Financial Ombudsman Service
I finished paying for the computer in May 2007 and was told that there was a 120-day backlog with the shipment of the computers, Sonya of Dallas, Texas wrote to ConsumerAffairs.com. To date I still have not received the computer.
FAI charged consumers more than $2,000 for computer and laptop packages that retailed in stores for about $500 or less.
A Virginia Circuit Court judge shut down the company’s operations in October and put the company under the control of Paul Campsen, a local attorney acting as receiver. Although Financing Alternatives has not solicited new customers for many months, consumers continue to file daily complaints wondering where their computers and money have gone.
ConsumerAffairs.com has received 166 complaints; the Better Business Bureau has received 487 complaints, according to its website; and the Virginia Department of Consumer Affairs has received about 2,500 complaints according to investigator Mike Coston.
During a court hearing on Dec. 14, 2007 our office said that in the course of the litigation, Financing Alternatives provided preliminary information to us indicating that there were at least 72,072 consumers who paid over $30.4 million to Financing Alternatives and had not received computers, Clementson wrote in an e-mail. At least 1,765 paid in full and received nothing according to the original complaint filed in July 2007.
Financing Alternatives representatives told consumers blatant lies when they called to inquire about their missing orders, authorities said.
Arthur Ruffin, who worked in the company’s customer service department from January 2007 to August 2007
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