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:09/20/2022

  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.

  I have a health issue that has caused me to be unable to use the service in the state where I was supposed to move to to use the service. I hired a lawyer to convey this after many attempts to have the company refund the costs. The company gave me and the lawyer a false address to send legal contact. The addresses do not exist and the mail was returned for no company or no such address. I would like a refund for medical reasons and also help in having my lawyer contact the correct address which the company failed to supply on request several times.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 10/04/2022

  To whom it may concern,
  
  We are writing in response to the complaint made by ********************************  ******************** became an Its Just Lunch (IJL) client and signed a non-refundable contract with us on 11/9/2021. A copy of her signed contract is attached.
  
  At the time of her enrollment, ******************** chose to finance her enrollment fee of $3200 through a third-party financing company.  ******************** placed a down payment to IJL of $640 and completed a signed financing agreement for the remaining balance of $2560.  This agreement was for monthly payments of $234.70 for 12 months.  As of writing this response on 10/3/22, ******************** has a balance of $0.  These payments are paid directly to and managed by a third party, ********* ******* *********, and are not through IJL.  Regardless, these payments are non-refundable.
  
  First, **. ********* statements that we provided a false address or that the address does not exist are not factual.  ******************** shared with us in February of 2022 that she had sent communication to an address unfamiliar to us in California and was informed that our franchise has no such address.  We do not know where she obtained that California address and it is not affiliated with our franchise in any way.  As of writing this response on 10/3/22, we have confirmed the address provided to ******************** in February of 2022 was indeed correct via email record, and we have included a screenshot of this communication as a supporting document.
  
  IJL DCs address, as mentioned in the email from 2/2022, is as follows:
  
  Its Just Lunch DC
  1717 K Street NW Suite 900
  Washington, DC 20006
  
  This address is clear on our ****** and BBB pages; we are unsure as to why ******************** would be experiencing any issues delivering mail to this accurate address if she, n fact, did mail something to this accurate address, as we consistently receive mail each day.  If ******************** was experiencing issues delivering mail to this accurate address, this BBB complaint is the first time we are hearing about it despite the many forms of both phone and email contact she has for multiple members of our team.
  
  Regarding her membership itself, ******************** received three introductions in the two months she was actively dating with us, which exceeds the one introduction/month minimum stated in her signed agreement.  ******************* joined our DC-based dating service while living in another state, stating that she traveled to the DC area once/ month and stayed in the area, on average, 1-2 weeks at a time; she also said she would be moving permanently to the DC area around June of 2022.  Scheduling dates was difficult with her availability, but nevertheless, she was scheduled for two dates out of the three introductions she received. 
  
  ******************** contacted us on 12/31/21 asking to transfer her membership to another office and was informed that her membership was non-transferable (as it states in her signed agreement).  Regardless, our IJL franchise does not operate a franchise in the location she requested to transfer to; had her membership been transferable, a transfer still would have been impossible.  ******************** became frustrated, threatened legal action, and, ultimately, hung up on her Client Advisor. 
  
  ******************** then spoke to a member of management on 1/11/22 and shared that she had a medical condition which left her unable to utilize her IJL membership in another state.  While she would not share any specifics,we offered to make an exception to her agreement in multiple ways.  The options offered to ********************, in good faith outside of the terms of her agreement, were the following: 
  
  1. To place her membership on hold, and IJL would not charge the fees associated to keep her membership on hold status, in case her personal situation changed and she was able to use the membership in the future. 
  
  2. Transfer her membership to a friend or family member that could utilize the membership in the DC area, and we would waive the fee associated with that stated in her signed agreement. 
  
  3. Cancel her monthly membership dues, which would, therefore, expire her membership.  The payments to the third party in which ******************* chose to finance her enrollment through would still be due, just as any financial loan would still be due to a third party after purchasing a service with a non-refundable agreement. 
  
  ******************** elected the complimentary hold option and has not been charged any monthly dues payments since this conversation with management in January of 2022. 
  
  We have followed up with ******************** directly via email on 10/3/2022 and re-confirmed our address to her via that method as well.  Any legal correspondence from a third party on behalf of ******************** will be responded to promptly and accordingly, with all details of her non-refundable agreement.  We offered multiple exceptions in good faith to ******************** that were outside of the policies within her agreement, and a refund is not an option.
  
