FTC: Alex Miller Credit Repair Operation Bilked Clients

A Houston credit repair firm was ordered by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to cease operations over allegations that the company made false claims and fleeced clients out of millions, according to a statement on Tuesday (March 22).

At the request of the FTC and the Department of Justice (DOJ), a federal judge issued an injunction against Turbo Solutions Inc., which does business as Alex Miller Credit Repair, and its owner. Alex V. Miller. The complaint seeks both civil penalties and direct losses and penalties for consumers.

Alex Miller Credit Repair allegedly made false claims that it would remove negative information from credit reports. Since 2018, the firm bilked people out of more than $9 million through their fraudulent credit repair scheme, the FTC said. 

The company illegally collected up to $1,500 in up-front fees and claimed it would remove negative items, like collection accounts, from people’s credit reports, and boost their scores with “credit building products.” 

According to the complaint, Alex Miller Credit Repair used the FTC’s IdentityTheft.gov website to file fake identity theft reports and claimed those reports were the reasons for the negative information on its client’s accounts. 

“IdentityTheft.gov is a resource for consumers, not scammers,” said Samuel Levine, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Those who abuse this resource by filing fake reports can expect to hear from us.”

The complaint also states that the company didn’t give people copies of their contracts, failed to provide required disclosures, and never gave its customers a statement explaining that their contract could be canceled without charge within three business days of signing it.

“Credit repair scams affect consumers who already are suffering from low credit scores,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will use all tools at its disposal to stop credit repair agencies from engaging in unlawful conduct targeting financially vulnerable consumers.”

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