February 20, 2024

Debt-Relief Company Pays $10.9M For Charging ‘Illegal Upfront Fees’

A student loan debt relief business accused of overcharging students will pay out over $10 million to over 8,000 borrowers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

Performance SLC is accused of charging thousands of students illegal upfront fees from 2015 to 2022, totaling more than $9 million, violating the Telemarketing Sales Rule. The company charged consumers fees to file paperwork for programs available at no cost from the United States Department of Education.

The debt relief company violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act, using deceptive tactics to convince applicants, referred by OneLoanPlace.com, to sign up for its services.

A staggering 8,571 consumers will receive a total of $10,936,618 from the CFPB’s victims relief fund and CFPB-administered redress. Payments were slated to be sent Feb. 15 through RUST Consulting.

The CFPB filed a complaint on November 5, 2020, in federal district court in California against Performance SLC, LLC (PSLC), Performance Settlement, LLC (PSettlement), which is a debt-settlement company, and Daniel Crenshaw, who owned and operated both companies as the CEO.

On April 29, 2022, the district court ordered Crenshaw to pay a civil money penalty of $30,000. BPSLC and PSettlement were originally ordered to pay $10,448,467.90 and $704,350.30, respectively, as redress for the people charged the illegal fees.

The order permanently bans PSLC from debt-relief services; bans Crenshaw from debt-relief services for five years; and permanently enjoins PSettlement from obtaining referrals from companies purporting to make or arrange loans.

There is a slight chance borrowers will not see a dime of the settlement gave the debt-relief company a loophole.

“This judgment will be suspended, conditioned on the defendants’ payment of the civil money penalty, among other things, and based on the defendants’ demonstrated inability to pay.”

Those who believe they are entitled to a refund should contact performance_info@rustcfpbconsumerprotection.org or call (888) 396-6086.