1 /5 Anna M: My mom and I came in with all our documents, including her Social Security card, and were told we were approved for a $5,500 unsecured loan. She was overwhelmed with relief — texting friends that she’d finally be able to pay them back, dreaming of being able to eat properly and live like a person again.
We returned the next day for what we were told was the final step. We were brought into a closing room. I signed my part of the paperwork, and we were moments away from finalizing everything when the rep stepped out to check her social for an issue . That’s when she discovered that they had used the wrong Social Security number for my mom, despite her actual card being on the table during the entire process.
What was supposed to be a day of hope and freedom turned into complete devastation. My mom had looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, “I can’t believe this is going to be over today.” But instead of joy, she left crying from heartbreak.
If we had just been denied from the start, we could’ve handled that. But to be told we were approved, to sign papers, to expect the money that day, only to have it ripped away over a mistake that wasn’t ours — it was crushing. This wasn’t just a clerical error. My mom deserved better.
