| Santander Consumer USA took over our auto loan from CitiFinancial last July, without any notice and without our consent. I was out of work from last March until January 2011. I had previously made arrangements for altered payment schedules with CitiFinancial, but Santander refused to even consider such arrangements. Because of our financial situation, we were unable to make a payment, and at that point were nearly flat broke. I should note that I am the sole support for a family of three. I had an extended conversation with them late in November concerning our plight, and without my authorization, Santander removed a payment from our checking account, since we had paid via EFT before and they had the numbers. Since we were almost totally broke and needed money for food and shelter, I called them repeatedly to try to get them to return the unauthorized transfer, and received nothing but hostile responses, accusations that I was lying, and flat refusals. Shortly after, we voluntarily surrendered the vehicle, a 2008 Ford F-1 50 SuperCrew with a 6.5 foot bed, equipped with a V8 and a towing package, a custom cap added at our expense, and running boards that were also added at our expense. Yesterday, 02/09/2011, I received a letter from Santander stating they had sold the vehicle at auction for $14,315,50, leaving us with a "deficiency balance" of $6,979.78. I composed a letter to Santander today, and put it in the mail. Nonetheless, I have already been receiving harassing phone calls from Santander demanding immediate payment of that sum. First of all, the Blue Book value of the vehicle, equipped as it is, in good condition, and with the mileage it has, is $19,305, which is much closer to the amount we still owe on the vehicle. It seems clear to me that Santander did not make a good faith effort to sell the vehicle for its real value, but instead they (most likely) made a "sweetheart deal" with someone to give them a vehicle for $5000-$6000 less than its worth. Secondly, since we surrendered the vehicle because we could not make monthly payments, how in the world is Santander expecting us to make what constitutes approximately a year of payments on this vehicle we no longer have? We have not even been able to afford to buy a used car, and are relying on a vehicle loaned to us by a friend. Furthermore, I am now working as a sales representative and need my cell phone for my work; therefore, receiving harassing phone calls less than 24 hours after I received their letter--giving me virtually no time to respond--demanding a sum of money which we cannot possibly give them, is an action more like a loan shark than a consumer credit agency, and is interfering with my ability to conduct my business efficiently. I have perused the net and found literally dozens of complaints about the actions of this sleazy agency, so I know that I am far from the only one. For now, I am letting my letter to Santander be my entire response to their actions, and I intend to try to find out the circumstances under which my vehicle was sold for a mere fraction of its fair market value. Of course, I anticipate that Santander will continue to harass me, since that is their standard mode of operation. I have had many loans with many companies over the years; this is the first one that I have felt a need to complain about. Santander Consumer USA is, as far as I am concerned, a despicable, predatory agency, and I pray that I never have any dealings with them again. |
