Complaint Review: Hello Auto Finance

Hello Auto Finance is a car sales location that deals with bad credit/no credit, etc. I did not expect to be treated like someone with good credit, but my experience with them for the past two years has been awful.

I will state that I was alone when I purchased the vehicle, and was in a desperate position, needing a car immediately for work, etc. I did not make an educated decision and put myself into a bad situation that led to my being taken advantage of.

First, the sales people are VERY pushy. If you say no, and are not assertive, they will sell you anything they can - making it sound like they're giving you a good deal.

Second, the sales team lies. They say (and their website states) that they have a 103 point inspection of the vehicles they sell - and they do not sell vehicles that have been wrecked. However, the vehicle I purchased had damage that was a sign of a previous wreck. The tires were very worn (not able to pass state inspection), brakes had trouble from day one, and the vehicles they showed me were very dirty and abused.

After realizing (the day after purchase) that I was lied to about the condition of the car, I attempted to talk to the sales manager, but the company, sales manager, and owner were unresponsive to my calls, questions and complaints.

A selling point by the sales team is that Hello Auto Finance reports your payments to the credit bureaus - this is incorrect, they only report to ONE bureau - which is not helpful to anyone who is attempting to use their car payments as a good item on the credit while establishing or rebuilding. It was not until 6 months after my payments did my good status show up on my report - and I had to call the office to ask why it was not being reported with all 3 major agencies - it was only then that I was told they only report to one agency.

The vehicle I purchased "came with" a 2 year/24000 mile warranty. You are not able to opt-out of this warranty - and even after the 2 years or 24000 miles passes you are charged for the warranty, and if you cancel it, you have to pay the current warranty amount and a buy-out fee. This warranty came in handy, as less than a year after I purchased the vehcile, the transmission went out.

The warranty, however, did not cover a new transmission - only a used one from a totalled car. Getting the warranty work done was also a nightmare. The warranty contact at Hello Auto Finance was abrupt, rude and unprofessional. The only repairs they initially agreed to do (even though covered under the warranty) were ones done in their shop - even though we lived well over an hour from their shop - and their inablity to be honest about the car's condition during the sales process, and stating falsely that they had safety inspected the car, led me to want to go with a reputable local repair shop. It took dozens of hours on the phone, documentation that took even more time on my part, and too many phone calls to count to get the claim filed, the car repaired, and the warranty person to do her job.

Furthermore, payments are not at all flexible - even in the case of death or emergencies. If a payment was missed, threats were made, and the vehicle has lo-jack installed, so the dealer can simply turn the starter off if they do not have your payment.

The office staff is rude, condescending and patronizing. Simply because they deal with people with less-than-perfect credit, they treat each and every customer post-sale as if they are theives and liars. I found this ironic, as they were obviously the liars. When I would call to get the balance on my loan (they do not give out any paper anything to track progress), they were unable to give it to me. They could not tell me how many more payments I had, and asked me to refer to my original contract (even though I was making regular payments ABOVE my loan amount). The only information the office staff would give was related to the cash payoff balance.

Interest rates are close to 20%, loan terms are 2 years (in most cases), and service is horrendous.

I would advise anyone looking for a vehicle to steer clear of Hello Auto Finance or similar establishments - no matter how badly you need a vehicle.

A.
Richardson, Texas
U.S.A.