Complaint Review: Payment Systems Corp - Nationwide

On May 4, 2014 I met with a Payment Systems Corp sales representative. I believe his name was Craig Cobb or something similar. He presented a merchant processing offer to me.  We discussed what the service offers, and he explained to me that I could save a considerable amount of money by changing over from my current processor, since the fee is only 1% for credit cards, and 0% for debit cards, with a fee of $99 per month for the equipment.  As we talked, I explained to him that my current processing company provides the register and card swipe equipment
that I use.  He assured me that Payment Systems does the same. 

After hearing what he had to offer, I began reading the contract and saw something that made me question if a register was actually part of the offering, for it seemed that the only thing I would be provided is the card swipe equipment.  I questioned this, and he said he must have misunderstood, but to let him make a call and see what he could do.  He called someone with Payment Systems, and I talked with the gentleman myself.  He agreed to transfer $250 into my business account to cover the price of a register, if I would agree to switch over.  Craig wrote this information on the paperwork.

As the conversation continued, Craig mentioned that there is a 48 month contract.  I explained to him that there is no way I could agree to that kind of a contract, because a large building is going to be constructed directly across the street from my restaurant within the next two years, effectively eliminating my customer parking, and that at that time I will be closing the business.  First, he told me that if that happens, I can transfer the service to someone else.  I told him I was not interested in doing so. He then told me that I could pay a $200 cancellation fee and that would be the end of it.

Because I didn't see anything about cancellation written anywhere in the paperwork, in fact just the opposite, he again said to let him call his contact with your company, which he did.  According to Craig, the gentleman he was talking with said that the cancellation clause Craig was referencing was something Payment Systems did for large companies and would not apply to me.  At that point I informed Craig that I did not want to change over if a 48 month lease with no cancellation option was required.   He relayed that information to the gentleman on the phone, and according to Craig, the gentleman said,  "Let's do a 24 month lease then, and get this done."  I agreed and again began reading the contract.  I noted in one place that the contract stated a term of 48 months, and I personally changed it to 24 months.

I signed several documents that day, but was not provided copies of any of them. I thought this a bit strange, but I had noted that Wells Fargo was the bank associated with the offering, and I do business with Wells Fargo, so I was not extremely concerned and assumed that copies would be provided from the home office once the paperwork was turned in.

I received the terminal and set it but did not begin using it because I was waiting on the promised transfer of the funds to purchase a register.  On May 14, 2014 I received a copy of a contract from Lease Finance Group.  As I was filing paperwork a few days later, I flipped through it. Imagine my surprise and concern when I saw that this contract indicates that the lease is 48 months, not 24, and there was nothing noting the promise of the register.  I contacted LFG who informed me that the contract is indeed for a term of 48 months.

I immediately began calling the customer service number listed in the paperwork.  I made four calls and was put on hold four different times for a period of 8 to 10 minutes per call, and each time I was told that someone would call me back shortly.  I did not hear from anyone. In addition, each person told me that they would send an email to a customer service specialist asking that I be contacted immediately concerning this matter, but with each successive call, I was told that there is no record of my previous call.

I have had to cancel my bank accounts (but not until after they took out over $200 and tried to take out another $200 within a very short period of time), and have spent countless hours and dollars trying to get this mess straightened out. Stay away from these people.  They have absolutely no ethics and will lie, forge documents, and mislead you at every turn.