The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a proposed final judgment in federal court last week that would resolve a lawsuit against Prime Marketing Holdings, LLC, for illegal credit repair practices.
The proposed order would permanently ban the company from doing business within the credit repair industry and require a $150,000 civil money penalty.
The original lawsuit alleged that the company charged illegal advance fees and misled consumers about the cost and effectiveness of its services and the nature of its money-back guarantee.
Prime Marketing Holdings is a credit repair company incorporated in Delaware with an office in Van Nuys, Calif. Prime Marketing Holdings has operated under various names including Park View Credit, National Credit Advisors, and Credit Experts. Between Oct. 1, 2014 and at least June 30, 2017, the company charged more than 50,000 consumers more than $20 million for credit repair services.
In its lawsuit filed in September 2016, the bureau alleged that Prime Marketing Holdings made misleading and unsubstantiated statements about its ability to improve consumers’ credit scores by removing negative information from their credit reports. The company supposedly also misrepresented and failed to disclose the limitations of its money-back guarantee. The bureau alleges that these practices violated the Dodd-Frank Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule.
“Today we are taking action to shut down a company that deceived consumers into paying for credit repair services that did not live up to the company’s promises,” said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. “We remain committed to taking action against companies that mislead consumers into paying illegal fees with false promises.”