Consumer complaint received 2025-11-13 00:00:00
Product: Vehicle loan or lease — Loan
Issue: Problems at the end of the loan or lease — Unable to receive car title or other problem after the loan is paid off
Company: VALLEY NATIONAL BANCORP
State: NJ

Complaint narrative:
From : XXXX XXXX Account Number : XXXX Cell Number : XXXX Email Address : XXXX To Whom It XXXX Concern at XXXX, XXXX am writing to formally complain about my car loan through Valley National Bank XXXX I refinanced my XXXX XXXX XXXX with the bank, effective XX/XX/XXXX, and made my first payment on XX/XX/XXXX. At that time, I was provided with a coupon booklet detailing payments from XX/XX/XXXX, to XX/XX/XXXX, with my final payment due on XX/XX/XXXX, resulting in a XXXX balance on XX/XX/XXXX. 
Throughout the term of my loan, I have submitted my payments via money orders ( because I was restricted to make payment online ), including the remittance indicating the due date ( XXXX of the month ), grace period ( XXXX day of the month ), and applicable late fees {$26.00}. According to the terms of my agreement, late fees should be assessed at {$10.00} after the grace period date. However, the coupon booklet reflects a late fee of {$26.00}. Whenever I submitted payments {$530.00} that included late fees {$26.00}, I ensured that my total payment amounted to {$550.00} ( the standard payment of {$520.00} plus the late fee {$26.00} ). 
Typically, I received a notice in the mail confirming that late fees had been added to my remaining balance, even though these late fees had already been included in my payments. I would like to emphasize that I have never missed or skipped a payment during the loan period, and I have never experienced any bounced checks. 

In XXXX of this year, I received a notice from Valley National Bank stating that I owed {$580.00} in late fees. I called to dispute these charges and requested a transaction history since the inception of my loan. After receiving the requested documentation, I contacted the bank again and spoke with XXXX. She transferred me to XXXX, with whom I had an extensive discussion regarding the late fee charges. I inquired why my payments did not reflect late fee payments, and he stated he could not find any record of them. 

I pointed out that the difference between my payment of {$550.00} and the standard {$530.00} was the late fees. However, I received no clear response. I also mentioned that I had incurred late fees even when I made payments in person at the Valley National Bank XXXX in XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX before the grace period. XXXX explained that additional late charges are assessed when payments are received and processed. I expressed my concerns about being unable to control the mailing process or delays due to holidays, but he insisted that was not how the bank operated. 

To conclude our conversation, XXXX mentioned that his XXXX had decided to waive all late fees. He also offered to change my due date to later in the month to avoid further charges. I agreed to a new due date of XX/XX/XXXX and proceeded to submit what was meant to be my final payment on XX/XX/XXXX. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I logged into the bank 's website to download my account statement and found that none of the agreed-upon changes from our XXXX conversation were reflected in my account. The due date had not changed, and the late fees had not been waived. I attempted to speak with XXXX again, but he refused to take my call. I left a message for him through another customer service representative. Later that evening, I received a call from a night shift supervisor, who confirmed that all late fees had been waived on XX/XX/XXXX. 

I inquired about why, if all late fees were waived, I still had a balance, especially since I never missed a payment and had paid all my late fees. She informed me that I was charged interest because I made payments after the grace period. I pointed out that there were XXXX charges of {$1.00} on my transaction history, which seemed excessive or the amounts do not add up to over {$100.00}. She stated that another XXXX would call me to explain the charges better. I reiterated that I would not pay any unnecessary charges I did not owe. Unfortunately, the conversation ended without a resolution. 

Please note that due to their lack of integrity, I am requesting that they consider my late payments and remove any unnecessary charges to bring my balance to XXXX. This will allow me to obtain the title to my car. Attached, you will find copies of my money order receipts, which reflect the payments made, including any late fees. I have also included a copy of the transaction history and XXXX 's statement, showing the outstanding balance, which includes the late fees. Email requested from XXXX without any acknowledge. Please note that they claim to have waived the late fees and are now referring to them as interest rates, which is not accurate. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, called again to see if I could resolve the issue, but was unsuccessful. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Please be advised that I sent a complaint package via the US Postal Service on XX/XX/XXXX, containing the same complaint and supporting documents. Due to time constraints and to prevent my car from being repossessed and to protect my credit report, I am sending a copy of this complaint to expedite the process. XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to your prompt response. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX,

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation