Consumer complaint received 2017-08-23
Company: BANK OF THE WEST
State: FL
Product: Payday loan, title loan, or personal loan
Sub-product: Personal line of credit
Issue: Charged fees or interest you didn't expect

Complaint:
XX/XX/XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, FL XXXX XXXX Consumer Financial Protection Bureau XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX XXXX, IA XXXX RE : Contract Number XXXX The Bank of West # XXXX, The Bank of the West, XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX, NE XXXX Dear Sir or Madam : My name is XXXX XXXX, I am writing to dispute/remove a billing error in the amount of XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, on the account XXXX* with The Bank of the West. The account # XXXX* is not my account, it belongs to my ex-husband XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX . In XX/XX/XXXX during our marriage, XXXX XXXX took a loan the Bank of the West ( Contract # XXXX ) to purchase a boat XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX.
This boat was registered oXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX name. XXXX XXXX purchased this boat for himself and wanted to keep it, the ownership of this boat, as well as a responsibility of the loan, was assigned to XXXX XXXX as it was stated in the Divorce Dissolution order : The Husband ( XXXX XXXX XXXX ) shall be entitled to exclusive use and ownership of the boat, and shall hold the Wife XXXX XXXX XXXX ) harmless with regards to any loan or lien. [ XX/XX/XXXX, the XXXX Court, Fifth Judicial Circuit in and XXXX County, Florida ].
In addition, I do not believe that I sign this contract. I am a foreigner, and during the whole marriage, I was not allowed to make any financial decisions. XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX often sign documents on my behalf.
In XX/XX/XXXX, it came to my attention that my credit score went significantly down. It was due to the Bank of the Wests record of the boat loan account. From my credit reports [ XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX ] I discovered that XXXX XXXX has stop paying for the boat on XX/XX/XXXX [ 120 days in delinquency at that point ], then he voluntary surrendered it to the bank.
I immediately called the Bank of the West. The Bank of the West representative [ XXXX XXXX ] stated I have a diligent account with this bank, I owe the payment for an outstanding balance of {$15.00}, XXXX. I sent a certified letter with a copy of the divorce dissolution and explained that I dont have any legal responsibility on this loan. During the 120 days of the period of delinquency, deficiency and the irregular payments from XX/XX/XXXX-XX/XX/XXXX, the Bank of the West has never contacted me. I have never received any response from the bank and, to make sure that this issue was solved, I contacted the bank again by phone. Since the bank neglected to respond to my letter, I requested the bank representative ( XXXX XXXX ) to record our conversation. XXXX XXXX has assured me that our conversation was recorded.
I sent 3 certified letters to the Bank of the West [ XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX] with a request to clear my account and correct my credit score. I called again several times but did not get any reasonable answer. Only onXX/XX/XXXX I received a EXPLANATION OF DEFICIENCE AND DEMAND FOR PAYMENT letter from the Bank of the West, in which it was stated that I am responsible for a deficiency on the loan and I must pay a remaining balance of XXXX.
If the Bank of the West holding me responsible for XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX account, then the Bank of the West required : Notify me in writing that XXXX XXXX has surrendered the boat and I am considered responsible to pay it.
Notify and not allowed to put the boat on the auction and sell it without me letting me know about their actions.
Notify me about the delinquent account in a timely manner.
The Bank of the West Bank ignored/ neglect my letter ( s ). The bank has notified me about considering me liable in letter only 266 days after XXXX XXXXXXXX has surrounded the boat and 120 days after the boat was sold.
I believe that the Bank of the West is accountable for damaging my credit score and should contact all three credit bureaus to correct their records on my credit score. I dont believe it can be legal for the bank to pass a loan from XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX to me, to create a significant debt by the auction short sale and dramatically damage my credit score and, consequently, my financial standing.
I believe it is a standard procedure that a bank, as any business, is required to address received inquiries and to respond in a timely manner.
I also understand that the bank was required to reply to my first request ( XX/XX/XXXX ) within 40 days and, by not doing this the Bank of the West had neglected my rights.
With this letter, I respectfully request you to investigate this situation, remove my name from this loan account, and correct my credit report. I would really appreciate your efforts in standing for the consumers rights.
Sincerely, XXXX XXXX Enclosed : A copy of the letter from the Bank of the West Demanding Letter, XX/XX/XXXX.
A copy of pages from final Judgment of a Marriage dissolution.
Receipt Certified Mail Receipts Cover Sheet for Family Court Case A copy of Motion for Civil Contempt/Enforcement.
A copy of my first letter to the Bank.
A copy of my second letter to Bank.
A copy of letter response from the Independent Bank. [ XXXX XXXX XXXX had 2 delinquent accounts, with the Bank of the West and with Independent Bank- independent Bank sent me the letter in response to my request ].

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation