Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  12/19/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  USFCR emailed our company an urgent message, including: "Action needed NOW", "You MUST renew registration TODAY", and "Your company will pay fines" because our *** government registration was supposedly about to expire. We authorized credit card payment based on the urgency of the communication. We subsequently realized: 1) that USFCR is not a government entity, 2) that registration was free; and 3) that the "notice" was 5 months premature, and was NOT about to expire.USFCR published "policy" allows refund within 48 hours of payment. We sent request for refund within the time window. USFCR failed to honor the "policy" and did not refund the charge.

  Business response

  01/03/2023

  The 11/1 charge of $599 was refunded to the clients credit card that was used to make the purchase on 12/28/2022. 

  Customer response

  01/03/2023

   
  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.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

• Initial Complaint

  11/29/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I entered into a contract with USFCR for a SAMSHA registration number during the month of July 2022. I needed to obtain a registration number in order for my company to apply for grants and I paid the ****** plus another ******* that was supposed to help me bid on federal contracts. I have received nothing for the amount of monies provided at this time. I have worked with *********************** which only leads to me being passed over to someone else and there will be a promise for someone to call back which never does. I sent off an email yesterday stating that someone will be reaching out to me yesterday and there were no calls. I found an email that stated the SAMSHA code that was provided to me was invalid and three weeks later I had to let them know about the email that they sent to me and again no one followed up on getting my company the correct registration or cage code. It is almost six months later and I still remain without the necessary registration codes and without them I can not apply for any grants or federal contracts. This organization has not lived up to the image that it is attempting to provide on its Linkedin page or any other social media platform. ***** writers that do not speak to anyone but send back emails that you do not qualify. I can not get anyone to return a phone call but if I miss a payment they are real quick to call me about that. I am not able to reach anyone directly and I am given information stating that my concerns have been routed to another individual and they will be reaching out to me which again does not happen. I received a phone yesterday from ***** stating that she sent me an email that requires additional documentation and account correction and it is strange how 24 hours later I still don't have that email even though she stated that she sent it. I would strongly encourage anyone to look elsewhere for assistance.

  Business response

  12/01/2022

  Order rcvd 5/27
  WS Rcvd 5/31
  UEI documents Requested 6/1 and 6/7
  Documents received 6/10
  UEI requested immediately 6/10
  Update requested on UEI 6/16, 6/27, 7/13, 8/3
  Signed SAP contract
  Client was advised did not qualify for Grant ****** style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(29, 28, 29); font-family: *******************, *****-Fractions, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 248);">Request updates from FSD again 8/11, 8/17
  UEI Assigned and *** submitted 8/30
  Registration failed IRS validation 9/10
  Requested correct EIN/Name 9/15
  Resubmitted 10/26 - requested client forward any emails received from ***/DLA
  Spoke with Grant **** regarding services and ineligibility, grant **** sent alternative grant ************** style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(29, 28, 29); font-family: *******************, *****-Fractions, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 248);">Requested IRS information again
  11/28 tried contacting client again she hung-up on CM, CM called back left VM

  Customer response

  12/03/2022

   
  Complaint: 18476915
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I am the person that reached out to the ***** ********** of which they never explained the disqualification for *****s and no one ever called to understand the structure of all three organization but instead would simply reply do not qualify. What was sent as an alternative was to an IT ***** that was due to close the following Monday. Per the attached document it states that I was approved for the *** registration but was waiting on CAGE number but now it has to do with IRS issues again this information was not provided to me and I have all the email and communications to support the lack of communications on behalf of USFRC.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

  Business response

  12/08/2022

  On August 2nd 2022, *********************** forwarded an email from ****** to the ***** ********** for review. The email contained a listing of funding opportunities from *****Watch. Our team at the time did not have a login to this site in order to view the ***** ************ On August 5th our ********** paid for access to *****Watch to be able to view the ***** ************ After reviewing the *****s that were sent to us, we determined that out of the *****s that were sent to us that non were the right eligibility for her organization based on the information we had in ***. This information was provided to ***********************; to pass along to the client.
  On October 19th, *********************** mentioned to the *****s ********** that ****** had some more *****s she was interested in pursuing. The *****s ********** sent an email to ****** asking her to please send over the links to the *****s so that our team can look at the eligibility.  On October 20th ****** sent over the *****s in separate emails. The first ***** was for the Pathways Home 3 ***** which had a deadline of April 19th 2022 and so she was unable to apply. The next email contained generalized descriptions for NIH, *** and DOE funding overviews and then the Open ************************* ***** and ********************* ************ The *****s ********** replied to this email the same day explaining that the Open ************************* was not currently accepting new ***********s and that the ***** *****s are open for her to apply but are not something that we typically assist with due to the cost of our services compared to the ***** ***** total. 

  The next email was sent to the ***** ********** on October 20th 2022 regarding the **** *****s. We sent her an email the same day explaining that eligible applicants were "State Mental Health Authorities (****s), ********************* (SSAs), or *********************** (SMAs) including ************************", to which her organization is not.
  On October 26th 2022, ****** called **************************, our *****s ********** manager to discuss her disappointment with the lack of phone calls regarding eligibility on thew *****s. ***************** explained to ****** on the call that the ********** usually does not call a client if we find that the client does not meet the eligibility requirements of a *****. The call lasted for 40 minutes where they discussed ***** ************ costs associated with USFCR's ***** services, options and suggestions for ***** fundraising. **** then sent a follow up email to ****** to where she sent an open ***** *********** to her that she could apply for. She did not receive a reply to that email.

• Initial Complaint

  11/28/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I work for and support a mid-sized ********************** as it relates to coordinating our *** ********************** and federal ***** submissions. I have been working w/ ******************* as my Case Manager and ********************* as my Sr. ********************** ************* Specialist at USFCR. I am submitting this complaint because USFCR has delayed processing our *** ********************** renewal for months without any formal notifications to our organization, putting us in a position where we will likely not meet a crucial ***** *********** deadline. I started the process w/ ******************* to renew our *** registration in May of 2022 (6 months prior to our previous registrations expiration which was 12/5/22), and at that time sent ***** all required documents requested on 6/1/22, and paid the annual fee. I reasonably assumed our registration renewal would be handled timely and accurately.Over the last couple of weeks, I have made several unanswered phone calls and voicemails to both ***** and ***** to determine our registration status. I was able to finally connect w/ ***** on Wednesday, 11/23, who at that point, submitted our registration for renewal, which deactivated our registration entirely. With the renewal submission just now being submitting by USFCR on 11/23, our *** status is now deactivated and I have been told will take up to ***** business days to complete. Our ***** *********** deadline is Thursday, December 1, 2022. We have attempted to submit ***********s and they have been immediately denied due to our current *** registration status (deactivated). Our organization has several million dollars in ***** opportunities at stake due to USFCR'S failure in handling our account/registration renewal appropriately. We request a prompt response and solution from USFCR and highly caution other prospective clients of theirs.

  Business response

  12/13/2022

  We have reached out the the client to find a resolution to the complaint and satisfy the contracted services.  Will provide additional information after our call . 

• Initial Complaint

  11/15/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I paid over $600 in March of 2022 to have this company set up a **** account for me so we can bid of federal contracts. This company never set up the **** account and stopped responding to emails when questioning status of the account. They basically scammed me out of $600,00

  Business response

  11/28/2022

  We are working on getting the registration completed.  There have been multiple steps that were required to address issues before the registration could be submitted and approved.  The Director of ****** Services reached out last week to go over the process with the client and provide any next steps necessary to complete the registration. 

  Customer response

  11/28/2022

   
  Complaint: 18407852
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  They have never sent this directly me despite me emailing them numerous times.  I do not have a **** login and password that they were supposed to assign to me so I can log in my account and confirm this status.  Once they give this to me I will be satisfied. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *****************************

  Business response

  12/01/2022

  Our Lead Case Manager reached out to client on 11/30 to address the issues within the *** registration and get the process back on track.  We will continue to work closely with ********* to get the registration completed. The registration has been resubmitted and the client has been advised to watch for an additional email from DLA.  

• Initial Complaint

  08/26/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We are a SBA certified Small Business and due to the actions of USFCR find ourselves at-risk of losing an incredibly important Government Contract because of USFCR's gross mishandling of and non-performance with our company data.We hired USFCR on June 6 2022 to handle our *** UEI Validation (Entity Renewal). USFCR agents made all indications that everything was moving forward with UEI Validation. On July 15th we received the indication from the USFCR registration agent that the documentation we supplied was sufficient to make UEI Validation progress. The USFCR agent was acting deceptively and dishonestly.Furthermore, a role for programmatic access was requested by the USFCR agent using a gmail.com account. This access was not granted, but might have played into the operational strategy to upswell their proprietary portal to pull entity information using our company's data rights with the US Government. The reality is that the USFCR agent (***********************) did not actually begin working our UEI Validation until Monday, August 8, 2022 when my co-founder asked for an actual screenshot of the GSA.gov Incident (i.e. ticket): Due to this inexplicable time delay our registration is now listed as inactive given the expiration was on July 30, 2022. It was only at the time of my co-founder's request for a screenshot on 08/08/22 that USFCR agent began action on our UEI Validation (Entity Renewal).Due to such mishandling and non-performance, we have revoked USFCR's access to our company in ***. Furthermore, we have an award-related deadline with the Government, for national security technology services, which is now at-risk due to this company's gross mishandling and non-performance. Short of visiting DISA in OH and finding a SES or equivalent in government to make this a priority, I don't even know how to calculate the level of damage we will incur if we lose an award because of this deceptive practice. We also dealt w/ ***************** and *******************************.

  Business response

  09/14/2022

  The Case Manager worked diligently to get the issues on the registration resolved opening multiple tickets to the Federal Service Desk.  When the client removed roles from the registration no more work could be done on the account.  The Sales Director has tried to reach out to the client to resolved the dispute several times with no communication from the client. 

• Initial Complaint

  08/02/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I went to a United States government website to obtain a UEI number for my charity. During the process I was redirected to this company's website, unknowingly to me. I was slick and seamless. I assumed it was a government website but it was not. A $599 fee was requested and in small print it said that it would not be refunded after 48 hours, which I did not notice. Several days later( after 48 hours had elapsed) I was contacted by what was called a case agent and she requested several documents from my organization which she said was necessary to obtain the number. Email exchanges between this agent and myself went on frustratingly for I went to a United States government website to obtain a UEI number for my charity. During the process I was redirected to this company's website, unknowingly to me. I was slick and seamless. I assumed it was a government website but it was not. A $599 fee was requested and in small print it said that it would not be refunded after 48 hours, which I did not notice. Several days later( after 48 hours had elapsed) I was contacted by what was called a case agent and she requested several documents from my organization which she said was necessary to obtain the number. Email exchanges about one month and I never received a UEI number. In the end, e-mails and phone messages to this company simply went unanswered. I then went to the Better Business Bureau website and read about similar experiences of others with this company. I subsequently learned that this UEI number was available free of charge from the government and it took me about 30 minutes to get it. This company runs a well orchestrated, intentional, scheme which preys upon the inexperienced and they seamlessly incorporate themselves into a government website which falsely gives the impression you are dealing. with the government. No useful service was ever provided for the 599.00 that they took from me. I request a refund. A warning to others was also posted on BBB web.

  Business response

  08/17/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/08/10) */ This order was placed in May. Our website, invoices and all communication clearly state that we are a third party and not the government. Our Case Manager reached out to the client over several months via email and calls to collect the needed data to complete the registration with no answer to either. Had there been communication from the client we would have gladly answered questions about our services and he could have decided to cancel for a refund at that time. Per our cancellation policy. Time spent and lapsed with no communication to USFCR for a request to cancel goes against our terms and conditions of the contract. We would be willing to refund half of the fees due to the time and effort spent trying to contact the client. Consumer Response /* (2000, 7, 2022/08/13) */ (The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.) For the record, the statement " Our Case Manger reached out to the client over several months via e-mails and calls to collect the needed data to complete the registration with no answer to either." is factually incorrect and false. This is a civil way of describing it. There were one or two phone calls which I answered initially and there were numerous e-mails subsequently for 1 to 2 months, all of which I answered. My last e-mail to the Case Manager an my last phone call to the company Help Desk were not answered or returned. The company unilaterally cut communication with me on it's own accord with no useful service ever provided and no explanation why communication was stopped. The company requested documents that the government does NOT require and in doing so, extended the process over months for something that could have been done in a day or two, as I later found out. Because this took so long, I missed the deadline for grant submission to the government for my charity. I do not dispute that the web site is labeled as described and I failed to read the 48 hour period for return of funds. I experienced a seamless transitioned from the government web site to the company website and the company website is in red, white and blue colors with the words "US" in the name. Ultimately not catching on to all this is my error, though I do not believe the process is orchestrated in this way by happenstance. I am going to be pragmatic and cut my losses and accept this settlement of the matter.

• Initial Complaint

  08/02/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was contacted by Frank ******* to get my business to be registered to do business with the federal government. During multiple sales calls I have asked him about the fees and how the payments would work. I asked if I paid in one the fee of $***** that I would get access to the government CRM he showed me multiple times. He told me it would be a one time payment and that I would have life time access to it. This was my choice to move forward with this company. This was the question I was asking all of the companies I did not want to have to pay every year. I called frank and told him I was locked out of the system and he told me I needed to pay $*** to get my *** up to date, I sent him a screenshot saying my same was up to date. They will tell any lie to get customers to sign up. I would stay away from this company.

