Press Release for Immediate Release  July 5, 2005 DC's Attorney General Stops Costly "Fast Cash" Program Washington, DC -- Attorney General Robert J. Spagnoletti announced today that his office has entered into an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance* with Ace Pays Inc. (Ace Pays), a Pennsylvania-based company which offered "fast cash" to consumers in the District of Columbia and across the country. The compliance agreement comes as a result of an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General into allegations that the rebates were really disguised loans with interest rates of over 600 percent, and unfair and inadequately disclosed termination and late fees. Consumers who signed up for the "fast cash" signed a one year membership agreement, in which they also agreed to allow Ace Pays to automatically withdraw daily 'membership' fees, as well as any termination and late fees incurred, from their bank or credit card accounts. Ace Pays had advertised in newspapers and on the Internet, offering "fast cash" in the amount of $100-$1,000, as cash rebates for joining Ace Pays' membership club. Under the agreement, Ace Pays agrees to stop providing so called "fast cash" or monetary rebates to consumers in the District of Columbia, and to stop collecting fees or other monies from consumers who entered into membership agreements with Ace Pays in amounts exceeding 24% of the rebate. In addition Ace Pays has paid $17,500 to the District. That money will be distributed to consumers whose payments to Ace Pays greatly exceeded the amounts of their Ace Pays rebates. "We are very pleased that Ace Pays has agreed to provide compensation to the most grievously affected consumers," said Mr. Robert Spagnoletti. "Consumers who are in need of fast cash need to be very careful about the types of agreements that they sign. Some companies prey on these vulnerable consumers by charging extraordinarily high interest rates that make it very difficult for the consumers to repay the loans." Consumers with questions about this action can call the Office of the Attorney General's (OAG) consumer complaint hotline at (202) 442-9828. OAG's website also contains consumer education information and further information about how (and where) to make an effective consumer complaint. * This document is presented in Portable Document Format (PDF). A PDF reader is required for viewing. Download a PDF Reader or learn more about PDFs.