The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed a proposed ban order to resolve allegations that Performance SLC, a student loan debt relief business, and Performance Settlement, a general debt-settlement company, along with their owner and CEO, Daniel Crenshaw, engaged in wrongful fee-charging practices and deceptive telemarketing.
The CFPB alleges that Performance SLC unlawfully collected upfront payments from borrowers and did not provide required disclosures. The agency additionally alleges Performance Settlement settled debts without required consumer authorization and deceived certain consumers into enrolling in the company’s debt-resolution services.
If the judgment is entered by the court, the CFPB said it would permanently ban Performance SLC from debt relief services while banning Crenshaw from debt relief services for five years. Performance Settlement would be banned from certain loan-settlement and lead-generation activities, according to the CFPB.
The CFPB filed a lawsuit in the federal district court for the Central District of California against Performance SLC, Performance Settlement, and Crenshaw on Nov. 5, 2020.
The CFPB alleges Performance SLC and Crenshaw charged over 9,000 consumers with federal student-loan debt, approximately $10.5 million in illegal upfront fees.
According to the CFPB’s allegations, some 400 individuals incurred over $700,000 in collective fees because of Performance Settlement’s marketing.