  We wish her the best.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 11/30/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  From: ***** * <***********@*****.com>
  Date: Tue, Nov 29, 2022 at 6:56 PM
  Subject: My response to IJL case ********
  To: <*******@mybbb.org>
  
  Hi *** ******,
      The companies response to the address clearly stated on their website is incorrect. Attached are pictures showing their address from the website. Also, on the BBB website, there are multiple addresses including the one in Ca, which they state does not exist. I was trying to reach their corporate office and you can see the pictures showing different addresses. Where can the consumer write to the CEO of the company ******* *****? Also, the company’s response came from Pennsylvania not the dc office.
     In January, I went to the ****** ***** institute for testing. After leaving the institute, I contacted IJL to stop the payments from their third party collector because that company stated I had to get permission from the company for them to stop payments. As my emails and texts show, the company stated they could not cancel my agreement or refund my money. I stated clearly my medical issues which IJL stated in their response that I was vague. My letter from *********** stated my medical issues of why I could not continue with the plan to move up to Maryland due to medical treatments that were necessary and are still on going. They were also made aware of my traumatic brain injury. Attached are email and texts messages of our conversations.
      April 1 *********** forwarded their letter to *** ******** after contacting them about the address.
      The company also misstated that they had no guarantees on dates which on their website they state they guarantee dates. Their were 3 dates scheduled and all 3 canceled from the other person not me. I did not breach the contract. Pictures and the record will show that the dates were scheduled but the date canceled not me, which is not a date when you do not go on one when it is guaranteed dates. See attached emails and  texts messages to show that all three were canceled.
       The company also states there is no franchise in Nc. Attached is there main website to show a franchise. Also note the website does not state that the company is franchises.
  
  My resolution would be my full payment refunded of $3200 due to medical issues ongoing that prevents me from moving to Maryland. Attached are all the photos of evidence from the company, companies correspondence or lack of or ************ letters or my own correspondence. 
  
  Regards,
  ***** ******** 

  

  Business Response

  Date: 11/30/2022

  To whom it may concern,
  
  Please see our previous response. We have already addressed all of *** ********’s comments in our previous response and her membership is non-refundable.

  Again, we are it’s Just Lunch DC – a franchise that services the DC area only. We have provided our correct mailing address multiple times, and our mailing address is not the California based address *** ******** found on a different BBB profile for a separate business that is neither owned, operated, or has any affiliation with our independently owned and operated IJL franchise, It’s Just Lunch DC. As a franchise of IJL, our business is completely independent, and the address and screenshots *** ******** has attached are for entirely different businesses. The fact that the IJL brand is a franchise system does not need to be stated on each IJL website, business page, or BBB page. The BBB screenshots *** ******** has provided as ‘evidence’ in this dispute with addresses in California and North Carolina are separate business and not related to It’s Just Lunch DC in any way, other than sharing a name. We do not conduct business with those separate companies nor does our DC based franchised business provide service in that area, and as stated previously, her signed agreement is clear that her membership is non-transferrable even if we did. Any complaint from an It’s Just Lunch client that is sent to any business outside of the business they have enrolled for services with will be directed back to the correct business and an unaffiliated business will not address it, as that business is not servicing that client. Again, the California address is unknown to us and not related to our franchised business in any way. We do not know why *** ******** would send mail to an address in a different state that she found on an entirely different business’ BBB page. Additionally, we do not know why *** ******** would think that address has any affiliation with our business or claim that our address is incorrect after multiple direct contacts with *** ******** explaining that that address is not affiliated with our business in any way. Our correct mailing address has been given and explained multiple times.

  Finally, we’re unsure as to why *** ******** would include a screenshot of a complaint for a completely different business from someone that did not do business with us at any time, but we cannot address the screenshot as we are unfamiliar with circumstances and have no insight into an entirely different businesses' clients or affairs.

  We wish her the best.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/01/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  From: ***** * <***********@*****.com>
  Date: Wed, Nov 30, 2022 at 6:00 PM
  Subject: I disagree with response to case ********
  To: <*******@mybbb.org>
  
  Hi *** ******,
     I do not agree with the company’s response and it is not from the CEO of the company. The company did not address the medical issue or the issue of cancellation of dates. I feel a refund should be done due to the medical circumstances. Please help with this *** ******. The address we’re from bbb main website, which is where we as consumers are sent. Thank you, ** ********
  

  Regards,

  
  ***** ******** 

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/14/2022

  To whom it may concern,
  
  We have addressed all the claims in *** ********’s complaint multiple times throughout our previous responses.

  Furthermore, we have now received communication from a legal representative on behalf of *** ******** and are unable to provide any further comment at this time via this platform. We have responded to the legal representative directly. Due to this recent development, we ask that the BBB thoroughly review all the information provided by IJL, including her signed contract, and consider closing this complaint. We believe after thorough review; it will be clear to the BBB that *** ********’s complaint should be closed as answered at this time.
  
  Thank you,
  It’s Just Lunch DC

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/11/2022

  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.

  On 4/24 I entered into a contract with Its Just Lunch Washington for Match Making services and was charged the $3,400 initiation fee based on a representation about the quality of match making services and the dating candidates provided by the services by Kim R********. On 4/25 I had my call with the "service coordinator" Ana where she was clearly a young untrained employee reading off a script and unable to answer any questions including some of my "deal breaker" conditions which were discussed with Kim. I had a conversation with Kim on 4/26 indicating I felt uncomfortable with the process based on the lack of service and candidates that met my "deal breaker" conditions (both age (my max age as discussed with Kim was 46 and the first candidate was almost 50) and parental status (I said only amicable child custody situations and was told by Ana there was no way they could verify that) and noted in the contract as requirements for compliance for IJL). On 4/27 I found out that this was a common issue and that IJL had two active class action lawsuits pending along with terrible reviews online about the same types of issues. On 4/28 I told Kim I was going to terminate prior to any services being provided and requested a refund. Kim indicated that she was not going to accept my termination. I forwarded my termination and refund request to the Customer Services email. I have since been charged the monthly fee for both May and for June and have not received a refund or a response from IJL in over a month. I have submitted all of these charges as fraudulent to my bank.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 06/23/2022

  To whom it may concern,
  
  We are writing in response to the complaint made by ********* ****. *** **** became an It’s Just Lunch (IJL) client and signed a non-refundable contract with us on 4/24/2022. A copy of her signed contract is attached. Per our agreements,
  
  “Membership fees are not refundable. IJL does not issue refunds. IJL will make reasonable efforts to provide Client with an average minimum of one introduction per month while membership is in active status. Client may receive additional introductions depending on Client's criteria and availability, and the availability of members that Client is matched with. Your electronic signature here acknowledges your receipt of the cancellation terms: ********* ****”
  
  Rendering of IJL services begins immediately upon execution of our membership agreement – work is immediately started to facilitate the matchmaking process. In fact, *** **** details the conversations she had with matchmakers after joining in her own complaint –  her claims of “lack of service” and that she was going to “terminate prior to any services being provided” cannot be accurate based on her own statements. The claims *** **** has made regarding age of her first match is incorrect. The gentleman selected first for *** **** was 43 years old. Additionally, a date was scheduled between *** **** and this match – the date was confirmed on 4/27/22 - to occur on 5/3/22 at 6:30PM at ****** * ****. We have included the date confirmation email as an attachment to this response. As you can see, service was indeed provided from the moment *** **** signed her membership agreement, and a date was even scheduled. Nevertheless - even if a date was not confirmed for *** ****, our fees would still be non-refundable - as you can see mentioned multiple times throughout *** ****’s signed agreement.
  
  The main concern *** **** shared with multiple members of our team was the inability to confirm child custody arrangements between *** ****’s potential matches and their ex-partners. As you can imagine, there is no way for anyone to guarantee the potential custody situation of another adult. As co-parenting can be complex and relationships can change, there is no way for us to explicitly guarantee this. As you can see in our attached agreements, we guarantee that we will provide our clients with an average minimum of one introduction per month. Per our agreements,
  
  “A Date Introduction is defined as any selected match that fits Client's preferred criteria discussed during the initial interview, with respect to age, religion and parental status. All Date Introductions will be within the criteria provided by Client at the time of join with respect to age, religion, and parental status.”
  
  As you can see, custody arrangements are not something we guarantee.  Furthermore, to respect each clients’ confidentiality to the highest degree, we would never share personal information such as this during our low-pressure introductions.
  
