Consumer Alert
$505 million in refunds sent to payday loan customers
If you took out an online payday loan from a company affiliated with AMG Services, you may be getting a check in the mail from the FTC. The $505 million the FTC is returning to consumers makes this the largest refund program the agency has ever administered.
The FTC sued AMG and Scott A. Tucker for deceptive payday lending. When consumers took out loans, AMG said they would charge a one-time finance fee. Instead, AMG made multiple illegal withdrawals from peoples’ bank accounts and charged hidden fees. As a result, people paid far more for the loans than they had agreed to.
In 2016 the FTC won a court case against AMG and Scott Tucker. Then in 2017, a jury convicted Tucker and his attorney of crimes related to the lending scheme. The FTC and Department of Justice are using money obtained in both court actions to give refunds to consumers.
Here are answers to questions about AMG refunds.
Who will get a refund? Checks are being sent to consumers who took out loans between January 2008 and January 2013 from these AMG-related companies: 500FastCash, Advantage Cash Services, Ameriloan, OneClickCash, Star Cash Processing, UnitedCashLoans, and USFastCash.
How many people will get refunds? More than 1.1 million people will get refunds.
How does the FTC know who to send the checks to? The FTC and a refund administrator have used AMG’s business records to identify eligible consumers and calculate their refunds.
I’m eligible for a refund. What do I need to do? If you borrowed from one of the lenders listed above between January 2008 and January 2013, you don’t need to do anything. The checks are being mailed to eligible consumers automatically. There is no application process. If you borrowed from one of those lenders before January 2008, please call 1-866-730-8147.
How can I get more information? Visit the FTC’s AMG refund page or call 1-866-730-8147.
Three tips from the FTC:
- If you get a check, deposit or cash it within 60 days.
- The FTC never asks people to pay money or give information to cash refund checks. If someone asks you to pay to get a refund from the FTC, it’s a scam.
- The FTC has advice if you’re thinking about a payday loan or an online payday loan.
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In reply to I got mine on Monday and it by Dball
In reply to Has anyone cashed or by Money????
In reply to I did and I am keeping a very by lexy18
In reply to If this check is legit why by Puzzled...
Yes, the check is legitimate. No, the FTC didn't send out checks for more money than was available. If you got a check, you should cash or deposit the check within 60 days, because the FTC will not keep the account for this matter open indefinitely.
Most people who get a refund check are able to get to cash or deposit a check within 60 days. If you can't do that, call 1-866-730-8147. The company that manages the refund process added more customer service representatives on October 2, 2018, and you should be able to talk to someone pretty quickly.
In reply to I got my check in the mail a by justasking2
The letter you got from the FTC said your check is a partial refund. "Partial refund" in this case means that the amount of your check is less that the total amount you paid to AMG Services, Inc. when it illegally charged you undisclosed and inflated fees. The FTC has sent out all the money that is available.
In reply to I received 3 checks, for a by donnar7777
In reply to Did all 3 checks come in one by Rams96
The FTC tried to combine information about accounts so it could send one check to each person. But sometimes it wasn't clear whether information was about one person or two people. When information was not clear, we did not combine it. For example, we did not combine accounts that had a maiden name and a married name, or accounts that had one name but two addresses. When we saw that, we sent separate checks.
In reply to I received 3 checks, for a by donnar7777
In reply to I saw that a few people by Blessing
The FTC tried to combine information about accounts so it could send one check to each person. But sometimes it wasn't clear whether information was about one person or two people. When information was not clear, we did not combine it. For example, we did not combine accounts that had a maiden name and a married name, or accounts that had one name but two addresses. When we saw that, we sent separate checks.
In reply to I received mine on Monday, by tamshiding
If you have trouble cashing or depositing your check, please call the company the FTC hired to manage the refund process. That is Rust Consulting, at 1-866-730-8147. Rust Consulting will tell you how to verify that the check is legitimate.
In reply to If you have trouble cashing by FTC Staff
In reply to Got mine 5,800.00 by Michelle
In reply to Mine says partial refund. by Nan
The letter you got from the FTC said your check is a partial refund. “Partial refund” in this case means that the amount of your check is less than the total amount you paid to AMG Services, Inc. when it illegally charged you undisclosed and inflated fees. The FTC has sent out all the money that is available.
In reply to when did they start sending by malena18
In reply to The letter you got from the by mother of 4
The letter you got from the FTC said your check is a partial refund. “Partial refund” means that the amount of your check is less than the total amount you paid to AMG Services, Inc. when it illegally charged you undisclosed and inflated fees. The FTC has sent out all the money that is available.
In reply to Me and my My husband received by Benny816
If you got a check made out to someone who is deceased, and you are in charge of that person's estate, you can call Rust Consulting, the company that the FTC hired to manage the refund process. Call 1-866-730-8147. They will explain what to do.
In reply to I took several loans from a by curious NJ
The FTC tried to combine information about accounts so it could send one check to each person. But sometimes it wasn't clear whether information was about one person or two people. When information was not clear, we did not combine it. For example, we did not combine accounts that had a maiden name and a married name, or accounts that had one name but two addresses. When we saw that, we sent separate checks.
In reply to The FTC tried to combine by FTC Staff