Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/06/2025

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Empower / Finewise Put an account on my credit report and I have no account with this company , I called the company and they said I didn't have an account but that they would have to investigate ,How did a Empower /Finwise Place a collection on me without me ever openings an account or downloading the app .Please investigate , Remove off my credit report .

  Business Response

  Date: 03/13/2025

  Please see attached response

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/06/2025

  Type:Order Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I DID NOT SIGN A CONTRACT WITH THIS COMPANY _ PLEASE REMOVE FROM CREDIT REPORT

  Business Response

  Date: 03/14/2025

  Please see attached response and supporting documents

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/27/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I have been locked out of my account for several months. Ive emailed the help email countless times to get access. The reason I needed access is to cancel the membership fee they are charging me. For almost a year now *** requested support with not even a response back. And also during that time they have continued to charge me for unused services. This is truly a scam and I would not recommend this to anyone

  Business Response

  Date: 03/07/2025

  Please see attached response

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/21/2025

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I have reached out to Empower customer service about an issue involving my subscription. I stop my subscription and tried to restart and they wont let me, indicating that there is something wrong with my bank account. There is no issue with my bank account. They wont let me speak with tech support and they are being extremely rude over the phone without any resolve. THEY ARE IN THE WRONG!!! They are refusing to fix the issue.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/03/2025

  Please see response attached. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/18/2025

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I have been using Empower for at least 3 years now with a Thrive account for at least a year. I was never late on payments until I had to get surgery done and unexpectedly didnt have the funds to survive which included paying back my loan. I was late from November right after my surgery (I get paid weekly) to beginning of January when I returned to work and started paying it back. At first I was upset because my credit score was dropping so I contacted the company via email since I couldnt find a phone # on their website. This went on for weeks. Every time there was either NO response or a response that didnt address one problem I was dealing with. I explained what was going on and how I want to pay on it but I only can in increments since I dont have a high paying job and Im in debt from the unpaid bills during my recovery time. I eventually found their phone # and called and was told to just keep making payments on it and I can keep my account. Not aware at all until the last 2 weeks when I see on the app my account will be CHARGED off tomorrow (2/19) if I dont pay the full balance all at once. I called again and asked how this is possible since I dont even have a negative balance and I was told theres nothing that can be done unless I called earlier yet I told them I was emailing them for over a month already! I was also told theres no hardship program and they cant move any payments. I was given attitude by the one woman who wouldnt connect me to a supervisor and today I called again and a supervisor called me back but I missed her call. All she said in the voicemail was that theres nothing they could do yet again. After 3 years of perfect payments, early notice of whats going on and me pleading for help, and many poor excuses given to me later, my credit score has dropped almost 80 points in a month solely from this company and now Im in tears as it will be charged off tomorrow and theres nothing I could do about it. ********* disgusting company.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/27/2025

  Please see attached response

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/27/2025

   
  Complaint: 22958851
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  I contacted you way before January 19th like youre stating. I also paid money towards this balance and it was no longer even negative. I contacted you guys stating how I had surgery I had no options to pay it within 15 days of finding out it would be charged off. One of your representatives actually told me the beginning of this month that if I contacted early (which I did over a month prior) that they maybe could have had me pay in increments on the app. I had no idea this was going to collections until 2 weeks prior. That is not possible for me to pay all of that off in such little notice. You guys disgust me. You should not be able to run a business that ignores customer complaints (responses to some of my emails were there but none offered genuine responses and sounded computer generated) and also doesnt offer any slight understanding of life events that make it impossible to pay hundreds of dollars at once. Not only that but again I was no longer negative nor did I ever have a delinquent payment history UNTIL my surgery which I can prove that I had the week prior. You wanna destroy my credit, fine. But know this I will fight you guys on every platform I can and spread the word that you are a fraudulent heartless company that should NOT be supported. 
  
