Consumer complaint received 2026-01-29 00:00:00
Product: Vehicle loan or lease — Loan
Issue: Problems at the end of the loan or lease — Problem with paying off the loan
Company: UPGRADE, INC.
State: IL

Complaint narrative:
Lender Information : Upgrade Inc . 
Account Number : XXXX Contact : ( XXXX ) XXXX Type of Complaint : Auto Loan Payoff Refusal / Deceptive Practices/ Unfair Interest Accrual COMPLAINT SUMMARY I am filing this complaint against Upgrade Inc. for refusing to accept a valid payoff check for my vehicle loan while continuing to accrue interest, resulting in me being forced to make payments on two car loans simultaneously. Upgrade 's actions constitute deceptive and fraudulent practices, as they have systematically delayed and obstructed the payoff process while profiting from continued interest accrual over a period exceeding two months.

DETAILED TIMELINE OF EVENTS XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX XXXX  I requested an official payoff quote through Upgrade 's website for Account # XXXX. Upgrade provided a payoff amount of {$22000.00} effective through XX/XX/XXXX, along with the following mailing address for payoff checks : Upgrade Inc . 
XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX, AZ XXXX The payoff quote explicitly stated : " when a check is sent by mail, the processing time frame typically takes up to 10 business days. Once the check is received, we will backdate the payment to the date of receipt. '' XX/XX/XXXX I refinanced my vehicle loan with XXXX XXXX XXXX to secure better terms. XXXX, as the new lienholder, was responsible for sending the payoff check to Upgrade. 

XX/XX/XXXX XXXX issued and mailed payoff check # XXXX to Upgrade at the address Upgrade provided in their official payoff quote. I received email confirmation from XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX confirming the check was sent. 

XX/XX/XXXX ( Multiple Calls Required ) After hearing nothing from Upgrade, I was forced to call them repeatedly to check the status of the payoff. Upgrade never proactively contacted me to inform me of any issues. After multiple calls, Upgrade finally admitted that they had provided an incorrect mailing address in their official payoff quote and that the check had not been received. 

XXXX XXXX After Upgrade provided what they claimed was the " correct '' address, I contacted XXXX to have a new check issued. I specifically had both Upgrade and XXXX representatives on a three-way call to confirm all information was accurate to prevent further delays. Despite this precaution, the process continued to fail. 

XX/XX/XXXX A payment attempt of {$22000.00} appears in my Upgrade account portal with a status of " FAILED - No details available. '' This represents an increase of {$630.00} from the original XXXX payoff amount, demonstrating how Upgrade has profited from these delays through continued interest accrual. 

XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX XXXX  I called Upgrade demanding an explanation for why the payoff check was rejected. The representative refused to provide any valid reason for rejecting the payment and could not explain why Upgrade had not coordinated directly with XXXX to resolve the issue. I provided Upgrade with XXXX 's contact information, which they should have obtained independently from the beginning as standard practice in refinancing transactions. 

VIOLATIONS AND DECEPTIVE PRACTICES 1. Provision of Incorrect Payoff Information Upgrade violated their obligations under the Truth in Lending Act ( TILA ) by providing materially incorrect information in their official payoff quotespecifically, an incorrect mailing address. This caused the initial payoff check to never be delivered, resulting in weeks of delay.

2. Failure to Communicate Material Issues Upgrade never proactively informed me that : The payoff check had not been received The address they provided was incorrect There were any problems with the payoff process I was forced to call them repeatedly to discover these issues myself, wasting my time and incurring additional interest charges.

3. Unjustified Refusal of Valid Payment Upgrade has refused to accept a valid payoff check without providing any legitimate explanation. When I called on XX/XX/XXXX, they could not articulate any valid reason for the rejection, yet continue to mark the payment as " FAILED. '' 4. Continued Interest Accrual Through Obstruction From XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX ( over 2 months ), the payoff amount has increased from {$22000.00} to $ XXXXan increase of {$630.00}. Upgrade is directly profiting from their own failures and obstruction by continuing to charge interest while refusing to accept valid payment. 

5. Bad Faith and Lack of Coordination Upgrade has failed to coordinate with XXXX, the new lienholder, to resolve this matter. This is standard practice in refinancing transactions, yet Upgrade has refused to engage in good faith efforts to complete the payoff process.

6. Violation of Their Own Stated Policies Upgrade 's payoff letter stated that processing takes " up to 10 business days '' and that payments would be " backdated to the date of receipt. '' It has now been 12 business days since the corrected check was sent on XX/XX/XXXX, and they still refuse to process it. 

FINANCIAL HARM As a direct result of Upgrade 's deceptive practices, I am suffering the following financial harm : Duplicate Loan Payments : I am currently forced to make payments on both my XXXX  loan ( which I believed would pay off the Upgrade loan ) and continuing payments to Upgrade. 

Excess Interest Charges : I have been charged an additional {$630.00} in interest beyond the original payoff amount due to Upgrade 's delays and obstruction. 

Time and Stress : I have spent hours on the phone with both lenders attempting to resolve issues that were entirely caused by Upgrade 's provision of incorrect information and refusal to accept valid payment.

Credit Risk : The prolonged delay in finalizing the loan creates potential credit reporting issues and uncertainty about my loan status.

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION Official payoff quote from Upgrade dated XX/XX/XXXX ( attached ) Email confirmation from XXXX  dated XX/XX/XXXX confirming check was mailed Screenshot of Upgrade account showing {$22000.00} payment marked as " FAILED '' ( attached ) Record of phone calls to Upgrade ( dates and times documented above ) CONCLUSION Upgrade Inc. 's conduct demonstrates a clear pattern of deceptive and fraudulent practices designed to obstruct a legitimate loan payoff while continuing to profit from interest accrual. They provided incorrect payoff information, failed to communicate material issues, refused valid payment without justification, and continue to charge me interest while maintaining two active loans on the same vehicle.

This is exactly the type of predatory lending behavior that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was created to prevent. I request your immediate intervention to resolve this matter and hold Upgrade accountable for their violations of federal consumer protection laws.

I am available to provide any additional information or documentation needed to support this complaint. 

Respectfully submitted, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Phone : [ Your phone number ] Email : [ Your email address ] Date : XX/XX/XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation