Consumer complaint received 2025-11-22 00:00:00
Product: Vehicle loan or lease — Loan
Issue: Incorrect information on your report — Personal information incorrect
Company: Mercedes Benz Financial Services
State: CA

Complaint narrative:
b'I am filing a complaint because Mercedes-Benz Financial Services and the assigned debt collector are reporting and attempting to collect a deficiency balance that is legally invalid under California law and inaccurate under the FCRA.\n\nVehicle Condition & Dealership Issues Leading to Surrender\n\nBefore voluntarily surrendering the vehicle, my XXXX Mercedes-Benz CLA250C had been taken to the dealerships service department approximately six different times for repeated issues. Four separate times, each of my tires mysteriously deflated. This forced me to purchase new tires on more than one occasion.\n\nThe final incident occurred after my vehicle had been parked for over 10 hours during a work shift  the tire again deflated without any cause, and I had to tow the vehicle back to the dealership. I made a formal complaint at that time because the pattern made me feel something was wrong with the wheels or sensors. The manager checked the vehicle, and the warning finally stopped, but I no longer trusted the wheels they had put on the car. I eventually replaced them myself with more affordable, longer-lasting tires.\n\nA few months later, after a maintenance visit, the vehicle began making a strange sound. The dealership said it was covered by the extended warranty I paid over $10,000 for. But when they returned the vehicle, the check-engine light came on again  the same light issue I had repeatedly reported, which they previously claimed was just a fuel-cap sensor. But this time they mentioned something different and that car needed to stay for a couple days.\n\nAt this point, with a monthly payment of XXXX, insurance of XXXX, and continuous repair-related costs, I felt I was being pushed into an unaffordable and unreliable car situation. This was during a period when I was also dealing with extensive medical bills and recovering from nearly a year of chemotherapy. I realized that keeping a vehicle with constant issues was not sustainable or safe. This is why I ultimately decided to surrender the car and look for something more affordable and reliable.\n\nAddress Error & Failure to Provide Required Notices\n\nOn XX/XX/2024, I voluntarily surrendered the vehicle. The dealership listed an outdated address on the voluntary surrender form.\n\nMy correct address at that time was:\n\nXX/XX/2W 64th Street\nLos Angeles, CA XXXX\n\nBecause Mercedes-Benz Financial Services mailed all notices to the wrong address, I never received the legally required:\n\n10-Day Notice of Intent to Sell (Cal. Civ. Code  2983.2)\n\nPost-Sale Deficiency Notice (Cal. Civ. Code  2983.2, 2983.8)\n\nUnder California law, failure to properly deliver these notices prohibits the lender from collecting any deficiency balance whatsoever.\n\nDespite this, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services and the assigned collector are reporting and attempting to collect a deficiency.\n\nCommercially Unreasonable Sale\n\nThe dealership originally valued the car at about $25,000, yet Mercedes-Benz sold it for roughly $20,000, well below reasonable market value. Under California commercial reasonableness requirements and UCC standards, this further invalidates any deficiency.\n\nFCRA Violations\n\nThe deficiency is being reported to credit bureaus even though it is:\n\nlegally unenforceable\n\nunverifiable\n\ninaccurate\n\nincomplete\n\nbased on a defective and unlawful notice process\n\nThis violates the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).\n\nFDCPA Violations\n\nThe debt collector is attempting to collect a debt that:\n\nis not legally owed\n\nhas not been properly validated\n\nis prohibited from being collected under California law\n\nWhat I Am Requesting\n\nI am requesting a full investigation and corrective action, including:\n\nImmediate deletion of the deficiency from all credit reports\n\nWritten confirmation that the deficiency balance is XXXX\n\nCessation of all collection activity\n\nVerification of the mailing address they claim they used\n\nCopies of all notices they allege were sent\n\nDocumentation proving the vehicle sale was commercially reasonable\n\nThank you for reviewing this matter. The deficiency is unlawful under California law and should never have been reported or collected.'

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation