Consumer complaint received 2021-10-05
Product: Vehicle loan or lease — Lease
Issue: Problems at the end of the loan or lease — Excess mileage, damage, or wear fees, or other problem after the lease is finished
Company: General Motors Financial Company, Inc. (CA)

I leased a new vehicle from XXXX/General Motors in XXXX. The vehicle lease agreement was issued by GM Financial and was for a three year term that ended in XX/XX/XXXX. During the course of the lease, I made all payments on time as billed to me by GM. This included a period of approximately 3-4 months about 12 months after lease origination when GM incorrectly billed me less than what was contractually owed. When GM caught its billing error, GM billed me a one time catchup that was nearly 4x the standard monthly payment. I paid that bill as presented and on time. 

As the lease term neared expiration, I contacted both GM and the original selling dealership to arrange a vehicle pre-return inspection. Both the dealer and GM refused to provide this service. 

I consequently had the vehicle inspected by a third party mechanic who documented no defects or excess wear of any kind. Pictures of the vehicle along with my inspection report are available. 

I returned the vehicle to my selling dealer on time and after having made all regularly scheduled payments due under my lease agreement. A complete payment history is available as all payments were made electronically through my bank. 

The dealer informed me at vehicle return that I should expect a bill from GM for the contracted lease return fee together with any other wear and tear fees GM may assess. Given the vehicle was returned in excellent condition as verified by my inspection and with less than the agreed 30,000 leased miles, I expected to pay no more than the contracted {$400.00} lease return fee. 

Instead, approximately 30 days after the vehicle was returned, GM sent me a bill for nearly {$1100.00}. There was no detailed itemization beyond vague descriptions like wear and tear and lease end taxes. 

Additionally, during the lease return process, I became aware that, during the prior episode of incorrect billing by GM, GM made late payment reports to credit agencies when I paid the amounts billed by GM. Furthermore, when I reviewed my lease contract just prior to lease end, I realized that GM had consistently over billed me during the entire course of my lease. 

In response to GMs incorrect and potentially fraudulent lease end bill, I wrote GM a letter outlining my position as stated here. I objected to all fees except the agreed lease termination fee as these were being assessed outside of the agreed lease contract. I also objected to the wear and tear claim based on my third party inspection results.

Finally, I made GM aware of their over billing during the lease term and made demand for the amounts I had overpaid. I mailed my letter to GM at the address on the bill along with a check for the contracted {$400.00} lease return fee. 

GM cashed my check, but never responded to my letter.

Instead, I found out just recently that GM charged off the balance of their incorrect and possibly fraudulent bill and reported this charge off to the credit reporting agencies. This resulted in over 100 points of damage to my otherwise 820+ credit score. 

I have included a copy of the letter I sent to GM in XX/XX/XXXX with this complaint.