Consumer complaint received 2018-08-17
Company: Westlake Services, LLC
State: LA
Product: Vehicle loan or lease
Sub-product: Loan
Issue: Struggling to pay your loan
Sub-issue: Lender trying to repossess or disable the vehicle

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX I purchased a XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Pickup truck, financed by Westlake Financial Services. Payments commenced on XX/XX/XXXX in the amount of {$790.00} monthly with a 10 day grace period. My payments in the amount of {$790.00} were made and recorded by Westlake Financial going forward on the following dates : XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, and finally XX/XX/XXXX. 

I have maintained in good standing full coverage comprehensive, collision and liability on the vehicle from the date of purchase. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I was involved in a high speed head on collision at XXXX XXXX. Following the accident my truck was towed by XXXX XXXX to their wrecker yard where it remained as far as I knew. My injuries in the accident required 24 days of hospitalization and two XXXX   XXXX to repair my XXXX XXXX XXXX. While still in the hospital I made the XX/XX/XXXX payment to ensure I was not in default on my loan. 

While all of this was going on Westlake Financial Services was plotting a way to STEAL my truck.Although I was not in default in any way, on XX/XX/XXXX, Westlake Financial Services sent a subsidiary, Repossessions Incorporated to XXXX  XXXX and REPOSSESSED my truck. I was never contacted in any way nor was any attempt made to contact me. Neither did they contact my insurer nor did they make any attempt to contact my insurer. We discovered these eventualities when my insurance adjuster and I placed a call to XXXX XXXX to find out where my truck was so the assessment and valuation could begin by my insurer. 

Upon learning of the repossession on XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX XXXX, my adjuster and I began placing calls to Westlake Financial Services in an effort to get the issue resolved. We spent a total of almost 5 hours on the telephone being bounced around from one person or one department to another. The response from everyone was the same ; we will not tell you  anything about the truck. It has been repossessed. If you pay all the fees we can dream up and the fees for the wrecking yard we will begin releasing information on the location of the truck. We were at one point sent to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX MN to be told they could not tell us anything about the repossession. Then we were sent to a Public adjuster who Westlake Financial Services retained to process their own nefarious claim on my pickup  truck. They too were close mouthed with one exception, they let it slip that the truck was in XXXX LA, still in the local vicinity, but would not tell us exactly where. 

We called back to Westlake Financial and again sought a resolution and were rudely rebuffed and talked to like XXXX. All we wanted to know, Why the repo, where is the truck, and what do we have to do to get the truck back in the possession of myself and my insurer. They would not cooperate at all. 

Having spent time considering this entire situation, I can only come to one conclusion for their action. It is the intent of Westlake Financial to  use their public adjuster to establish a low ball valuation of my truck in order to exacerbate the difference between the payoff and the valuation, thus allowing them to obtain a large judgment against me for the difference. Certainly there are civil violations in their actions. Certainly there are Louisiana Statutory violations in their actions both civil and criminal per the Office of the Attorney General of the State of Louisiana, the Office of Financial Institutions of the State of Louisiana, and the Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission. 

In essence, WEstlake Financial Services Stole my interest in my truck under fraudulent and false pretenses! They have defrauded me, falsely reported to my credit report, and caused me undue stress at a time when I need to be focusing on my physical recovery from my injuries!

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation