CareOne Services, Inc. (Headquarters)

Customer Complaints Summary

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• Government Actions

  The following describes a government action that has been resolved by either a settlement or a decision by a court or administrative agency. If the matter is being appealed, it will be noted below.

  On November 4, 2010, MD Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler announced that his Consumer Protection Division resolved a multi-state investigation concerning the unlicensed sale of debt management services by a Columbia, Maryland based debt management services provider. A consent judgment reflects the settlement reached by the Consumer Protection Division with AscendOne Corporation, and its wholly-owned subsidiaries Amerix Corporation, CareOne Services, Inc., FreedomPoint Financial Corporation, and 3C, Inc. (referred to collectively as "AscendOne"), as well as Bernaldo Dancel, the owner of the companies.

  The investigation was led by Attorney General Gansler's Consumer Protection Division. The Attorneys General of Arkansas, Arizona, California, Delaware, District of Columbia, Idaho, Indiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and West Virginia also participated in the settlement.

  In Maryland, businesses that offer, sell and/or perform debt management services must be licensed by the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation before they may offer the services to consumers.

  In a complaint that was also filed November 4, 2010 in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, the Attorneys General alleged that AscendOne, working with a large number of non-profit credit counseling agencies, offered, sold and performed debt management services without first obtaining the required license. Since the investigation began, CareOne Services, Inc. became licensed in Maryland to offer, sell and perform debt management services. The Attorneys General further alleged that AscendOne misled consumers by representing that the debt management services it offered would be performed by a non-profit credit counseling agency when, in fact, AscendOne performed the services. Additionally, they alleged that AscendOne represented to consumers that they would receive credit counseling when, in fact, many consumers had little or no contact with a credit counselor. The Attorneys General also alleged that some of the consumers that AscendOne enrolled into debt management plans did not benefit from the plans. The companies and their owner denied that they violated any laws, but agreed to the relief provided in the consent order filed in Court.

  The consent order filed by the Attorney General prohibits AscendOne and its owner from offering, selling or performing debt management services unless they comply with all state law requirements, including maintaining the required license. The consent order further prohibits AscendOne and Dancel from misrepresenting that their services were being performed by a non-profit, the purpose of the fees they charged, and/or the impact entering into a debt management plan could have on a consumer's credit history. The consent order also provides that AscendOne and Dancel may not enroll consumers into debt management plans unless they first determine that the consumer can afford the plan and provide the consumer with meaningful credit counseling. Under the consent order, AscendOne and Dancel must also pay $4.5 million to the Attorneys General.

  CareOne Services, Inc. is a wholly owend subsidiary of Ascend One.
  
  

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• Advertising Review

  BBB has nothing to report concerning CareOne Services, Inc.'s advertising at this time.

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