ComplaintsforSchaeffer's Investment Research, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  10/20/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I Signed up for two programs based on their sales persons recommendations and was told that I woudl be receiving a lifetime subscription for the cost of a 1 year service. After I signed up I learned of the actual program costs and found I was over charged by $7000 on the two programs, The company representatives keep stating they will work on a resolution but nothing has been done in the 3 weeks since I brought this to their attention. Very deceptive and dishonest pricing and selling techniques. They are overcharging customer by thousand of dollars.

  Business response

  10/25/2024

  Despite our best efforts, we have not been able to reach the customer.    We attempted to contact the customer multiple times without success.  The charges in question are under active credit card disputes at this time.

  Customer response

  10/25/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, reasons for rejection are included below.

  
  

  
  

  I have reached out to the business on multiple occasions via phoned email. They just tried calling me back on Thursday and again today. I have been busy at work and was unable to take the calls.

   

  I have call transcripts provided by this company showing that I was in fact over charged. The credit card dispute was ruled in their favor which I am continuing to pursue as the credit card companies did not read the call scripts which support my claims.

   

  They have made multiple promises to correct the and have yet to do so
  
  
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** ******
  

  Business response

  10/29/2024

  This matter has been resolved directly with the customer.

  Customer response

  11/12/2024

  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

  10/09/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Date of transaction -9/12/2024. Total money involved was $5094 I believe this was a bait and switch scam. I originally signed up for a $99 special lifetime access to financial info.. The next day I received a wake-up call and the person said this was about option trading and I responded that I was not interested in option trading. He responded that he could put me in a program with stock trading for forty nine ninety five. I assumed this was $49.95 and after checking my credit card the amount was $4995. I then found out they do not offer refunds. They said I could apply for a partial refund after 90 days. They did nothing about my original $99 although they originally told me the amount would be refunded.

  Business response

  10/10/2024

  This matter was resolved directly with the customer.

  Customer response

  10/10/2024

  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

  09/27/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Purchased a product from Schaffer Investment Research designed to provide recommendations on option market investments on 9/27/24. Part of the application was to check a box that the fee was non refundable. Later that day I received a call where the agent informed me that the product I purchased was not suitable for my level of option trader. I am level 1 and the product I purchased was for Level 3 and 4. There was no mention of this in the marketing emails. He then offered to refund the purchase price of $195 as long as I opted into another program that was more on my level for $1900. I declined this offer. I am retired on Social Security and I was not comfortable spending that amount. When I contacted Customer Service I was told since I checked the box there would be no refund I replied to that email that was not a satisfactory answer. I received a further reply that said: - I should have known that the trades would require a level 3 or 4 certification - I should have done more research. If I had known about the level requirement I would not have purchased the product. I feel this is an intentional bait and switch scam. The aggressive approach by the agent I spoke to contributed to this opinion.

  Business response

  09/30/2024

  The issue has been resolved directly with the customer.

• Initial Complaint

  09/14/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  After signing up to several lifetime services, the company took $2995 out of my account with no explanation. I immediately asked to cancel it. The company asked me to try it for 90 days. I originally said no. They were pushy so I agreed that I need more information about this product and I couldn't start the 90 day period for a week. No one told me I wouldn't get all my money back. One person told me I could use the 25% for other products and if that didn't make me happy I could get my money back. I've been clear that I want all my money back. It is now 90 days later and I asked for my money back yesterday. I didn't get it yet and they are telling me that they are keeping 25% despite not providing information about this policy. I am angry about this behavior.

  Business response

  09/18/2024

  This matter was resolved directly with the customer.

  Customer response

  09/18/2024

  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. The funds are pending in my my checking account. I appreciate your help.
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** ******
  

• Initial Complaint

  06/30/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I am complaining about SCHAEFFER'S INVESTMENT SERVICES that is not a trading broker, but a so-called experienced firm with 40 years experience that charges thousands of doll;ars for options trading "Recommendations" that are in great majority losing ones. Not only do they pretend gains of 100% to 200% when they fail, but they constantly bombard us with new schemes names to get more and more and more thousands of dollars. If this kind of fraudulent activity falls into your juridiction, I am ready to supply every and all details of their activity and supposed services. My email address is: *******************. Thank you for helping stop thieves that charge thousands for rubbish advices.. As further signs of misleading frauders, if needed, these crooks do not email their Recommendations under their name but an anonymous "subscription". Their Recommendations do NOT mention their name either, but a truncated "S" as seen on the attached documents. So that they can escape any direct responsibility!!! How treachurous!! Awaiting to hear from you that you can stop such kind of malefactors. Thank you for your help.

