Consumer complaint received 2024-06-07
Product: Payday loan, title loan, personal loan, or advance loan — Installment loan
Issue: Problem when making payments — 
Company: Tesla, Inc. (CA)

I contacted Tesla Finance on XX/XX/XXXX to get clarification on the due date of the Partial Principal Payment as the contract is confusing to me. The contract shows that I need to make XXXX payments XXXX {$240.00}, then pay the Partial Principal Payment ( payment XXXX ) XXXX {$7000.00}, which was my solar tax rebate and then payments are to be adjusted to {$150.00} starting with payment XXXX to payment XXXX. The contract also shows that this is an estimate and that made me a bit nervous. I thought that by calling Tesla Finance I would get a straight answer. 
Due to the long hold, I opted for a call back ; I received a call on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX. The agent I spoke to was also confused about the terms ; she even said I would probably have to pay until XXXX of XXXX because my first payment to Tesla was on XX/XX/XXXX ; she advised that she would escalate the discrepancy and let me know the final decision by email soon. I waited a few days and did not receive any emails, so I called them again on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX and the agent I spoke to was confused as well, she couldnt provide a definitive date so she decided to transfer me to a supervisor. 
The supervisor I was transferred to, XXXX told me that I had missed the due date of the Partial Principal Payment as it was due on XX/XX/XXXX, not XXXX. I explained that I had spoken to someone on XX/XX/XXXX, but I didn't hear back and reiterated that the contract showed that the Partial Principal Payment was my XXXX payment. She said she could take the payment that day, but the terms of the contract would change and the payment reduction from {$240.00} to {$150.00} would no longer apply ; I would basically make a principal payment and reduce the length of my loan, but payments would stay at {$240.00}. She also said that there was no record of my call on XX/XX/XXXX ; I questioned that there wouldnt be any record or my conversation with the agent on XX/XX/XXXX, but she insisted that there were no notes. I asked her that if I paid that day, when my last payment of the loan would be ; she said that she wouldnt know until the payment posted, which I thought was suspicious and I was skeptical of making the payment then. How could a financing company not know how this payment would change the length of my loan with the technology available nowadays and this being Tesla. 

I felt deceived, and thought that maybe the supervisor could also be wrong or confused ; after all, she couldnt explain how the loan terms ( length ) would change if I made the {$7000.00} payment. I couldnt reference all my records at the time because I was at work, so I decided I would try calling again later to sort it out. I called again on the next day on XXXX at XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX, but was on hold for XXXX minutes and couldnt get through. I wanted to see if I could make the Partial Principal Payment then and ask Tesla Finance to honor the contract based on the conflicting information I had been getting from prior to the supposed due date. Its not about me not wanting to pay ; Ive had the money in my account since the IRS sent me my tax return, but just wanted to get the right answer. 

I called them a XXXX time today XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX am and spoke with XXXX ; when I asked about the Partial Principal Payment due date, with great confidence she said XX/XX/XXXX. My wife, who was aware of the issue heard this and joined the call ; we questioned that and my wife told the agent that I had spoken to someone else on the XXXX of XXXX and also a couple of days ago and XXXX told us that there were no records of previous calls. This frustrated both, my wife and I because now it was not XXXX call that magically disappeared from their records, it was XXXX. We explained that we were confused because we were getting different information from different people so she advised she could get someone to call us back or she would check the floor to see if anyone could talk to us to confirm the information she had given us, that the payment was due on XX/XX/XXXX, not XX/XX/XXXX. When she returned to the line, she said that she had misspoken and that it was brought to her attention that I had been explained this already in the past during a previous call and that it was due on XX/XX/XXXX after all. We thought it was very strange that all of a sudden, notes appeared in the system, but still, no notes from XX/XX/XXXX. 
She decided to transfer us to a supervisor who turned out to be XXXX from the call on XX/XX/XXXX. XXXX came on with an attitude as if we were bugging her ; she told me that she had already spoken to her and reiterated that the payment was due on XX/XX/XXXX. We told her that we didnt pay before XXXX because we were confused and thats why I called on XX/XX/XXXX and was given the wrong information then and was given the wrong information XXXX more times after that. If the contract is confusing to Tesla agents, how do they expect the consumer to be clear about it and understand it? She took it as feedback that she would use on the floor so that agents could provide the right info in the future, which is nice for future confused consumers, but not for us. We asked her if the contract could be honored if we paid the {$7000.00} and again, she said no and insisted on taking the payment, but apply it to principal reiterating that the monthly payment wouldnt be adjusted to the estimated {$150.00}. 

My wife asked her to track the call from XX/XX/XXXX because calls are recorded, but she refused and said she had no way of locating the call unless I provided a name. I told her that I couldnt recall who I spoke to that day. Why couldnt Tesla see who accessed my loan on XX/XX/XXXX to call me back and also when the agent looked at my contract and gave me the wrong info? All that information is traceable and if not, then Tesla has serious issues holding borrower information that any agent can access at any time without leaving a trace. Tesla Finance is refusing to honor our contract. Its unfair that Tesla Finance provided conflicting info, and then refuses to investigate given the facts. This feels like a fraud and, Im no expert, but I feel that this is a violation of TILA and UDAAP. We accepted the terms of the loan thinking that our payment would be reduced in a year. This is causing a negative financial impact to our family.