Complaints

This profile includes complaints for The Motley Fool Inc.'s headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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  The Motley Fool Inc.

  2000 Duke St Ste 175 Alexandria, VA 22314-6116

• 

  The Motley Fool Inc.

  123 N Pitt St Alexandria, VA 22314-3128

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:05/04/2023

  Type:Sales and Advertising 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.

  I have had a membership with the Motley Fool company since 2008. Recently I received an email about a presentation about technical stocks. I signed up for and viewed this presentation. A key topic was a request to enroll in a new service with extra features at extra cost. The offer was made with two discounts from the list price of $999 combined with a credit of $171 for the unused part of my current membership. The resulting total price was clearly stated to be $521. The price would include access to a list of ten recommended technical stocks. I filled out the form and entered my credit card information. To my surprise my card was being billed for $644. I made an online request for explanation and received no response or acknowledgement. I then sent a request for an adjustment of the price. A day later I received a supposed response from a person calling themself ****** (no last name). The response was a fifth or sixth grade explanation of how a sales price can be determined by starting with list price, applying discounts, and adding sales tax. No mention at all of my issue. I repeated my request, and again received the same elaborate and completely irrelevant response.In addition to the overcharged price, there has never been any mention of the promised recommendation of tech stocks. Faced with the overcharge, failure to provide service, and ignoring of my requests I notified the company that I was cancelling any purchase. Note this was not a request for a refund - they never provided either the price or the service that was promised.

  Business Response

  Date: 05/30/2023

  Apologies for any confusion. One of our supervisors contacted you via email on May 5, 2023. They explained that you viewed two separate order pages for Market Pass prior to purchase. One of the pages, the one you ordered from, was more expensive and included extra features. She offered a resolution to your complaint but did not receive a response from you. 

  Your subscription has been cancelled and fully refunded as of May 5, 2023.

  The list of technical stocks you were requesting was emailed to you on May 3, 2023, as part of your order receipt. 

  The Motley Fool 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 06/02/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  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. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***********************
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:04/08/2023

  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 tried multiple times to cancel my subscription and was under the assumption that I had been successful. Now I am being billed for a $219 renewal fee. I do not use this service, I do not like their stock recommendations, I don't appreciate the 1000's junk email's that have resulted from my info being shared {this rendered my primary email of 15 years no longer usable). All and all they are not professional nor transparent. I have contacted my credit card company to dispute the charges and block further ********. I have been onto the account two times since discovering this fraudulent charge pending on my **** account. NO WHERE HAVE I BEEN ABLE TO FIND ANY OPTION TO CANCEL THIS ALLEGED MEMBERSHIP. When I call their 800 number they are either closed or I am placed on holds for very long wait times. I don't blame them for the losses on my portfolios but had I not followed their advice I would not be so far in the hole. They talk up stocks they like and discount or just ignore the downsides of their recommendations all together. This is dishonest and has resulted in poor and costly results for me.

  Business Response

  Date: 04/28/2023

  Your renewal was cancelled and fully refunded on April 10, 2023. 

  We have not received an email from you since May 4, 2022. Our phone hours follow the ****: Monday through Friday, 9:30am - 4pm ET. You may have an incorrect number, as our wait times have consistently been under 2 minutes. You can also reach our representatives via the Help button on Fool.com. We apologize if you found our contact information difficult to find. 

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership. For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  If you'd like to adjust your email settings, there is a link to unsubscribe at the bottom of every promotional email. Additionally, you can log into Fool.com, click on "My Fool Membership" in the upper right-hand corner, and then click on "Account" and then "Email Preferences." 

  The Motley Fool 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/06/2023

  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.

  My account was debited 210.94$. I went to website to see why because I don’t use any service from them. I wanted to unsubscribe or whatever needs done to stop this bleed. No one is at customer service. Its a revolving door trap. I JUST WANT RID OF THEM.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/17/2023

  Looking over your account: on March 2, 2022, you purchased a one-year subscription to Stock Advisor. This renewed automatically on March 2, 2023 for one year. On March 6, we received three emails from you, and they were replied to within one hour. Your renewal was cancelled and fully refunded on March 6, 2023.

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership. For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  Your renewal notices were sent on the following dates: Mon Jan 16, 2023 and Fri Feb 10, 2023. Additionally, we sent a receipt to you on Thu Mar 2, 2023 after your subscription renewed for one year. The email included direct links to your account settings page, our Help Center, and our contact form if you had any questions.

  The Motley Fool 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/13/2023

  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 am being charged $300 every 2 weeks on my bank card. I have replaced my bank card a 3rd time and they are able to get my new card info every time. I've never signed up for service with this company. They started sending me emails when I opened a ******* ****** account I guess because they sold my email like many companies do. How they are able to hack my debit card info, I have no idea. I've reached out to Motley Fool to cease and desist but so far I have received no response.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/21/2023

  Apologies for the confusion. As our representative explained: we were not charging you every two weeks. We were attempting to renew your subscription. 

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership. For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  We contacted you via email on the following dates regarding your renewal: Wed Nov 23, 2022, Sun Dec 18, 2022, and Sat Jan 7, 2023.

  Your subscription has been cancelled, we will not attempt to renew your service again.

  The Motley Fool 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/09/2023

  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.

  Amount $214.68 ******* Bank transaction Fraud Hacking

  Business Response

  Date: 03/14/2023

  This was not fraudulent hacking. On Jan. 28, 2022, you purchased a one-year subscription to Stock Advisor.

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership. For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  We emailed you concerning your upcoming renewal on the following dates: Wed Dec 14, 2022, Sun Jan 8, 2023, and Sat Jan 28, 2023.

  On Feb. 6, 2023, your subscription automatically renewed for one year. This was the charge you saw. Per your request, your subscription renewal has been cancelled and fully refunded as of March 14, 2023. Email confirmation was sent to the email address associated with your service. 

  The Motley Fool 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/03/2023

  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 January 20, 2023, I received a fraud alert from **********. They had declined a $218.40 at TMF*Billing.Fool.com. ***** asked if this was an authorized charge, to which I replied "NO". ***** **** responded : we will close your card and issue a new one. I have around  30 utility bills set to autopay which now need to be updated to the new account number but I had to wait until the card arrived in snail-mail to start. Very disruptive. My point is that when a company which allegedly improves their client's financial status, reveals that they make their money by fraudulent, fine print scams, well, they really are about being fraudulent not offering value. Their clown icon is well deserved. Steer clear.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/14/2023

  The attempted charge was for the automatic renewal of your Stock Advisor subscription, which you purchased initially on Jan. 20, 2020.  

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership. For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  We sent renewal notices to the email address associated with your account on Tue Dec 6, 2022, Sat Dec 31, 2022, Fri Jan 20, 2023, and Sun Jan 29, 2023.

  Per your request, I have turned off the automatic renewal of your Stock Advisor subscription. We will not attempt to renew your subscription again.

  The Motley Fool 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/25/2023

  Type:Service or Repair 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.

  I paid $79 on 1/21/22 for 1 Year Discounted Trial offer with clear understanding that any further continuation of service will happen only if I agree. Automatic Renewal was NOT clearly mentioned in the discounted 1 year trial offer that I signed. I was NOT given opportunity to cancel the service online on their website. You are suppose to send an email that nobody respond. There is NO phone number that I can call. I do not want their service. They can check that I have not used their service for last 11 months. Their website mentions that they have a refund policy within 30 days of charge. I have been charged last week and want to get my money refunded.

  Business Response

  Date: 01/30/2023

  Aside from this BBB Complaint, we have not received any email requests for cancellation or assistance. There is a contact form available via the Help tab on Fool.com for any questions or concerns. 

  Attached are two photos from the order page when you purchased Stock Advisor on January 21, 2022.

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership.

  For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  Your order confirmation email, sent on Jan 21, 2022, including the following language: "Your subscription will automatically renew for 1 year at the then current price. You can cancel your subscription by contacting Member Support at [email protected]. For additional information about your subscription, including whether you are eligible for a refund, please contact Member Support."

  Additionally, we sent emails to the address associated with the account, alerting you to the upcoming renewal, on Wed Dec 7, 2022 and Sun Jan 1, 2023.

  Per your request, your subscription renewal has been cancelled and fully refunded. A confirmation email has been sent to the email address associated with the account. 

  The Motley Fool 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/03/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  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. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *******************
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/24/2023

  Type:Sales and Advertising 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 charged 4 times for $999, and I have contacted this company multiple times requesting that they refund my. I never agreed to have recurring charges for this company and made a huge mistake by trying out their services over a year ago, which cost me to lose money as well. I had no idea that I had somehow been signed up for recurring charges, and have NO IDEA why they continue to charge me for $999 (4 times so far). I want all of my information removed from my database and all charges of $999 refunded to me immediately! This is unreal!!!!

  Business Response

  Date: 01/30/2023

  Our apologies for the confusion. One of our representatives has contacted you via email to explain what occurred with your account. 

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership. For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  It appears that you sent multiple emails regarding the initial charge of $999 that took place on January 20, 2023.  As a result, our representatives responded by issuing you a refund for the $999 charge. However, it would appear that two refunds were issued simultaneously, resulting in you receiving $1998 refunded.  In tandem with your financial institution, we corrected this error.

  As a result, you have been charged twice and refunded twice and both your account and our account should be balanced.

  The Motley Fool 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/20/2023

  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.

  The Motley Fool subscription keeps charging my credit card, although it has been canceled twice in 1 year. **** lost the dispute in 2022 and charged me $199. I canceled, so I don't get charged again, and I just saw another $199 charge in my ****. I am a busy 68-year-old woman still working full time. I cannot imagine how much money this company keeps charging people that need more time to review their statements. Perhaps someone needs to check this company and see if they are abusing the elderly.

  Business Response

  Date: 01/27/2023

  We apologize for the unexpected charge.

  Upon purchase of any one subscription, the automatic renewal feature is turned on. Your subscription will automatically renew at the then-current rate until you notify us of your decision to terminate your membership. For subscription terms greater than three months, we will email you about the length and price of your renewal before we charge you. The terms and conditions set the boundaries and nature of our relationship; these were agreed to at the time of purchase.

  We did not receive a cancellation request from you until January 2023. Your recent renewal has been cancelled and fully refunded. 

  The Motley Fool 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/20/2023

  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 am filing a complaint because I believe the company used deceptive marketing to charge me more than I should have been charged. I am attaching a report which gives the full details of the issue.

  Business Response

  Date: 01/27/2023

  One of our representatives explained to you via email your purchase history. They also provided receipts from each purchase, as well as photos from your order pages.

  On January 1, 2023, you purchased access to Stock Advisor using a new member promotional rate.

  Following this purchase, you were offered the Epic Bundle. The Epic Bundle provides access to several services, including Stock Advisor. As our system does not allow for overlapping services, the amount you paid for Stock Advisor was deducted from your cost of the Epic Bundle.

  After upgrading to the Epic Bundle, you received an offer to purchase Market Pass. Market Pass contains all of the services included in the Epic Bundle, as well as some additional services. As our system does not allow for overlapping services, the credits from Epic Bundle were deducted from your cost of Market Pass.

  The order pages included pricing and showed how these prior purchases were deducted from the overall cost as credit. We apologize for any confusion.

  The Motley Fool