Consumer complaint received 2024-05-19 00:00:00
Product: Vehicle loan or lease — Loan
Issue: Getting a loan or lease — Problem with a trade-in
Company: MECHANICS BANK
State: ID

Complaint narrative:
On XXXX XXXX XXXX, I arrived at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX.  I had answered an advertisement on XXXX  regarding a promotion that they advertised to be able to help people with poor credit, job history, etc., that they could pay me up to XXXX more than the XXXX  value of my trade in, and could get me into another car that met my needs.  When I walked in, I met XXXX XXXX, and explained my situation to her.  I needed to trade my car in for some cash, and a new car. I was in the process of starting 2 part-time jobs and had just begun a third job but had not received a paycheck from it yet, and I was doing XXXX XXXX to bring in money, which made showing income difficult, and my credit score was low (around XXXX  according to the XXXX  reporting I had seen) because I had been out of work since the previous XXXX  when I was laid off my job, and some credit cards and my car loan were showing late payments.  She assured me they could get me into a new car with 60-days no payment and pay me XXXX for my trade in, a XXXX XXXX XXXX, on which I owed (as near as I can recall) XXXX.  XXXX  told me they would need to get me into a car that was XXXX for loan purposes, and they could give me cash for the balance of the equity in my car.  This would be about XXXX  after the other loan was paid off.  I provided all my information and documentation for my income, insurance, etc., and she went back and forth to her managers to see what they could pull together.

I was back in their offices the following day (Saturday XXXX XXXX) and again on Monday (XXXX XXXX).  XXXX continued to assure me they could make the deal, but it was taking longer than planned.  I was asked to provide the documentation several times, eventually I was told to email it all to her boss, XXXX XXXX, which I did at least once (there might have been more- I do not clearly recall how many times I provided my documentation to XXXX  at her request), and I was assured each time she was working on it and I would have a deal shortly. 

I went back to their offices the following Saturday (XXXX XXXX) and again the next Saturday (XXXX XXXX), when I test-drove a XXXX XXXX XXXX.  It was high-mileage, around XXXX there was a large crack across the windshield, and I noticed a couple of dings in the body, however, the car priced out at XXXX fitting the requirements, and it was a smaller-sized SUV with 4WD, so I assumed the price was accurate especially given the inflation in the used car market at the time.  XXXX  assured me there would be a deal soon, and she introduced me to XXXX, who explained they were waiting for documentation that I had begun one of my jobs- the loan company Mechanics Bank had emailed the HR department Friday afternoon, and asked them to send confirmation via email I had begun the position as I stated.  I pulled up the companys timesheet app on my phone and showed him the approved time cards proving I had begun the position, but he said the loan company would not approve a loan until my employer had verified it by email.    XXXX  mentioned this needed to be finished soon, or the car I had just test-driven would be sold and they would have to begin with another car.  I told him I would call HR myself to make sure the email was supplied as quickly as possible.  XXXX said she would take the XXXX  to the Service department and tell them to get it ready for sale as slowly as possible, presumably to ensure the car was still there when my loan was approved early the next week.  She also assured me they would be fixing the windshield, so I did not need to worry about that.  I was assured the only thing they needed to complete the deal was the email from my employer.

I followed up with my HR department on Monday, and HR assured me they would send the email the loan company requested.  I passed this on to XXXX, and she said she would get back with me. I did not hear anything from her, and I continued to follow up with her, but was told they were still working on it, or that I needed to send my documentation again. In the meantime my new employer sent the required email, so that should have been the end of it.

On the XXXX, I decided enough was enough, and texted XXXX  that if there was no deal by the end of the day, I would have to take the car and go elsewhere.  She texted me around XXXX  that evening that they had made the deal, and I needed to come sign the papers by the end of the day.  I arrived at the dealership around XXXX, and XXXX  left me in her office while she got the last of the paperwork together.  I asked her if everything we had discussed nearly a month before had come through, including the 60-days no payment (I specifically asked about the 60-days), and she said it had and left the room.

I met with the finance manager shortly afterward, who had the paperwork for the sale of my XXXX.  The paperwork was for XXXX, rather than the XXXX I had been told I would get at the end of XXXX.  At this point I was so frustrated with how long this had taken and I needed the money for rent due in another XXXX  days, so knowing they would wait for the title to be cleared before releasing the funds, a process I had been told at a different dealership would take about a week, I signed it.  A few minutes later, he had the loan paperwork for me to sign.  The loan required XXXX down to sweeten the deal as he put it, which I was not told about beforehand (I would not have continued with the process had I known this before the sale paperwork had been signed) and he explained that because my credit score was low, the interest rate was 16%.  I remember seeing paperwork that said it was XXXX but the paperwork in the loan agreement they XXXX  for me said it was XXXX pulled on XXXX XXXX, the day I originally came into the dealership. I agreed that with my score that was to be expected.  There was no 60-day-no-payment on the loan despite the fact XXXX  had told me there was just before I signed the sales forms; I did not mention that to the manager.  He told me the car would not have GAP insurance (I had not expected any, but if I recall correctly I asked to be sure) because no one would insure it.  

The manager showed me a 2 page XXXX  report, which had servicing and other work supposedly done at XXXX XXXX  listed on the pages, but nothing else.  I believe the manager told me there were no accidents reported, and there were none listed on the two pages he presented me. As I had normally bought new, I had never seen a XXXX report before, and took him at his word.  I finished the paperwork which he handed me in electronic form on a thumb drive.  I was also given an As Is with no warranty delivery sheet that I had received the car, and told there wasnt any warranty I could buy for it, and that it may be 30 days before I would see the proceeds from the sale, because they could not process a check until they had a title in-hand from the State of Idaho, and that could take a month.  As I review the documents now, I cannot find that XXXX report- it was not included in the documents on the XXXX  drive, and I cannot find the originals I received.

The delivery sheet confused me, because XXXX  had already told me the XXXX  was not ready for pick up, so she was going to fill my old car with gas and send me home in that.  She told me she would contact me when the car was ready for pick up, and I could come trade the cars out then.  Accordingly, a few minutes after I finished with paperwork, she came back, handed me the keys to my old car, and I drove it home with a full tank of gas.  I assumed it would only be a day or two before I would hear from her to come pick up the XXXX.

Two days later I still hadnt heard from her, so I texted her and asked her if my car was ready yet.  She told me it wasnt, and shed let me know when it was.  I waited a few more days and texted her again.  I received the same response.  I was also in contact with XXXX XXXX, my loan company, and they confirmed they had not received the pay off on my loan.

On Tuesday, XXXX XXXX, I still had not received a response or timeframe for when I could pick up the XXXX.  At this point, I contacted XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, the attorney firm my XXXX XXXX  utilizes, and explained the situation to one of their attorneys, XXXX XXXX  I wasnt sure if I had any legal right to be driving the new car, and I was upset that I kept being put off on picking up the new one.  The attorney advised me to contact the general manager, explain what had happened, and inform them if they did not fix this I would take legal action.  After speaking with XXXX, I also called the DMV titling office and spoke with an agent who checked the status of my title.  She stated the title was electronic, and as soon as the title was released by my lienholder, the State of Idaho would have the new title to the dealership within 3 business days.  She said some titles could take a month but that was unusual, and certainly not the case with my car.  I explained what was going on, and she advised me to contact the investigations unit if it was not resolved within 24 hours of me contacting the dealership.

I called XXXX XXXX and asked to speak with the general manager.  I was told he was not available (if I remember correctly, he was not in the office that day when I called), and I was transferred to the manager in charge, who happened to be XXXX XXXX, the manager I had met a few weeks before.  I explained that I still had not received my car, that I knew the title would not take a month, and I asked to know what was holding up my taking possession of the car.  XXXX  replied he did not know I hadnt received the car, and said he would check into it and get back to me.  A few minutes later, he called and said they were waiting on a replacement windshield.  The service department claimed they had ordered a replacement windshield from XXXX, and they were on back-order so the car was not finished yet.  He also got the transfer transaction number for the payoff on my old car, and said it was due to be finalized the following day, XXXX XXXX

I told him I was okay with taking the car now and bringing it back in when the windshield arrived, and asked if I could get the cash from the sale of my old car and pick up the new car on the same day.  He said he thought they could get me a check for the proceeds, and have it done by Friday, XXXX XXXX.  I told him I would pick up the car that afternoon.

I arrived at the dealership and met with the finance manager who had processed my original paperwork.  He again gave me an As Is delivery form to sign, and I noticed it did not have a notation about the windshield on it.  I mentioned this to him, and he paused for a moment, then asked me if my salesperson had told me it would be replaced.  I said she had.  He thought a minute and said, Well, we dont sell cars with broken windshields, and wrote on the top of the delivery sheet Call when windshield comes in.   I was handed a check for XXXX, and the keys to my new car.  The car had been freshly detailed (the upholstery was slightly damp in places and it smelled like cleaning chemicals), and I had noticed on the XXXX  report that XXXX XXXX had reported servicing the car.

I was not very happy with this deal, but at the time, I felt like I had no other choice.  Rent was coming due, and I needed the proceeds of that sale to pay rent and catch up the bills that remained behind from my time on XXXX; because the XXXX was taken out of my proceeds and I was shorted by XXXX on the sale price of my old car, I was only able to pay rent. While I understood that the cash-nature of this deal meant they couldnt get me XXXX  over the value of the car, given that this was the advertisement I had answered, I did not understand why the loan couldnt be structured so I got the full profit amount after my old loan was paid (I had been clear with XXXX  why I was trying to sell the car) and I knew they could turn around and sell the car for at least XXXX more than they were paying me for it, but I didnt ask because I was sick of dealing with it and at least had the money for rent, so I took what I could get.  The windshield made the car look terrible, but I assumed I would hear from XXXX XXXX in a few weeks and that would be taken care of without any issues.

By XXXX, I still had not heard from XXXX XXXX  service department about the replacement of my windshield, so I called them on or about XXXX XXXX  The service tech who answered transferred me to their service manager, who rather rudely informed me he was aware of my situation, that there was one other customer in the same position, and he would call me when the windshield came in.  I did not hear from them again.

In XXXX, the car began to have issues with acceleration- on accelerating out of a complete stop, the car would suddenly go into what I learned was called limp mode and would not drive over about 20 miles an hour.  This happened on and off for a few weeks, then started happening every time I drove the car.  A mechanic in XXXX  checked the car over for me, and told me the throttle body was out and would need to be replaced at a cost of XXXX  with after-market parts, because of a nation-wide XXXX  parts shortage.  

At this point I had a few months of good payment history showing and my credit was recovering from my period of XXXX.  It was well before I planned to trade the car off, but I thought I would be able to trade the car in on something new fairly easily, though the loan might be about XXXX underwater because I hadnt had the car very long.  I decided to pull up the price on the XXXX XXXX XXXX website, asking for a cash and trade value.  The cash value came back at XXXX, the trade was a little more.  At this point, I still owed XXXX on the loan, which was originally for XXXX after the XXXX down.

To say I was furious would be an understatement.  On XXXX XXXX, I took the car to a couple of dealerships and they could not find a new car with enough equity in it to offset XXXX of negative equity in the trade and have a payment I could afford. The salesman said if they valued my trade at what it would be if it were in pristine condition, the car was worth around XXXX, and even then they could not get me out of it.  One sales manager I spoke with at XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX had previously worked for XXXX XXXX and their windshield work was outsourced, so there was no reason why the car should not have been repaired immediately. I verified XXXX  could have replaced the windshield the next week through my insurance.  He also reviewed the documents they had given me, and told me the reason I had not heard from them regarding the windshield was because it was not in any of their deliverables stated in the transaction documents, thus they were not legally obligated to provide the windshield.  Though I was unable to trade the car, a friend came up with a cost-effective solution for repairing the throttle body, so I was able to get the car running again.

