Consumer complaint received 2021-12-27
Company: ALLY FINANCIAL INC.
State: AZ
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:
I financed a new vehicle through Ally in XXXX, XXXX. In XXXX, XXXX I was furloughed from my career in an industry I have worked in for 12 years due to the Covid-19 pandemic and impact it had on the hospitality industry through no fault of my own. While receiving unemployment benefits, I reached out to Ally and the agent laughed at the situation. 

Please review the message regarding the interaction I sent to Ally : Ally Auto XX/XX/XXXX Good evening, I'm appalled and in shock from the experience I had with the Ally Financial call center this evening. I called this evening, as I received a phone call this afternoon from the call center regarding late payment. I had sent a secure message online around the payment due date indicating that my financial situation has been impacted longer due to Covid-19 and I was requesting an extension of payments or partial payment plan to get the loan back on track. No response. The call was made as a " debt collector '' and there was no response to the online message I submitted which did indicate two business days for a response. The call center even said that the message was never received. I see it right here in the secure message center? After speaking with the call center operator I indicated I would submit a payment for {$650.00} - the past due amount. This evening, I called to make that payment, and proceeded to explain how my financial situation has changed. As of today, I was officially laid off from my position and up until today, I was furloughed, with a return to work date of XX/XX/XXXX. I mentioned on the call with the first operator this evening around XXXX that same information and said that Unemployment Benefit pays {$240.00} a week and I would need to be able to come up with a payment plan or extension for payment which is when the operator began to laugh over the phone. I was shocked. Is this really how customers get treated? Is this how call center operators behave in the midst of a pandemic and millions of hardships across the country? You pride yourselves on wanting to assist the community in this time of need - I think the opposite now. This operator treated me more poorly than any business I have worked with or for as a senior manager. Your company should be ashamed. I'm not asking for anything except to speak to a supervisor or manager at this point and then I'm on a brief hold. The person returns and sounds similar to the person I was speaking to before but this operator assured me it was not the same person. Now this person came on the phone with no knowledge I had been a internal phone transfer and did not know what just transpired, which I find hard to believe. I continue to explain what just happened. He continues to be robotic in response and press me for payment, which I'm doing after I send this message. I only wanted to share this experience and hope Ally does better. The lack of professionalism, childish, belittling behavior by a business call center operator should be reprimanded for his actions. The call I'm guessing is recorded so I ask you to review it. I will make the payment now but someone in a senior leadership position needs to call me immediately. I will be making this public and I will be sharing this experience. This is not ok. No one should be treated like that. 

This was the first experience I had and ever since Ally continues practices that are questionable at best and Im sure break some level of consumer finance laws while showing no desire to work with me. It took 12 days from that message for a response or acknowledgment of the message to send me a message to call Ally. 

I was able to get a payment plan later on when I made several attempts to contact Ally that did not help me aside from extending the finance and would cost me more money. 

The past few months, I fell behind again, and I attempted to contact Ally Financial to make a payment now, the operator placed me on hold and said I would need to be transferred to the correct department, came back after being on hold, and said I would be added to the call cue and hung up or disconnected the call? No return call. This had happened more than once this month and all I was attempting to do was make a payment which I informed the agent at the beginning of the call. 

Ally threatens repossession ( which I believe is the action being taken ) but is not giving me the opportunity to do anything about it when I send messages online or attempt contact through the call center. 

Two partial payments I attempted to make, and even confirmed funds are available in my bank account for Ally to withdraw, had been returned, and Ally marked as returned in the Ally online portal which was never possible. 

This morning a large door tag notice was posted on my garage with big bold letters XXXX indicating theres an open investigation for this address with a case number and agents phone number to contact. I attempted to contact the agent and got no answer. I got a voicemail box, with a business name that was inaudible, the recording was purposely muffled and spoken fast. I was unable to leave a message as well because the mailbox was full as well. I believe this related to Ally after a XXXX search and customers with a similar experience. 

All account documents, and statements has been limited or unavailable to review in the Ally app or online portal as well which makes this even more difficult than it needs to be. See screenshots included with this complaint. 

All in all, these practices and behavior need to cease and I hope in sharing, someone or something can be done. 

Thank you for your time.

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