  
  ****** *****

  Business Response

  Date: 03/03/2025

  Please see attached response

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/18/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Registered on website to inquire information about a possible loan. They required bank information to see if I qualified and I dont. They stated charging me a monthly fee which I wasnt aware of when signing up and I immediately emailed them to stop charges and cancel the account. They said they were looking into several weeks ago and I heard nothing back and Im still being charged as of today. Its poor business tactics and its rampant online and with ********* regards,****** ******

  Business Response

  Date: 02/25/2025

  Please see attached response

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/15/2025

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Someone opened a fraudulent account with ******************** using my name and email. I reported this to Empower on several occasions. The only communication I receive is that I need to hand over my identification information to a third party in order for them to start their investigation. I have never heard of this third party before and in their terms you waive a lot of rights, including the right to a class action lawsuit if they ever leak your information. Suffice to say, I don't want to risk any more of my personal information this way.I keep asking questions that no one has answered. What is the overview of their investigation process? Does the account information match the credentials I provide? How can an unverified email can establish a line of credit? If there is a phone number associated with the account and who answers when they call it? Is a SSN required to open an account and was one used to open this account (I want to know if my SSN has been stolen as well). Twice their representatives have completely ignored my questions and once outright refused to tell me. I provided them with all of my police, FTC, and IC3 reports and my dispute letter, both by mail and email. By mail, I also sent them proof of my identity along with a dispute letter and all the relevant reports. No representative has ever responded. They do not provide receipt of my reports or acknowledge that I have even sent these. They have not even suspended this fraudulent account while the investigation is underway and it is still reporting to the credit bureaus. This issue began January 26, 2025, and today, February 15, 2025, they still have not taken any action and ignore my communication. I need this account closed immediately, for them to correct their reports to the credit bureaus, and send written confirmation that the account has been closed.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/21/2025

  Please see the attached response

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/25/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **** ******* Kok

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/14/2025

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I received a statement from Empower ************** In ***********, ID ***** stating I owed them $258.00. I never asked or set up this account. Called them and spoke to a representative who would not provide me a confirmation number or let me speak to a supervisor. The representative abruptly ended my call stating a supervisor would call me in 1 to 3 hours. Nobody called me back and I sent 2 more e mails to them requesting this fraudulent claim be addressed immediately to prevent further fraud. The e mails stated to send personal information to start a claim and I do not feel comfortable sending that to a company who will not answer my questions or provide me a claim number. It has been 2 days and no response from Empower. I believe someone has set up an account in my name and I am seriously concerned regarding this issue. There could be other accounts being set up in my name and want to resolve immediately. I have e mailed them at **************************** with only the same automated response sent back. I am extremely frustrated with Empower as they do not appear to be taking this fraudulent claim seriously. I will continue to call which they tell me to send an e mailed to the address enclosed in this memo. There is something wrong here and this company does not appear to want to resolve. My identity is in question here and no response!I am not sure what further I can do and question the integrity of this company, I have an extremely bad feeling about them. This organization needs to be investigated for fraudulent actions.Respectfully,**** ******

  Business Response

  Date: 02/21/2025

  Please see attached response

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/21/2025

   
  Complaint: 22942662
  
  I am rejecting this response because: 

  Thank you for responding to the BBB regarding my compliant. I appreciate you closed out this account that was opened fraudulently in my name. However, I believe that your customer service regarding this issue was not taken seriously until I contacted the BBB. I made several attempts to contact someone at Empower and received no response until the BBB became involved. In fact, the BBB sent this response and Empower never notified me of this resolution. As a consumer that was concerned regarding a fraudulent account opened in his name, I believe a phone call as promised during initial conversation with Empower representative reporting fraudulent account should have occurred. When someones identity has been compromised and that individual is making every attempt to contact you, I believe a phone call should have been made to resolve the issue. The customer service was minimal at best and the original Empower representative who took the call was short and rude on the phone ending the call abruptly. This was an extremely stressful experience and could have been rectified with a single phone call from Empower.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **** ******

  Business Response

  Date: 02/27/2025

  Please see attached response

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/13/2025

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I didn't sign up for a membership, I only was trying to inquire about a loan and I started getting charged 8.00 every month for a membership, and I canceled it and empower is still trying to withdraw off my checking account and my bank is charging me ***** each time for ISF and that's not right to be taking advantage of me and I canceled that unauthorized membership, months ago,

  Business Response

  Date: 02/21/2025

  Please see attached response

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/12/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  This app let me take out 2 $50 advance. But then lowered my amount since to 10 dollars. Seeing as that cost eight dollars a month subscription just to be able to get the loans and to get the money instantly you have to pay anywhere from $1-8. I am losing money on a app that's made to loan you money? This literally blows my mind....Uploading documents to show my point

  Business Response

  Date: 02/18/2025

  Please see attached response