Automobile loans modification scam ads are all over the internet. Auto loans bad credit modification companies promise to negotiate with lenders to get customers lower car payments — for a quite large upfront fee. But consumer advocates and government regulators say most auto loans for people with bad credit modifiers promising lower car payments will take your money and provide little or nothing in return. Increasing throughout the nation are consumer complaints about automobile loan modification companies. Florida’s attorney general shut down Auto Relief Group, a south Florida company that has an F rating with Better Business Bureau.
Auto loans for bad credit modification is a cautionary tale
Pitches by autoloans modification companies offering vehicle loan modification services say that they have lender connections and expertise to negotiate dramatically lower interest rates or extended payments. It was reported by WKYC in Cleveland that an unemployed student was looking for help with her $ 420.00 per month car payment when a television ad led her to Auto Relief Group. The auto loans bad credit modifier promised that they would lower her 13 percent interest rate to 8 percent and extend the loan, which would result in a lower monthly car payment of $ 290.00. They also said they would work with Honda Financial services which is her lender.
Lower car payments never happened
The unemployed student provided her account with your bank info to Auto Relief Group and agreed to let it take a one-time advance fee of $ 298 from her checking account. WKYC reports that when she didn’t notice any reduction in her monthly car payment after a couple months, she contacted Honda directly and learned that Auto Relief Group had never contacted her auto lender. When she confronted Auto Relief Group, she was told the $ 298 fee was for an “options report” the business provided and if she really wanted them to contact her lender, it would cost an extra $ 100.
Scammers charge for what you can do yourself
Other consumer complaints about Auto Relief Group indicate the information within the possibilities report is nothing more than what anyone can get from free by calling their auto lender, like the amount of the loan, the current value of the vehicle, current rate of interest, balance, etc. The student in Cleveland found that Auto Relief Group had made two additional $ 298 withdrawals from her account without her authorization.
Migrating to auto loans for bad credit are mortgage loan scammers
Some financial experts have said that auto loan modification scams are attracting the exact exact same scammers who modified mortgage loans until regulations shut them down. According to SunSentinel.com, claims on auto-loan modifier websites and ads — “We can help you keep your car, truck, boat or RV!” “Stop repossession and make your payments affordable!” — are almost identical to the promises mortgage loan modification scams once made to property owners facing foreclosure. Numerous of those promises weren’t kept and all of the homeowners lost their homes and millions in upfront modification fees.
Auto loan modification companies unregulated
New laws that went into effect this year drove away most mortgage loan modification scams. The new laws require that all of the mortgage modifiers to get mortgage broker licenses and they can no longer charge upfront payments. Auto loan modifiers do not have to be as much as trained. The Federal Trade Commission is considering a new rule that would prohibit upfront fees for debt settlement services. Auto loan modification wouldn’t be integrated by the proposed FTC action.
You are on your own. Consider yourself warned.
More details about this topic at these websites:
WKYC
wkyc.com/news/local/news_article.aspx?storyid=138784&catid=3
Sun Sentinel
sun-sentinel.com/fl-auto-loan-modification-20100707,0,6069557.story
FTC
ftc.gov/opa/2010/04/debttestimony.shtm
