A Gainesville-based company that has charged disabled veterans as much as $20,000 for help with VA disability claims is under investigation by the attorneys general of New York and Illinois, who say they intend to take legal action against it for fraudulent, illegal and deceptive business practices.
The investigations into Trajector Medical were disclosed in a Sept. 8 letter from state officials to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida and were first detailed Thursday by NPR. The company denies the allegations.
“We stand behind how we operate, and we’re focused on the veterans we serve,” Trajector spokesman Steve Zenofsky told NPR.
A Florida company from the start
Trajector was founded in 2014 by Jim Hill, a Navy veteran, and Gina Uribe, a nurse and former VA medical examiner. According to NPR’s original December 2025 investigation, the company began with a few staff working out of Hill’s spare bedroom and Uribe’s dining room table in Gainesville. It was originally called Vet Comp & Pen Medical Consulting.
The company grew quickly. By 2021, it employed more than 1,300 people across offices in Florida, Puerto Rico and the Philippines, according to NPR.
Trajector’s corporate headquarters remains in Gainesville, and the company’s LinkedIn page lists a headquarters address in nearby Newberry in Alachua County. Bankruptcy records also show operations in Utah.
But in its bankruptcy filings, Trajector lists its “principal offices” as an oceanfront home on A1A South in St. Augustine. The St. Johns Citizen reported that county property records show Hill bought the roughly 7,300-square-foot home for $5.75 million in September 2025. Trajector does not list the home as a company asset.
Asked why the CEO bought the home less than a year before the company filed for bankruptcy, Zenofsky told NPR “the two are not related in any way.”
Florida complaints
Florida veterans have raised concerns about the company before. In its 2025 investigation, NPR obtained more than 50 complaints about Trajector filed with the Florida Attorney General’s Office through a public records request. Attorney General James Uthmeier’s office declined to say whether it had investigated or taken any action against the company.
Florida has not joined the New York and Illinois investigations disclosed in the bankruptcy case.
No public court record or reporting reviewed by The Space Coast Rocket identifies specific Brevard County veterans who used Trajector’s services. The company marketed to veterans nationwide.
How the billing worked
According to NPR, Trajector bills veterans a one-time fee equal to five times their new monthly VA payment, or five times the increase if they already had a rating. Veterans whose claims are denied owe nothing.
One focus of the state investigations is an automated system the company calls “CallBot.” NPR reported that the system dialed into a VA benefits hotline using veterans’ Social Security numbers and birthdates to check whether their monthly payments had increased. When it detected an increase, the company could send a bill, even in cases where veterans said Trajector had done little or nothing to help them.
The attorneys general told the bankruptcy court they are investigating whether Trajector misuses personal information it collects from veterans through its use of “callbots.”
Former Army Ranger Dustin Ingram, who served two tours in Afghanistan, told NPR the company billed him about $4,500 after he canceled its services and obtained his rating with free help from an accredited representative. He refused to pay. Other veterans told NPR they were satisfied with Trajector’s help.
The legal question
Federal law requires that help with an initial VA disability claim be provided free of charge and only by representatives accredited by the VA. Trajector acknowledges in its contracts that it is not VA-accredited. The company has maintained that it provides private medical evidence rather than preparing or filing claims.
The VA sent Trajector warning letters in 2017 and 2022 saying it may be unlawfully assisting with claims. The company responded that it was not breaking the law.
Congress removed criminal penalties for violating the fee ban in 2006 but left the ban itself in place, which has made enforcement difficult. Several states have since passed their own laws. Trajector says it has suspended services in 23 states since 2024 because of state laws that “prevent, severely limit, or impose undue risks on continued operations,” and that its revenue in the first half of 2026 fell about 60 percent compared with the prior year.
Bankruptcy in Jacksonville
Trajector Holdings and 21 affiliated companies filed for Chapter 11 protection on July 23 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Jacksonville. According to bankruptcy records reviewed by NPR, the companies employ more than 450 people, hold about $405 million in assets and reported nearly $280 million in combined income in 2025.
The filing came five days before the company was set to default on a loan balance of nearly $63 million owed to Deutsche Bank. Court filings also describe a dispute between Hill and Uribe over managing that debt. Financial disclosures show Hill earns a $600,000 base salary with the possibility of $600,000 quarterly performance bonuses.
In a statement on the company’s website, Hill called the restructuring “a strategic step to strengthen our financial position.”
The bankruptcy paused two lawsuits filed in Florida earlier this year on behalf of veterans seeking class action status. The suits allege Trajector engaged in deceptive and unfair trade practices by charging veterans for help with initial disability claims. Military.com reported that one was brought by the Pensacola law firm Aylstock, Witkin, Kreis & Overholtz.
The bankruptcy does not stop state law enforcement investigations. In their letter, the attorneys general said they expect to show that money Trajector is holding was “collected through illegality and fraud” and should not be treated as property of the bankruptcy estate.
At a hearing the day after the letter was sent, Trajector attorney Edward Peterson told the court the company denies the allegations.
Former bankruptcy judge Bruce Markell, a Northwestern University law professor, told NPR that veterans who believe they are owed money would likely be treated like any other unsecured creditor.
The allegations have not been proven in court.
Free help for Brevard veterans
Veterans can get free, accredited help filing VA disability claims through county veterans service offices and veterans service organizations. In Brevard County, the Brevard County Veterans Services office is located at 2725 Judge Fran Jamieson Way, Building B, Suite 102, in Viera. The VA advises veterans to confirm that anyone assisting with a claim is accredited, which can be checked through the VA’s accreditation search.
This story was first reported by NPR in collaboration with The War Horse, with additional reporting from OAF Nation.
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