  Business response

  07/03/2024

  Complaint # ********
  
  We are sorry the ELITE TRADER doesn’t meet your needs.  Your ELITE TRADER is accompanied by our 90 day, pro-rated satisfaction guarantee.  The guarantee requires you to evaluate the program for the initial 90 day period.  Once the 90 days have lapsed, we provide a 14 day window thereafter to request a 75% refund for any reason whatsoever.  Your refund window is just a few weeks away.     Here is exact wording of your guarantee:
  
  “Your order comes with our 90-day satisfaction guarantee. This means that you are committed to the first 90 days of the service and after day 91 you will have the following options: you may transfer your remaining credit towards another service OR you may opt out and be refunded 75% of your subscription fee. All you must do is notify SIR within 14 days after day 91 to request a refund. Your order is otherwise non-refundable.”
  
  As you can see, your ELITE TRADER subscription is ineligible for a refund at this point in time.  Please contact us anytime between August 7th through August 21st for a 75% refund back to your credit card.
  
  Your ELITE TRADER package is a combination of 5 programs under one umbrella.  The five programs include the LEVERAGE/PLAYERS/EVENT/POWERTREND/OPTIONS UNDER $5.  When a recommendation is sent, the title of the email notes from which of the 5 strategies the trade is derived.   

  Customer response

  07/03/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, reasons for rejection are included below.
  
  Regards,
  
  ******* ******
  

• Initial Complaint

  05/18/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have been getting about 20 spam emails daily from different domains. However, all of the emails have two things in common that are listed within the hidden headers of the email. 1. email addresses that include the domain name of suddenlink.net (specifically **************************** and rcobern@suddenlink.net). 2. List-Unsubscribe: **************** I do not have an account with schaeffersresearch nor have I EVER subscribed to ANY of their newsletters. I'm assuming that they have gotten my email address from some list or someone is using them to lure people into clicking on links that will prompt them to enter private information. I have emailed them at service@sir-inc.com with no response from them or any ceasing of the spam emails. I JUST WANT THE SPAM TO STOP!! Here is a portion of the hidden headers from one of the spam emails I am getting. Received: from ******************* (************) by ******************************************* ********* id **************** for ****************************; Mon, 12 Feb 2q024 17:13:02 -0500 From: *************************************************  To: Trader Subject: **********, ID#***** Date: Fri, 17 May 2024 16:10:04 ***** ************* *** Content-Type: ********************** ************************************** Message-ID: List-Unsubscribe: ****************** List-ID: ****************** List-Unsubscribe: ****************

  Business response

  05/21/2024

  RE:  Complaint # ********
  
  Hello *******,
  
  We do not have your email address, *********************, in our database, so it would be impossible for us to accept an unsubscribe request from a customer who is not subscribed to anything.  It appears our emails were being re-directed to your account from other email addresses; something that you set up and we cannot see from our end. 
  
  Regardless, we have immediately stopped all emails to the original addresses in order to stop any redirects to your actual email address.  We apologize for any confusion here and confirm that all parties have been successfully unsubscribed now. 

• Initial Complaint

  03/09/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have blocked the email ************************** and continue to receive spam email from this address. I am unable to unsubscribe from their email list and can’t reach anyone from this company about the issue.

  Business response

  03/11/2024

  Complaint # ********
  
  I’m sorry but your email address is not in our system.  If possible, please sign in to your ****** account then open the email in question.  Once you open the email, click on the three dots at the top then select “Show All Headers.”  Please copy and paste the information into an email to dchase@sir-inc.com.  After we receive this information, then we can properly resolve your problem. As this email address in not our database, we cannot resolve the issue without more information.

• Initial Complaint

  03/07/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I have had a dispute with Schaeffer's Investment Research and US bank and the end result was in favor of Schaeffer's .I did not understand what I was doing at the time. I thought I was investing money and instead I was purchasing subscriptions to their information .I have paid thousands and have NOTHING to show for it. I have received hundreds of E-mails from them and all of their friends. I am 87 years old and I couldn't begin to read them all, I do not understand their business language. I am not an investor and had hoped to find someone to help. No one was available .I have paid the bills because I did not want to lose my good credit score, but would greatly appreciate it if they would humble themselves and give me a reasonable refund. Maybe treat me like they would treat their mother. Any help would be appreciated. ********** ** won't accept the amount of money.

  Business response

  03/14/2024

  RE:  Complaint # ********
  
  After careful review of all call transcripts, every transaction was confirmed as valid. Your credit card provider also came to the same conclusion.  Schaeffer’s Investment Research is not a broker.  We are simply a subscription service where our clients compensate us for our expertise to handle research and analysis on their behalf.  Each call clearly explained the fact that you would need to open an account and fund it with the broker of your choice in order to execute our recommendations.  We continue to provide these recommendations to you on a routine basis.  Although you elected not to use a broker to trade the recommendations on your behalf, I also offered to help, however, my courtesy was rejected. 
  
  Per our earlier conversation, your SUPERTRADER subscription is eligible for a pro-rated refund if you request to cancel within the proper refund window of May 15th through May 29th.       

