FTC distributing more than $3.5M to consumers harmed by ‘The Credit Game’

The Federal Trade Commission basically said, “Game over,” in connection with what officials dubbed a credit-repair scheme called, “The Credit Game.”

The FTC recently announced it is sending more than $3.5 million in refunds to consumers harmed by the operation.

In 2022, the FTC sued the operators, Michael and Valerie Rando, and their companies, alleging that their operation illegally charged consumers thousands of dollars for credit-repair services that provided little to no value.

The FTC’s complaint alleged that the defendants:

—Lied to consumers about the legality and effectiveness of their products, and whether consumers would receive a refund when requested.

—Provided false information to credit-reporting agencies regarding consumers’ credit reports.

—Harmed consumers by pitching their customers a supposed business opportunity to create their own bogus credit-repair scheme; and

—Encouraged consumers to pay for the bogus services using COVID-19 tax relief funds, in violation of the COVID-19 Consumer Protection Act.

The FTC’s action resulted in an order halting the company’s illegal operations and banning Michael and Valerie Rando from the credit-repair industry. The order also required them to turn over assets to provide refunds to consumers harmed by the scam.

The FTC is sending checks and PayPal payments to 9,224 affected consumers.