Consumer complaint received 2025-05-10 00:00:00
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: Mercedes Benz Financial Services
State: OR

Complaint narrative:
Vehicle : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX : XXXX I am submitting this complaint due to severe misrepresentation, credit abuse, vehicle safety negligence, and financial retaliation by Mercedes-Benz Financial Services during and after a lease extension on my XXXX XXXX XXXX. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I was approved for a lease extension during a recorded phone call with a representative named XXXX. He clearly stated the extension would carry me through XX/XX/XXXX, allow up to XXXX miles, and maintain mechanical warranty coverage ( excluding oil, filters, or common service items ). I agreed to those terms. However, I was never provided any written documentation of this extension. I was told it was handled by recording only. 

Shortly after, at XXXX miles, my vehicle broke down while I was actively driving once in front of a XXXX train line, and again days later while merging onto XXXX XXXX off XXXX. Both incidents were dangerous. Police were involved. The car could not shift into neutral, emitted a strong smell, made a ticking sound, and failed to restart. It was towed to a Mercedes-Benz service center . 

On XX/XX/XXXX, when I signed for a loaner vehicle at the service center, the representative ( XXXX XXXX told me there was no record of my lease extension, no mileage approval, and no active warranty in their system. He had me sign for diagnostics. I contacted Mercedes-Benz Financial , who then admitted that yes, the XX/XX/XXXX call exists and the rep told me I had warranty but that he misspoke. They now refer me back to my original lease agreement, which expired in XX/XX/XXXX. Yet this is a new lease term, and they refuse to provide any valid documentation for the current agreement. 

Now I am being told the issue was a starter motor failure and this raises a critical safety and technical concern. How does a starter motor cause a vehicle to shut down while driving? A starter motor is designed to start the vehicle, not maintain engine operation during motion. If it failed while I was already driving, why would that result in total engine loss, inability to shift, and dashboard failure? What really failed in this vehicle? Why wont Mercedes-Benz provide written confirmation of this diagnosis and state that the car is safe to drive?

Ive requested documentation of the diagnostics and repair, but I have received no confirmation that the vehicle is safe, and yet they expect me to return the loaner and resume using the same vehicle. Why would a leaseholder be required to drive a vehicle with no warranty protection, no written safety clearance, and questionable repair transparency? Isnt the entire purpose of a lease to be protected under manufacturer warranty?

Furthermore, I have been in the loaner vehicle for several days since I submitted my request for repair documentation, and Mercedes has not responded or asked me to return it. It appears they are avoiding the issue altogether because they do not want to document the true cause of failure or take liability for placing a customer in danger. 

Even worse, I was pre-approved for a XXXX XXXX XXXX at $ XXXX with no money down as of early XXXX. But after reporting these issues, Mercedes Financial revoked my approval, claiming I had too many late payments and unsatisfactory standing. That is false I could not have been approved for a lease extension if I had late payments in the past 12 months, according to their own policies. I later saw a false late report added in XXXX, and now my entire lease has been removed from my credit file. 

I went from being a loyal, on-time paying customer with a XXXX XXXX XXXX to being denied a lease, credit dropped by XXXX XXXX, and forced into a predatory $ XXXX loan offer at $ XXXX from an outside bank. Ive now taken XXXX hard inquiries, and my credit is damaged, affecting my business operations and insurance matters as well. 

I have paid over {$28000.00} in lease payments at $ XXXX for 45 months and have been treated unfairly. Mercedes is : - Withholding documentation about my active lease, - Ignoring a known safety failure, - Refusing to confirm the car is safe after mechanical breakdowns, - Retaliating against me for seeking accountability, - Damaging my credit and blocking me from leasing or buying a new vehicle, - Misrepresenting warranty terms and vehicle history.

I am requesting a full investigation into : 1. Why my lease extension has no written proof, despite being granted.

2. Why Mercedes is refusing to confirm in writing that the vehicle is safe.

3. Whether the starter motor explanation is valid or masking a deeper engine failure.

4. Why Im being expected to resume use of a lease vehicle that allegedly has no warranty.

5. Why my lease account disappeared from my credit report, and a false late payment was added.

6. Why my pre-approval for a new lease was revoked after raising valid concerns.

This situation has created emotional distress, financial strain, and complete loss of transportation options. I am asking for your help to hold Mercedes-Benz Financial accountable .

Additional Evidence : Obstruction of Communication and Email Suppression On XX/XX/XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, I submitted a formal consumer complaint via email to the following Mercedes-Benz USA executives , departments, and customer service contacts : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX - I also BCCd myself at XXXX for delivery tracking. 

Only XXXX emails were immediately rejected due to invalid addresses. However, beginning XX/XX/XXXX and continuing through XX/XX/XXXX, I began receiving delayed delivery failure notices. These messages stated that servers refused to connect, requests to reconnect were denied, or addresses became undeliverable after initial receipt. 

Examples include : - XXXX retried delivery for up to 7 days on addresses like XXXX before being blocked. 
- XXXX servers refused reconnection requests and blocked all retry attempts. 
- Other addresses were queued and then bounced after review, strongly indicating my email was blacklisted. 

These rejections occurred days after the message was originally sent, indicating not a technical failure but a deliberate action by Mercedes-Benz or their mail servers to suppress further communication.

This behavior demonstrates willful avoidance of consumer accountability, obstruction of my right to resolution, and retaliatory suppression after raising a legitimate complaint. 

I respectfully request that this be reviewed in full as part of a broader pattern of retaliation and avoidance.

Recorded Coercion and Retaliatory Customer Service Denial In addition to being blocked by email, I have recorded audio of Mercedes-Benz Financial representatives stating that unless I pay my monthly lease payment, they will not speak to me or allow access to customer service. I was told directly that I am considered " past due, '' and that until I pay even while the vehicle remains in their possession and the lease is in dispute I will be denied access to discuss the terms or status of my lease.

This is a deliberate withholding of basic service and retaliation against me for asserting my legal rights and reporting dangerous safety failures. It confirms that Mercedes-Benz Financial is not acting in good faith and is attempting to force payment under threat of silence and inaccessibility.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation