Lee, with an offer to set me up with a credit card processing machine and service.

The one and only element of his offer that attracted me was that he specifically stated that such services were to be paid month-to-month, with NO long-term contracts. Approximately two months later, I had to change my business name (at that time it was called Shasta Mist Tea, but due to the similarity in names to Shasta Cola, we were advised to chose a new name).

Part of Bank of America's policies is that with such a name change, I needed to start an entirely new bank account. When I started this new bank account, I called Mr. Brown Lee to inform him of the changes so there would not be any interruption in business.

When I called the number provided, I learned from the person who answered that it belonged to a local office building, and Mr. Brown Lee had been paying cash to use this business phone line, and furthermore, he had not been seen in about a month. From this same phone contact, I had learned that there were many other people calling for Mr. Brown Lee, but he had provided no forwarding phone contact number.

I was very suspicious of the situation, and since I thought I was in a month-to-month contract, I called the only business for whom I had signed a contract, Merchant Services, Inc. (MSI). I cancelled services with them, with no problem, but they told me that they were only the provider of the credit card processing services and were not responsible for the credit card processing machine.

I spent a few days trying to track down Mr. Brown Lee, with no success, in order to return what I thought was his credit card processing machine. After failing in this, I thought there was nothing else for me to do, so I put the machine in storage and didn't think anything else about the matter -- after all, I had settled all matters with the one and only company I had signed a contract with, so I went about my business as usual.

Several months later, well into 2004, I began receiving very aggressive, threatening letters from CIT Lease Finance Group, who claimed to be the company with which I had signed a non-alterable long term lease contract for the credit card processing machinery. I attempted to tell them the situation but since I was only allowed to talk to their collections department, they were not interested in any of the situation.

I asked them to send me a copy of the contract, which they faxed me. I was of course very surprised to see a copy of my signature on a contract I had never seen before, especially one that stated it was a long-term non-reversible contract, SPECIFICALLY the situation I was told would not be the case by Mr. Brown Lee.

Perusing this contract, I quickly determined that it was falsified -- my signature was not of the same color/blackness as the other handwritten items on the contract. In addition, it is quite obvious that it was not my hand filling out ANY part of the contract, including the date.

As a final bit of obviously fraudulent information, there is a 'business trade suppliers' section on the contract. While the contract did have one of my valid trade suppliers listed (Tea Connexions, Saskatoon, Canada), the name of the contact individual was written as "Rolf." I have a very good relationship with Tea Connexions and at no time during my business with them has there been a 'Rolf' working there.

Overall, one glance at the contract makes the situation quite obvious -- the contract was filled in by someone else, and a carbon copy of my signature was added at some other time. I will swear in court that I have never filled out the supposed contract, for the above reasons and especially because I would never sign a long-term contract when the original verbal terms of the contract were that it would be only a month-to-month situation.

CIT Lease Finance Group passed the account on to a collection agency, at which time I filed a complaint with the IFCC (complaint number: io4032113546149). I passed along all of the above information to the collection agency, and have not heard from them in approximately a year if not longer.

Then, this week, I received yet another letter from them stating that they would 'offer' to settle my account at half the amount they claim I owed ($3,517.03). Considering I don't believe I owe them anything, I do not think I should be liable for any of this. I have not used their equipment and have ALWAYS stated my willingness to return it, but they refuse this offer stating I owe money according to a contract I had never signed.

I have just now filed similar complaints with the SEC and the FTC, and would appreciate advice in regards to whom else I should contact, aside from a personal attourney (I will happily meet them in court if they press this matter far enough)

Kenneth
Redding, California
U.S.A.