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First Consumers National Bank FCNB - Greg Aube, President ripoff - contact info - how to file a case against this horrible company Beaverton Oregon
As many of you know, FCNB is a rip-off company. They constantly claim that payments arrive one day later than the due date so they can charge us all another $35.00 late charge. They also give everyone the illusion that there is a minimum payment amount that will be sufficient to pay, but which, in reality, isn't enough to avoid an over-the-linmit fee if you were near the limit previously. Their outrageous finance charges will send your amount just slightly over the limit and they will then tack on another $35.00 charge. This is a total scam!
A few months ago I decide to get rid of this pain-in-the-a*s ripoff company and pay them off completely. I called them for the payoff amount (whcih was just over $5,000) and paid them in full. I verified the balance online and it showed zero balance. Two weeks later they attempted to tack on a late charge from the previous month, indicating that my payment the previous month was received one day late. This was too much! I contacted their office in Beaverton and was able to get a female employee to call back. I told her about the situation and politely asked that they perform a goodwill adjustment and close the account. The woman stated to me that they weren't allowing any more adjustments and that their late charges and over-the-limit fees were allowed under their Terms & Agreement in the credit card contract. I disagreed and then looked up the contact information for the president of the company.
I wrote a letter to the president, Greg Aube, stating the facts of the situation and the fact that they were violating the Consumers Legal Remedies Act in the California State Civil Codes and could be subject to a lawsuit. I requested the adjustment and closure of the account. What I received in return was a letter from one of their lackeys -- a Brian Cooksey -- stating that they were sticking to their policy and that they would not allow any adjustments.
I wrote again and offered a compromise, sending a check and stating that if they cashed the check that this would consitute acceptance of the compromise, but I informed them that I would file suit if they refused. The same lackey wrote back and arrogantly stated that they were depositing the check, refusing my compromise, and basically telling me to get lost.
War has now been declared! I state to all of you out there who have been ripped off by these arrogant bastards -- fight back! I feel the way to do this is to file small claims actions against them in your local courts, especially in California or any state that has good consumer protection laws. This is the way I am approaching this and I feel this will be effective. I AM NOT A LAWYER AND AM NOT OFFERING LEGAL ADVICE. THIS IS ONLY MY OPINION FROM EXPERIENCES AGAINST BAD CORPORATIONS.
It is my belief that FCNB is now subject to claims for unfair business practices and other violations of the CLRA, and if anyone files in small claims court, FCNB will have to appear in your local court to defend themselves. They are not allowed to use lawyers and will have to send an employee or officer of the corporation to the court. Based on the nearly 400 complaints to the Oregon State Attorney General and any complainst filed with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in San Francisco (who is the watchdog for the Federal Reserve banking in the western USA), it seems likely that the local judges will seriously consider the cases filed by consumers.
I do not believe that a class action suit will be as effective as a barrage of small claims actions against FCNB streaming in from across the USA. In California, the filing fee for Small Claims Court is $22.00, plus $8.00 for service of affidavit by certified mail. In California, the maximum judgment allowed in small claims is $5,000. However, for violations of any of the CLRA, the MINIMUM fine is $1,000. If a judge feels that the consumer has been wronged, he or she can award judgment to the consumer up to $5,0000! Can you imagine if hundreds to thousands of these lawsuits were filed against this rip-off company? It could seriously bring this company to its knees!
FCNB may try to wriggle out of cases by claiming that they have a clause in their contract that requires all lawsuits to be brought to court in their local district in Oregon. Well, surprise, surprise! I found out that the State of California codes WAIVE all forum selection clauses against the consumer and in favor of the corporation in any cases in which ANY of the CLRA codes are violated. That means that if you specifically state (in the case of California consumers) that FCNB violated any of the CLRA codes, then they cannot claim forum selection in Oregon. They must appear in California. You should check your state civil codes and see if your state has good consumer protection laws.
Class action suits are not always that effective and may not result in the remedy that consumers are seeking. Many consumers may lose out completely. Hundreds to thousands of small claims actions will make a big corporation take notice and may cause them to fix the problems they have created. It will definitely hurt them.
I will be constructing a website soon regarding the fight against FCNB. I will post the website address when it is ready.
Fight on!
P
Carlsbad, California
U.S.A.
Click here to read other Rip Off Reports on First Consumers National Bank FCNB
4 Updates & Rebuttals
P
Carlsbad,California,
U.S.A.
FCNB - account agreement
#5Consumer Comment
Sun, June 29, 2003
As an ex-employee, it seems that you are a bit out of line posting here. Your ex-employer, the rip-off FCNB, uses methods of assessments that are not only dishonest and unethical, but also unfair to the consumer. Taking into account your poor use of the English language, you obviously are ignorant of consumer laws and of the practices of corporations and the power that big business wields over citizens in this country.
Just because an agreement may say that a late fee may be charged if the payment is one day late doesn't necessarily mean that the corporation was honest with their recordkeeping. There are enough consumer complaints against FCNB indicating that credit card holders mailed payments well ahead to arrive in Portland on time. How do these cardholders know if FCNB received a payment on time or one day late? If you had any common sense and an awareness of the law, you would realize that a judge will most likely take into account the host of formal complaints to the State of Oregon and the banking authorities regarding the practices of FCNB.
Agreements are never perfect -- and almost always flawed -- and there are laws set up to protect consumers from rip-off companies like FCNB. That's what consumer protection is all about. It's obvious that you don't have a clue about any of this. You simply accept your employer as God and leave it at that. Shame on you!
And why do you show prejudice against the US citizens who file in court against corporations who are unethical and unfair to customers? Are you from some kind of communist country or dictatorship where people with money or power are always right and the consumer or common person is always wrong? If so, why do you live here in this democracy where the citizens have the right to fairness in the marketplace and the workplace? If you think opposite of the democratic principles of this country and can't embrace its freedoms, why don't you leave the USA and go back whence you came?
I'll be suing FCNB in court and after I win I will post the result here. If you think you can read and understand English well enough, maybe you will be able to figure out why I won after I post the ruling from the judge. Be sure to brush up on your English first (and state and federal laws) before you come back here, though.
Melissa
Lebanon,Oregon,
U.S.A.
Account Agreement
#5UPDATE Employee
Sat, June 28, 2003
If you read the agreement it says if your payment is not there by the due date you will recieve a late fee. Or if you account is over the credit limit you will recieve a over limit fee. I just cant believe that when people in the united state dont get there way, they talked about filing in court.
What are you a little kid that when you dont get your way then you go and cry to the judge about it... If you didnt like the agreement to the account why did sign up for it. Who's fault is that? Is it Fcnb??? I don't think so i think its your fault...
By the way when the judge reads the account agreement and looks at you and says why are you suing when you signed up for the card and agreed to it by using the card, why are you wasting my time with this, I really want to be in the court room to hear your response...
Oh wait who are you going to sue if FCNB is no longer in busy and there is a collection agency handling the account???? have you thought about that yet... i don't work for fcnb any more since our call center closed down on March 30th but i can tell you one thing I am so GLAD
P
Carlsbad,California,
U.S.A.
FCNB and your credit report
#5Consumer Comment
Wed, June 25, 2003
I AM NOT A LAWYER AND AM NOT OFFERING LEGAL ADVICE. THIS IS ONLY MY OPINION FROM EXPERIENCES AGAINST BAD CORPORATIONS LIKE FCNB.
Though FCNB will threaten or tell you that they will assess you a late payment fee or an over-the-limit fee, you can head them off at the pass by contacting the credit reporting bureau and filing a report with the bureau regarding this fraudulent company and that the charge they are trying to assess to you is under dispute. You might also want to somehow state that the company has hundreds of complaints against them and may be in litigation for fraudulent assessments.
Do not fret about the credit report! Though good credit is an asset, it is not the end of the world if there is a dispute showing on your record. However, you must file a complaint/dispute with the credit reporting bureau so that it shows up as a dispute on your credit record.
If you, indeed, file a claim against FCNB and win, you can ask the court -- as part of the award -- to force FCNB to remove the late charge reporting from your credit record.
The important thing is for everyone who has been wronged to fight back and file in small claims court if you feel you are right and can prove your case.
Lisa
Drexel Hill,Pennsylvania,
U.S.A.
Just got off the phone with FCNB...
#5Consumer Comment
Tue, June 24, 2003
I just got off the phone with a RUDE FCNB employee. I swear I never got my bill for this month, and my usual $15 payment is now a $100.00 payment or I will have the same charges applied next month. Their late fee put me over the limit and now I have to pay a $35 fee for that as well. She let me know that sending me a bill was a "courtesy" and that legally they didn't even have to send one! When I got on the internet to call her back, I came across this site, and now I'm worried. I don't have $100 right now, but if I don't pay, my credit report will suffer. I told her that in 3 years I never missed a payment and was never late and she said, "Well, you are now." I will be checking this further in Pa. to see where I stand legally.