  Business response

  09/01/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2022/08/23) */ Contact Name and Title: Jessica S****** - COO Contact Phone: ************ Contact Email: ********@usfcr.com Our sales director has reached out to the client to try to discuss this complaint and come up with a resolution. There is no response to any call your email sent. The services that were purchased expired in April of 2022 -all services were completed. The APP system that the client is referring to is an annual membership for the premium version, there is also a free version that is available. If **** Inc does not want the *** registration renewed through USFCR, they can still use the free or pay for the premium version of APP .

• Initial Complaint

  08/02/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  In May of this year, my company **** reached out to our local **** office regarding registration for *** and *** and **** certifications necessary to register for government funding. Shortly thereafter we were contacted by Peter L. who indicated USFCR services were required for registration. He sent text messages during the conversation, and then never returned them after the initial conversation. We were later contacted by Kim D. who also indicated that USFCR services were required. We later learned that these services are not required and asked for a full refund given that a) the sale was conducted under false pretenses and entirely misleading and b) the services to register us never occurred. We were able to achieve the certifications on our own and much easier than USFCR indicated the process through them would be. Upon contacting them for refund on multiple occasions, they will not return communications. We would like a full refund and to ensure other business owners are aware of this scam. Attaching screenshots of the registration able to be connected on our own as well as text messages not being returned regarding charges incurred.

  Business response

  09/01/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/08/10) */ An online order was placed on 5/17 and then the Rep spoke to the client on 5/19 about our **** registration services. There was no request for refund until after the client disputed the fees on their credit card then called in and requested to cancel and get a refund. Due to the dispute with the credit card company no refund can be processed. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2022/08/21) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) Services were presented under fraudulent premise. The vendor that's been unresponsive and services not provided as shown in the previous submission. If a refund is unable to be issued to the original form of payment, we would like a check to be issued in return for the full amount of both charges. Business Response /* (4000, 13, 2022/08/29) */ The Credit Card Dispute has not yet been resolved. Once the dispute has been resolved with the credit card company we revisit any potential refund offers. Consumer Response /* (4200, 15, 2022/08/29) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) There are not any open credit card disputes at this time. In speaking with the credit card vendor, there is no issue with the receipt of a refund. A refund is able to be issued. Please issue a refund to the original form of payment or issue check refund.

• Initial Complaint

  07/13/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On June 21, 2022, ******* Keenan *********** **** paid $599 to USFCR to expedite obtaining a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) in order to be eligible to bid on US Government contracts. The contract deadline was July 8, 2022. Aidan A, my USFCR case worker rep, laughed when I asked if the UEI number would be available for my bid: he said 'it takes months, you should contact your US Senators for assistance'. USFCR misleads small businesses and charges high fees for no results.

  Business response

  08/09/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/07/14) */ USFCR has spoken with Mr. ******, ******* ****** Commercial **** He registered for USFCR services 6/21/2022 one month after requesting information on the process and its timeline. Mr. ****** had a bid due on July 8 which was 12 days after the contract was started. When the initial call was made Mr. ****** was advised the process would take a minimum of 3-4 weeks. The registration was handled in the fastest and most prompt manner however there was not enough time to complete the request on such short notice. USFCR was not afforded the timeframe required to process a complete and active registration process. We do not feel any refund is due as the required times to complete the process was clearly communicated by all representatives of USFCR. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2022/07/15) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) I believe a refund is owed.

• Initial Complaint

  06/14/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I began process on April 7th. The website advertised getting the process completed with two weeks if I submitted everything promptly. As well as the woman I spoke to on the phone said it should take about two weeks. I submitted everything with with 5 business days. I paid $599 for the SAM registration to be completed by them. Today is June 14th, I still do not have a UEI number to register into the SAM program. They called me a few days after April 7th and told me I needed to be registered into the SAP also. I was told it would benefit my company because we are a small business. This was $2150. It took almost two months for the SAP to be completed. And it was not remotely close to the information I spoke the employee on the phone about, or the information I filled out on the questionnaire. When I asked for a refund because I missed the deadline to enroll into the VIPR Program to put our water truck on Federal fires, I was told they were more than 90% completed with the process the SAM registration and the SAP. I have reached out to the "case manager" assigned to me multiple times, and I get the run around that everyone is busy and it will not take too much longer till the process is complete. I would have never paid for any of this if I knew it was going to take over two months and still not have what I paid for.

  Business response

  07/21/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 13, 2022/07/11) */ I have been in contact with the client and agree to refund charges. A refund check **** be issued due to the amount of time that has passed since the order was placed. Consumer Response /* (2000, 15, 2022/07/20) */ (The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.) I was refunded almost the full amount. Thank you!

*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. ↩