Please help me.

[Andyuk852]

Hi there,

Basically i have been mislead into a contract by jobfinder 365.

I went onto total jobs looking for a new job. After applying for a role i received a telephone call and was led down the path to sign onto an online course to enhance my qualifications in this area.

Like an idiot i was like yeah i will give it a try. after about 9 days i realised that i'm going to be in massive financial trouble and wont be able to afford this and need to cut the bills so i had to get in touch to terminate the online training course. At 80 pounds a month i am unable to afford it.

Upon emailing them they was quick to tell me i am outside the 7 day cooling period and i would have to pay the balance in full. i wrote back saying i aplogise and will accept charges for jan, they then replied saying that the full balance would be due, implying i am to pay for 12 months service i do not wish to receive.

I didn't even know i was entering into a contract for goodness sake! certainly not for a year! I found an email with a few attachments on it sent on the day the service was activated which was the day the first payment was taken with the apparent contact embedded. i haven't signed anything.

Whats this per-contractual agreement thing, i never recieved anything, can i go anywhere with that?

Shall i just cancel the direct debits and tell them to do one?

Please help. i cant sleep.

Andy.

 

[trickygj]

Andyuk852

Firstly, is it a credit agreement? If it is you get 14 days to cancel.

Fact is you do not need to sign anything to enter into a contract however jobfinder 365 has had some bad press on other forums and has been described as a scam.

If you do not pay they could take you to the small claims court. Whether they are likely too is a different matter. Will they bother, I'm not so sure.

Jobfinder 365 Ltd was only incorporated in September of 2011. Is this the same company? that you dealt with. It should be on the email paperwotk/contract. If you want to email the contract etc. I can have a look at it for you. Details below.

I would not worry at this point. If you cannot afford it cancel it, no point getting into debt for such a thing.

 

[Andyuk852]

hiya,

Thanks for your reply, This whole thing is playing on my mind so much, it's really stressing me out.

I don't see 'credit agreement' anywhere on their terms and conditions.

I've tried emailing them to cancel but all i am getting is that the remaining balance will be due if you cancel. Does this mean i am liable for 12x80=960 gbp?
Surely unfair for 5 online (so far) presentations?

Their website is jobfinder365.com

Thanks again,

Andy

 

[trickygj]

I've tried emailing them to cancel but all i am getting is that the remaining balance will be due if you cancel. Does this mean i am liable for 12x80=960 gbp?

If that was what you entered into a contract for then yes you would be obliged to keep to your side of the contract.

Surely unfair for 5 online (so far) presentations?

I don't know what the contract entailed but that is why you should not enter into contracts lightly.

Like I said if you stop paying they have one choice. Take you to the small claims court. What does it say in your contract re cancellation?

 

[davidjones1990]

Hey

I think I am in the same boat as you

I have done the same, agreed to pay for an online course from jobfinder365 and I am now having my doubts. So I have done a lot of research and I now have information that it is a scam and that the business doesn't even exist. To verify this I am going to phone them tomorrow and enquire.

The big question I have is that I cant cancel the payments because my bank (I have only checked my online banking) does not recognise them as a direct debit or standing order, they just seem as normal payments like I just brought something from amazon.

So when I phone them tomorrow I am going to try and get my money back, I know that they will not but I suppose its worth a try and I hope they will stop taking money from me.

I was also initially told that I would only be paying a one off admin charge of £79 and only after glossing over the contract I realised that it was a monthly withdrawal.

So I just wanted to ask andyuk852 if you have resolved your issue? and to trickgj if you have any advice to resolve this?

 

[Witch consumer]

It seems they take regular payment from your debit card, I would strongly advise anyone who is asked for payment in this way to do their research first as it is impossible to cancel.

The only way to do it is to 'lose' your debit card and request a new one from the bank, I know this is inconvenient but it really is the only way to ensure no further payments can be taken.

I also think anyone who has been scammed by this company (and I suspect their are a few who have browsed but not posted) report them to the OFT, the OFT do not act on individual complaints but if they receive several complaints about one company they will investigate.

 

[davidjones1990]

Thanks for the reply

Im going to cancel my card today and get a new one. Guess this is a good experience for me to be aware of scams like this and not fall victim to in the future.

I have read on other forums that people have reported them to Watchdog and the office of fair trading so im going to do my bit and do the same. Hopefully an investigation will be launched.

Thanks again for the advice

 

[Konoko88]

I am affraid im in the same boots as you.
I tried to cancel my training due to lack of money, but they say if i want to cancel it I have to the remaining balance.

So did you get a new card? Did it work?
Im not sure what to do.
Dont have a job so cant really pay it..

 

[davidjones1990]

Hey sorry for the very late reply I thought I was finished with the jobfinder365 idiots. So on 4th January I sent them a very detailed email to two of their email addresses explaining how i was displeased and wanted to quit the course. I however got no reply so i figured they must have given up trying to scam me. I was wrong. Today I got a phone call from a man saying my account was in 3 months arrears and he is going to pass my details onto a debt collection agency if I do not either pay £200 to close my account or carry on the course at a discounted rate of £45.

So I was ignored for over three months and they expect me to pay them money when I have clearly told them I have done my research and they are clearly scammers.

Also to konoko88 I did get a new debit card and that did stop the payments but I imagine they will let your arrears build up before contacting your with threats.

I'm tempted just to go and tell them to f**k themselves but if the worst comes to the worst I dont really have the cash to deal with debt collectors or the time to fight the case because I have recently started a new job.

I have also done some research into their website, the fact that the domain name was recently registered, and that the address they say they are registered at, they are actually not according to 192 search.

 

[Witch consumer]

Can I just make it perfectly clear that you are under no obligation to deal with debt collectors. When they get in touch, write back telling them the account is in dispute and they need to refer it back to their client. They will keep hassling you so just keep about 20 copies of your letter and send one back each time they send one to you.

If they persist in contacting you, report them to the OFT have have produced a guide to debt collection practices.

I doubt you will be taken to court for this money, and if they do it gives you the perfect opportunity to put your case!!!

I also doubt they will report the matter to a credit reference agency but if they do, again you can write and tell them the matter is in dispute and they must remove it from their records. (DPA says information must be accurate).

 

[moongirl]

Hiya,

I am in a similar position as you guys. In January 2012 I received a call from jobfinder 365 and they lured me into paying money for an IT online course. After the telephone conversation I realised that there is something really wrong as I did not specialise in IT, I never applied to an IT job advert and the guy on the phone kept telling me how suitable I am for the position although all the answers I gave were pretty poor. I cancelled my credit card right after I realised £90 were missing and did not proceed with the online registration because I was afraid they could get my personal information somehow. Last week, on the 7th June 2012,, 4 months after the first phone call, I received another one, and this time they said I have two options- cancel the course for £200, or proceed with it for £450 or they will take the case to a debt recovery agency.
Please, I would like to ask all of you to share what has happened to you all after that point, as I am really confused and do not know what to do. Has anyone of you had been taken to court or do you have further troubles with them?

 

[trickygj]

There is a law to stop harassment for debts where the debt is in dispute.

Administration Of Justice Act 1970
s.40

Punishment for unlawful harassment of debtors.

(1)A person commits an offence if, with the object of coercing another person to pay money claimed from the other as a debt due under a contract, he—

(a)harasses the other with demands for payment which, in respect of their frequency or the manner or occasion of making any such demand, or of any threat or publicity by which any demand is accompanied, are calculated to subject him or members of his family or household to alarm, distress or humiliation;

(b)falsely represents, in relation to the money claimed, that criminal proceedings lie for failure to pay it;

(c)falsely represents himself to be authorised in some official capacity to claim or enforce payment; or

(d)utters a document falsely represented by him to have some official character or purporting to have some official character which he knows it has not.

 

[PrincessxKrissy]

Hi,

I'm also in the exact same situation. I was told I had to pay a one off payment of £79 and the rest will be funded by the company hiring only to receive a email on the 4 January 2012 to say my account is in arrears and have missed 2 months payment of £79. I sent an email to Senior consultant who mislead me to this course as I felt the matter should be dealt by him.

After being ignored for 5 months I thought they wouldn't bother also. Only to receive a phone call from a man called Kish Washington (that's if it's even his real name) saying I can either pay a termination fee of £200 or continue with the course for a discounted price of £450 and also to find out that the consultant that enrolled me onto this course "no longer" works for the company as he left in January.

How convenient, I have emailed him to say I would be in contact with Citizen Advice for the poor service received and for misleading me. I also told him as a company you do not wait 6-7 months to ask for missed payments, they as a company did not provide me with the things they said they would provide for example this so called "personal tutor to check on your progression for the online course".

He has now threatened me by saying "Option 1. - To restore you back on to the training programme for a reduced total amount of £400 (instead of the original £790)payable in 10 monthly installments of £40 and the training terminating in April 2013.
OR
Option 2 - A settlement figure of £ 200 payable in 4/5 monthly installments for opting out of the programme completely.
If I fail to hear from you by the 5th of July 2012 in regard to the above proposals then I don’t have any other option other than to enforce fully the terms and conditions (the 12 month subscription programme) and pass it onto the debt recovery agency or to the Legal team to recover the full sum of £ 869 owed to us and also we will proceed with this action without any further notifications to you. Please be aware that this may not only affect your current credit status significantly but also impair your ability to obtain credit ."

If I owe them £869 why did it take them 6-7 months to contact me and then say if I want to terminate the account should pay them £200 thats £669 less than what I apparently owe them for service I wasn't even using and probably couldn't even access anyway.

So told him I have done a very detailed research about the company and asked him what was the company's relations with Direct Junctions Ltd based in Croydon (as they were the company that took the £79 payment from my account) if their company name is Jobfinder 365 and your apparent register business address is 1 Liverpool Street? I also asked him what is their company's relations with Career Jobs UK. I then told him I will be making a formal complaint under the Supply of Goods and Service Act 1982 that was from yesterday I sent that email and haven't heard a word from him since.

So I will be making a formal report on my findings about the company as well as a formal complaint against them. Now that I found this forum I also found another Act that they have gone against and can use that against them.

The guy even slipped up that he tried to use my card details to pay the missed payment without my knowledge or consent and when he called me I was on the train. He knew my current surroundings but yet he continued to ask for my card details how unprofessional.

Anyway, whats the update on you guys did everything work out in the end? Is there any advice you could give me?

 

[chip douglas]

Hi, I am in the same boat. After a month I realised the course was a complete joke. I have recieved the same emails about paying 200 to cancel the course or face debt collectors. I am not paying. What happened to everyone else after the deadlines you recieved??? Im not paying 100% complete joke of a course in the first place

 

[chip douglas]

Why, what was the outcome

 

[PrincessxKrissy]

Well after I questioned him about his company and how I've researched about the company..

I made a report of my findings but i'm gonna put the links i've found that helped get this information btw in your emails is this guy still using the fake Liverpool street address or the other one claiming to be in surrey? and if i were you'd i'd stop the direct debit, on your bank statements you should see the payments are come from Direct Junctions and they're based in Croydon, cut that get a new debit card, block any emails coming from them and see what happens..

I blocked his email after i realised I got his emails in the spam box instead of inbox even that shows how dodgy they really are..

He even tried calling me on private but i ignored it.. Its a complete scam can't believe I even fell for it.. and this so called tutor he was talking about he's all like you only get the tutor if you ask for it..

 

[chip douglas]

Hi Krissy. Thanks for the reply. So you haven't heard back from them after your deadline expired? Pay 200pound cancellation fee etc. Yes the company based in 1 Liverpool st. I cancelled my c card 4 months ago and got the same email as you. My deadline has expired on paying the extra money. They are a complete group of muppets and rip off merchants. Cant believe I fell for this scam in the first place. They never mention the money in the slides but they say they do. Complete joke.

 

[chip douglas]

I told them, Im not PAYING ANYTHING AND THEY CAN **** OFF... they really annoy you demanding money. Id like to meet some of these clowns face to face lol

 

[PrincessxKrissy]

LOOL dude I blocked their email address they ain't getting **** from me £79 is pretty much all they're ever gonna get from me haha and that company is as fake as it can get forever changing their company address like they're tryna escape from the cops.. I'm gonna ask for a new card as well..

After I questioned them about the company and how I said I did a detailed research on the company this idiot too like 10 days to reply back to me and then try give me another deadline to pay up..

Nah sorry mate not happening so i blocked his emails..

 

[ashant99]

I am also facing the same problem. I had paid my first £79 after that i cancelled my card and got a new card. After 3 months they keep on sending e-mails telling me to pay all the rest money. I won't be paying them anyway. Did anyone received the letter from Third Party Debt collection ?