  We feel it is important to note that the Washington, DC office of It’s Just Lunch is a franchise and has never had a class action suit of any kind against it. *** ****’s claims of ‘terrible reviews online’ are confusing to us - our BBB rating as an accredited business is a 4.68/5 stars, and our ******+ rating is 4.4/5 stars.
  
  As of writing this response on 6/22/22, we have received notification from *** ****’s bank of the disputed charges she mentions within this complaint and have provided the documentation requested - including *** ****’s signed non-refundable agreement. At this point, since the enrollment fee has been disputed, the matter is now out of our hands and lies with *** ****’s bank. There is no further action that we can take until the bank makes a final decision on the transaction now that the enrollment fee has been disputed with *** ****’s bank and the funds have been temporarily removed from our accounts. Regardless, our fees are non-refundable, *** **** received the services she purchased, and failed to follow our cancellation procedure as noted in her agreement. Her charges are indeed valid.
  
  We wish her the best,
  IJL DC

  Customer Answer

  Date: 07/02/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because it does not fully address my complaint (charges after termination) and misconstrues the facts. Please find my response attached. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************
  

  

  Business Response

  Date: 07/22/2022

  To whom it may concern,

  Once again, we feel it is important to note that the Washington, DC office of It’s Just Lunch is a franchise and has never had a class action suit of any kind against it. *** ****’s claims of ‘terrible reviews online’ and included alleged claims are confusing to us - our BBB rating for the IJL DC franchise on this very accredited business page is a 4.68/5 stars, and our ******+ rating is 4.4/5 stars. The It’s Just Lunch DC office is independently owned and operated as a franchise and has been providing matchmaking services in the DC area for nearly 30 years. We pride ourselves on our client service and work diligently with any client to address concerns that may arise during their membership.

  As we explained in our original response, and again as of writing this additional response on 7/21/22, *** **** has disputed the charges she mentions within this complaint (her enrollment fee, as well as the May and June monthly charges) with her banking institution.  We have provided the documentation requested - including *** ****’s signed non-refundable agreement. At this point, since the enrollment fee and both May and June charges have been disputed, the matter is now out of our hands and lies with *** ****’s bank. There is no further action that we can take now that the funds have been temporarily removed from our accounts due to the dispute opened by *** ****. Regardless, our fees are non-refundable.
  

  “Client authorizes IJL to automatically and without notice charge the designated credit/debit card or ACH draft used for the Membership Enrollment Fee unless an alternate form of payment is provided to IJL by Client. By providing alternate form of payment, Client is authorizing IJL to automatically and without notice charge that credit/debit card or ACH draft for Monthly Membership Dues. The initial debit of $98.00 will take place on the first day of the month following Join Date, and on the first of each month thereafter. If Client's Join Date is after the 25th of the month, the initial debit will take place on the first day of the month following the first full calendar month of service. Client agrees that this authorization for Monthly Membership Dues will remain in full force and effect until Client provides advance written notice via the then current cancellation procedure to IJL by the 25th of the month in order for the cancellation to be effective on the last day of that same month. If written notice via the then current cancellation procedure is received after the 25th of the month, the cancellation will be effective on the last day of the following month.”
  Additionally, we believe it is important to note that *** ****’s claim that ‘Since those two emails sent on April 28th terminating my contract, the Vendor has continued to ignore my emails.” is false. In fact, our Regional Service Manager directly responded to *** **** via email on 5/4, in response to her claims that the 5/1 charge was fraudulent since she believed she had ‘terminated’ her agreement, which again, was false. *** **** agreed to pay these monthly payments by signing a non-refundable agreement with IJL. *** **** had a date confirmed to take place on 5/3/22, and her charges on 5/1 and 6/1 were valid and in line with her agreement. The full terms of these payments have already been stated above and again, is included in the signed agreement which has previously been attached. The email sent to *** **** on 5/4 is attached to this response.

  Any client can choose to ‘terminate’ services at any point during their membership, however, a refund would never be appropriate per our non-refundable agreements. In conclusion, *** **** chose to dispute her payments made to IJL, resulting in the inability for us to assist in anyway, even if her payments were refundable, which they are not - as clearly outlined throughout her agreement multiple times. We wish her the best,