  Customer response

  03/16/2024

  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

  02/29/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  2022-

  Business response

  03/06/2024

  RE:  Complaint # ********
  
  I’m sorry you are unsatisfied.  Please elaborate regarding your specific issue.  I will be glad to help resolve any concerns.

  Customer response

  03/06/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, reasons for rejection are included below.
  
  Regards,
  
  **** *****

   

  This case study is a candidate for becoming a universal household known byword “to live in infamy”: Schaeffer’s Investments.

  The victim 90 year old niece of notable ***** ** ********** headquarters company ******* * ****** ******* ******* represents a significant vulnerable percentage of the American population exhibiting polite non-involvement followed by shocked repeated requests for refunds, now plus damages subjected to the spectrum from anaconda to threats. 
  

  As deterrent to aide future Seniors this matter is on the road to all possible remedies, protections and punishments of every type: public media (e.g. 60 Minutes), business regulatory, governmental, legal, etc.

  All communications must be in writing.

   

  Business response

  03/25/2024

  Schaeffer’s Investments takes accusations of elder abuse very seriously.  We do not believe any of these accusations are substantiated.  Please clarify your position by providing specific instances of where we failed in your estimation.  We would never threaten or intimidate a client, nor would we have any motivation to do so.  Although we haven’t heard from you for over 8 months, we want to provide the best service possible.  We are unable to approve any refunds at this point, however, you have several programs that may be potentially eligible for a refund in the coming months ahead if they fail to achieve their minimum performance parameters. 

• Initial Complaint

  02/08/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I went online and purchased a $75 subscription for options trading on August 23rd, 2023. I got 10 trades a month plus other things and that was perfect because I wanted to learn how to trade. The morning of August 24th, I received a call from Edwin B****, Account representative. He wanted me to purchase a different subscription and I said I was happy with my purchase. He convinced me I that what I purchased was a newsletter and not what I needed. He talked me into purchasing a $3,995 subscription. I received the paperwork through email. I looked back at my first subscription and saw that he had lied about it. I immediately requested a refund and was told they don't issue refunds. I disputed the charge with my credit card company. They sent in documents and a copy of the call log. On the call log, Edwin offered to give me a refund in order to purchase the second subscription eventhough their paperwork says they don't give refunds. Edwin said that my subscription is fully refundable after 24 months if they don't send me 100 money doubling trades at 100% or more. The paperwork says 100 winning trades. That's not the same thing. He made many untrue statements during the 11 minute and 12 seconds call. I requested a refund the next day. The contract doesn't say the same thing as what he said. That can't be legal and it's definitely not ethical. I have filed complaints with multiple agencies and John V***, Chief Compliance Officer with Schaeffer's Investment Research, sent a letter to the Attorney General's Office full of untrue statements, eventhough the call log says something else. The agreement cannot differ from what is said. They have to agree. I will be happy to provide the BBB if needed. Schaeffer's has these documents.

  Business response

  02/13/2024

  Complaint # ********
  
  I’m sorry but I’m unable to honor your refund request at this time.  The customer’s subscription is covered under our full money-back performance guarantee, however, it is not applicable at this juncture.  Although the complainant sought a refund multiple times, the terms and conditions of the sale never changed.  For the record, our performance guarantee states we promise to deliver a minimum of 100 recommendations that result in 100% or more gains, not deliver 100 winning trades.  In order to alleviate any misunderstanding, below is our full money-back performance guarantee:
  
  “Your subscription fee is fully refundable after 24 months if this service has not delivered 100 winning trades of +100% or more over that 24-month period, as calculated by Schaeffer's Investment Research using our normal performance tracking methodology. This special guarantee offer is only available to new subscribers and applies only to the first 24 months of your subscription. Subscribers must contact Schaeffer's Investment Research within the first 14 days after the initial 24-month period to request a refund. Due to the exclusive nature of our subscription services, your subscription fee is otherwise non-refundable.”

  Customer response

  03/16/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ** ********* and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, reasons for rejection are included below. Edwin B**** offered me a refund of my first subscription, which was non-refundable, in order for me to purchase this more expensive subscription. That is unethical! I didn't get the chance to read the entire policy until after I paid. Had I read it, I would never have gotten this subscription. It's obvious that this will not get resolved. I will have to pursue other avenues because I feel that you all are money-hungry, unethical people. I want nothing to do with you shady people. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ********* ********* 
  

  Business response

  03/22/2024

  1.  The PDF document is only 11 pages.  Which specific details would you like for me to elaborate?
  2.  The customer has been a member of our database since 8/23/23. 
  3.  The definition of a “new subscriber” represents a customer who is new to a particular program, not new to the Schaeffer’s Investment Research organization.
  4.  We acknowledge, and previously reiterated on multiple occasions, the customer’s purchase is eligible for the full money back guarantee if we fail to deliver a minimum of 100 recommendations, over the initial 24 months, that result in 100% or more profit. If we fail to achieve this benchmark at the end of the 24 months, we will refund the customer’s subscription fee in full.  

*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. ↩