I contacted my attorney again and explained what I had just learned. She said we should at least try to get the windshield replaced as this would up the value of the vehicle slightly, and she asked me to send her their general authorization letter to provide services so she could proceed with a letter asking XXXX XXXX to replace the windshield as they had promised.  When I emailed her the GAL, I told her I would contact Mechanics Bank, to request the valuation information they had and find out what information they had been given that lead to them valuing the car at nearly XXXX  more than it was actually worth.  XXXX responded she would wait to write the letter until I had spoken with the bank and had that information.

I called Mechanics that afternoon, and spoke with one of their managers.  She was rude, and when I told her the cars value was not close to what the loan had been issued for, told me I was still responsible for paying it because I had signed the forms.  I had not indicated I would not pay the bill, and I told her as much, but reiterated the car could not be worth the value of the loan at the time of purchase, saying both she and I knew there was no way the car had dropped more than XXXX in value in less than 4 months. The agent did not reply. I asked that she send me any documents they had that would establish how the car had been valued. She said they used XXXX XXXX XXXX to value their cars, and their legal department would have to send that to me, then changed her story and said she could email it to me later that day. I also mentioned my payment was late that month because the due date was not at a good time for me, and asked if I could change the date.  She told me that would have to be done online, and directed me to their website.  I hung up and emailed XXXX with what I had learned while I waited for that email- it never came.  I also got on their website and requested a due date change.  A couple of days later, a customer service representative left me a message to call them, which due to my work schedule, I could not do- apparently, they were unable to change my due date, as it remains on XXXX XXXX

A few weeks later, I got online and sent an email to their customer service center, requesting the valuation documents again.  I received an email back saying I would need to call in as I had not provided my account number.  I responded with my account number, but there was no reply.  I have consistently told Mechanics Bank I cannot usually call because of my work schedule.  I also wanted everything in writing, given the nature of what was becoming clear was fraudulent lending.  I also attempted to change the date on one other occasion, but was told that could not be allowed because at that point, the car loan was more than 30 days behind, and they do not allow due date changes on past-due loans.


In XXXX XXXX, during a job transition when I had some time, I contacted XXXX  at XXXX XXXX again, and updated her.  She wrote a letter and sent it to XXXX XXXX, and advised me not to contact the state of Idaho investigations unit (which we thought could investigate fraudulent auto sales) until the windshield was replaced- as she put it, dont give them a heads up on whats coming.  I was contacted by XXXX XXXX in XXXX  around the XXXX if I remember correctly; the receptionist told me they had nothing in their records showing they were required to replace the windshield, but their GM said since Id gone to the trouble of contacting an attorney and having a letter written, they would replace the windshield for me.  This was done XXXX XXXX  There was no mention made of backordered parts, and their service department performed the work.

At this point, I was so sick of dealing with it, I wondered if it was even worth the trouble of turning this in for investigation, especially if I were able to trade the car as I hoped in XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX.  I was working quite a bit at the time, and dealing with a financial set-back that had put me behind on all my bills, so I concentrated on catching up and decided if I could trade the car I would just let it be done.

In XXXX  I received my car insurance renewal notice from XXXX.  When I transferred my insurance to the new car in XXXX, my premium went up about XXXX a month, and had gone up slighting again at my next renewal in XXXX.  I did not question this, because I assumed the car was in a different class/age group than my previous car precipitating the higher rate.  The December notice contained an XXXX per month increase in premium.  This was unaffordable, so I started researching new insurance.  XXXX  quoted me a rate that was XXXX lower than the renewal rate, so I began the process of moving my policy to XXXX  on XXXX XXXX.  

When the agent I was working with entered the VIN number for my Jeep into their system, the premium went up XXXX per month.  Neither I nor the agent could figure out why my rate would increase that much; my driving history is clear and I had only had windshield chip claims in the past XXXX years, but their system said this was due to consumer reports/title issues. He advised me to contact their consumer information provider to see if they could provide me with the information regarding why this had happened.  I called XXXX XXXX, and their agent confirmed I had nothing adverse on my consumer report, however, she noted that in XXXX, when XXXX XXXX had run a quote for me, the information XXXX XXXX provided XXXX XXXX  showed a claim on the car from XXXX XXXX, paid for by XXXX, that was not included in the documents XXXX  had pulled earlier that week.  The agent gave me the claim number through XXXX.  I also contacted the Vehicle Titles department at the DMV and had them check the title as well, but the agent could see no issues with the title, and recommended I do a title search through an online company in case there was an issue she could not see.  At the time I did not have the resources to pay for a search.

When I spoke with XXXX  again the next day, the agent and I spoke with someone in their claims department, who looked up the claim and said it was from an accident with around XXXX in repairs on the car had been completed, which to the claims specialist indicated something with the fender, as a fender replacement would fit the price paid out.  He recommended I speak with policy support regarding having the increase removed from my account- he could not understand why I was being penalized for this either- and gave me their number.  I called them the following Monday (that call had been on a Friday), and I was told that if I were in an accident, the car was at risk of costing more to repair because of the earlier damage, thus the policy rate hike was appropriate and would stand.

At no point did XXXX XXXX inform me of any sort of accident record on the car, though if you know there was fender damage, you can see it on the left side of the car where the fender is a quarter-inch lower than it should be around the headlights.  I assumed the fender looked like this because of the age of the car, and assumed XXXX XXXX would have told me if there had been an accident on the vehicle, as it is my understanding it is fraud to lend money on a vehicle without disclosing the accident.  I spoke with another dealership about trading the car in XXXX XXXX, and they showed me a 30+-page XXXX  report where the accident was reported.  This lowers the value of the car even more- at the time XXXX XXXX XXXX priced it at XXXX.  Because the interest on my loan is front-loaded, I still owed around XXXX on the car at that time, and I could not get a new loan to trade out for a sound vehicle.

I have let Mechanics Bank know that the loan is fraudulent, and that they have, in my opinion, conspired with XXXX XXXX to defraud me out of more than XXXX.  The first agent I told that to was a collections manager who had contacted me to make payment arrangements when my car went 60 days past due (as I mentioned, I had financial problems in XXXX XXXX XXXX, and the loan went past 30-days, something I was able to avoid before that, given the due date was not at a helpful time of the month), I had paid a half-payment on the account and told him I would make a second half-payment before the car hit its next due date, and then give them more money  after rent was paid for the month of XXXX, basically keeping the car at 60 days past due until I could earn more money XXXX  to catch it up again after the payment was due at the beginning of XXXX.  I told him I had turned XXXX XXXX and them into the DMV Investigations unit, and if they worked with me, I would make sure the loan was paid in full, either by trading the car out when I was able or through a settlement with XXXX XXXX which it was my understanding this department of the DMV could assist me with.  

The account manager said that was not an appropriate payment arrangement, that I should have done my research on the car before I purchased it, and I was responsible for paying it.  The car was repossessed 3 days later.  I attempted to buy a new car, but could not find financing in that situation.   After one week of trying to come up with another solution, my father offered to help me reinstate the loan.  When I called the bank to get an amount for reinstating the loan, they said the car was repossessed because it was 3 months past due.  The agent told me I was XXXX behind (the total it was before I made the last half-payment, including XXXX in fees),  plus the XXXX in fees, another XXXX in reinstatement fees, and that I had a payment coming up the next day on XXXX XXXX, which I could include in the reinstatement amount for a total over XXXX (I cannot recall the exact amount), which my father paid by XXXX  the next day.  This makes no sense, because for my car to be 90 days past due it with the amount she told me, it would have to be including the payment due in XXXX, specifically the one due the day after I spoke to her. After receipt of the reinstatement fees, I called the company that had picked it up to set up a time when I could pick up my car, and was told I would be contacted by their agent in XXXX  to set up an appointment for me to pick it up.  Two days later I still had not heard from him, and the main office told me he had a sick child so he hadnt been able to work.  By Friday, I still had not heard from him, and left another voice mail asking when I could get my car, or I would take legal action.  The following Monday, I got a message that there was an appointment set up for me at XXXX the following day, a week after the reinstatement had been paid, and that I must make that time or extra fees would be incurred.  I finally picked the car up that evening.  I lost 2 weeks of work from this, for a car loan that was not 90 days past due, unless you add in the upcoming payment.

In XXXX, I underwent XXXX, and during my downtime from that procedure, I called and spoke to an agent requesting a due date change.  The agent inquired why I needed a date change, and when I told her it conflicted with paying rent, she said, OK, Ill approve this.  She said I would receive a document via email to sign, and then the date change could be processed.  I waited for the document, but it did not come that day, and it was another week before I found the email- it had gone to a spam folder.  I immediately signed it and emailed it back, but received another email to call them- apparently by that point the car was past due and the date could not be changed.  I had hoped to keep the account from getting behind by having the due date changed to something I could work with.

The car broke down several times over last summer, resulting in the payment being behind again because of course I cannot work when the car is broken down, and it is difficult when XXXX  to make extra money to catch up these kinds of larger bills.  Strangely, after the repossession, their collection practices changed.  I no longer got calls as frequently as I had before, and their text system messages me when the account reaches past due.  Their agents no longer respond to emails- in fact, I spoke with one collections manager- XXXX, who was quite helpful- regarding a notice I had received that I was eligible for an extension.  XXXX  said they are unable to respond to emails (I had emailed her about the account a couple of days previously), and yet I have had agents respond to them.  She also said that, though I am eligible for an extension, I cannot get one until the payment is current.  She reaffirmed I cannot change my due date until it is current.  I attempted to contact another collections agent, XXXX, regarding my account when I was able to make 2 payments one month, and asked her if we could process the extension and a due date change before my payment was due 2 days later, which would bring me current.  I did not hear back, not even a call to ask me to contact her.

As I mentioned earlier, last year, I turned in XXXX XXXX and Mechanics Bank to the DMV investigations unit, who told me a month later they did not have jurisdiction and did not investigate these kinds of claims, despite one of the DMVs CSRs telling me I should call them because they could.  I contacted the Idaho Department of Finance, and was told they had no jurisdiction, however, the Idaho Attorney General would be able to help facilitate a settlement through their Consumer Complaints division.  I submitted my complaint to them last XXXX, and have not heard anything from them.  On doing some research, I was pointed to the Consumer Protection Bureau, so I am hoping for some kind of resolution to this issue now.  In the year since, the XXXX XXXX dealership I worked with has closed, however, I am also submitting this to the FTC so that XXXX XXXX will at least have documentation somewhere that they have committed fraud on a customer.

The car has developed more problems with brakes and wheels and is, according to mechanics who have inspected it for me, unsafe to drive, though I must because I have to earn some kind of living, and XXXX  is the only thing I can think of that brings in enough money until I can either find a job that will pay expenses, or build up my business to making a profit I can live off.  Until now I have been unable trade it off because I owe too much on it (around XXXX on a car that recent evaluations say is worth XXXX); I am told now that the amount owed after the trade-in value is below XXXX, I may be able to get a loan, so I am hoping this week I can finally get out of it.

I am including the file of paperwork I have submitted to other agencies, some of which relates to the process of buying through XXXX XXXX, and the rest to how the car was valued at different points in this process.  If there is anything else I can provide, I will be happy to do so.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation