Complaint Review: Wholesale Merchant Services

A representative for wholesale merchant services promised that they would lease credit card processing equipment that was "ready to use". They also claimed that equipment could be returned and the lease transferred if at any time if I was not satisfied. The representative repeatedly soothed my concern about the non-cancellable lease by assuring me that I could get out of it at any time by returning the equipment and that they would simply transfer the lease to another party.

I signed the contract on 6/11/07 without fully reading the fine print which in part stated that all necessary installation had been completed and the equipment was in good working order. I actually did not even receive the equipment until 6/26/07.

When I received the equipment it arrived with no instructions and displayed a message "must do startup". When I called the customer service number displayed on a sticker on the side of the machine it sent me to voicemail even during business hours. I left several messages but none of my calls were returned. I filed a complaint with the BBB (Case #22121351) on 7/2/07. They have not responded to my complaint as of today 7/23/07.

I currently have a $29.50 per month lease for a term of 48 months on a machine that I have never used and don't know if I will be able to use in the future. The total I will pay over the term of the lease is $1416. I later realized I could purchase the same equipment on ebay for around $30.

Dan
Chandler, Arizona
U.S.A.