Complaint Review: Americredit Financial - Fort Worth Texas

First, a little background. My husband and I had gotten into horrible debt due to his job loss. I went through credit counseling, and worked very hard to get my debts repaid. I was down to one debt to repay, when my car totally broke down. We both had older used cars, which were paid for. Within a week, my husbands car also totally broke down. In both cases, it would cost more to make the repairs than the vehicles were worth. I didn't have the cash to buy another used vehicle outright, so I resorted to a car lot. Now, my naivete got me into this mess, but they darn sure took advantage of it. I thought my credit was terrible. Only now, do I realize that it wasn't that bad since I had repaid all my debts except one, which I was working on. Anyway, the car lot sold me a car alright, at about 23% interest, financed through Americredit. My payments were $385 per month on a $13000, Chevy Prizm. Payments were so high plus had to have full coverage insurance, I couldn't continue to pay my previous debt. I paid on the car for 3 years and still owed $11000. My husband lost his job again, and I could no longer afford the high payments. Plus, they had a clause in the contract that I could not refinance the loan. The only way to get out of it, was to pay it in full, which I couldn't do or sell it, and nobody was going to pay more than double what the car was worth. Finally, I just stopped making payments. About 6 months went by, and I kept thinking they would repossess it anytime. I didn't hide the car from them, but we did keep driving it. Then, one evening I received a phone call from a repo guy saying that they had been looking for the car. He said that he knew it wasn't there, that I must be hiding it, and if I didn't produce it within the hour, he would have a sheriff there to arrest me for Grand Theft by means of obscuring(or some such nonsense). I panicked because I was there alone with my newborn daughter. I told the guy, no way had I been hiding it, the car had been there all the time, and come get the sucker immediately! Of course, they sold the car for peanuts, and they still want over $8000 from me. I can't afford to pay it. And, as one of the rebutters mentioned, they have sold the account a few times, effectively keeping it going, and multiplying the negative reports on my credit. Now, thanks to them and Providian(but that's another story, check out all the reports on them), my credit is completely ruined. Credit couseling is not even an option this time, I am going to have to file bankruptcy to overcome this mess. I have learned some very expensive lessons from these predatory lenders, though. Aside from buying a house, which I do hope to do someday post bankruptcy, I will purchase nothing on credit. If I can't pay cash, I don't need it that badly.

My husband and I bought a car years ago financed through Americredit. It broke down less than 2 months after we bought it. It had a major flaw in the engine that we found out was there before we bought it. We went to the dealership and they worked it out where they took the car back, gave us back part of our downpayment so we could buy another car and they fixed the car and supposedly worked out our contract releasing us from Americredit or so the papers said. Years later we try to buy something else on credit and low and behold Americredit put that car on our credit. And to top it off the car originaly was going to cost us $8500 and they put it on our credit as $17,500! Then they sold the contract to collection agency who kept it a couple of years and sold it to another credit agency. However, Americredit continues to update it and it has been on our credit for 8 years now but here is the twist it is on there 3 times and looks like we defaulted on 3 different car loans when we never defaulted on one. To Kelly,,,,You did what all of the rest of wish we had the guts to do and you are right your credit was ruined the day you signed for that car. In my case I disputed and got one of the bad credit marks removed and in another year and a half they will be removed all together. My advice is to never contact them and let it fall off in 7 years. We made the mistake of calling them when we first found out it was on our credit and that just started a nightmare.

Yes AmeriCredit will only be able to report you for 7 years, the collection agency will only be able to report you for 7 years as well. But, the repo company will still continue to look for you, and they have what is called skip-tracers. They are even able to locate you through utility companies. They are very very good at what they do. You signed a legal and binding agreement with them, and defaulted. Yes life happens every day, but there is still a contract that you signed. When the repo company gets the car, and it is sold at auction, they get whatever the highest bidder gives for the car, you can request documentation on the sale of it, and have that amount deducted from the amount you owe. But, if you still do not pay, then the final outcome is they can actually take you to court and have a judgement placed against you, of which there is no relief from an unpaid judgment. It stays until it is either proven to the court this case was filed prejudicially and erroneously with you having to provide proof contradictory to AmeriCredits, or you pay it. I know this as I previously worked for a repo company and I now own my own business helping people dispute inaccuracies & Identity Fraud on their credit reports. Also, yes, you can attempt to change your identity, but if you are caught, then you will go to jail. Where will your children be then? It is much better to deal with the problems now, rather then try these extreme lengths and end up losing even your family over it. Good Luck

Tammy is right, by this stage Heather's making payments will not improve her credit, and could make it stay bad for a longer time. The only reason to make payments now would be to keep the repo men away. Giving the car back is a bad idea. Typically they will hold a "sham" sale in which they claim it was actually worth little or nothing. Thus she'd still owe the full amount and have no car, as well as a fresh bad mark on her credit. If she can find someone willing to buy the car for a fair market price, Americredit may be willing to negotiate a deal around that. But be very careful... Also STAY AWAY from "credit counseling". The ones that aren't outright scams are still just debt collectors in sheep's clothing. The only difference is slick marketing has convinced you to call them rather than them calling you.

First to Ann... I would like to correct several points here. First of all, an item only lasts on the credit report for seven years. A charge off only lasts on the credit report for seven years from the date of last activity provided that there is no further activity on the account from the consumer. Thus, the clock begins when Heather becamse in default and made her last payment provided she does not make another payment. This fact does not change even if it is charged off which is required by federal law when an account becomes 180 days past due. If it is charged off by the original creditor and sold to a collection agency, the collection agency can and will pursue legal while the bill is still within the statue of limitations. However the consumer does have rights. She can contact the collection agency by cease and desist letter, refuse to due business with them by stating that she prefers to do business with the original creditor. However in this case, the original creditor might be more dishonest than the collection agency and she might get a better settlement offer. Yes you can negotiate a settlement offer. The one difference here is that Heather still has the car. Since she has not paid for the car, Americredit has rights to repossess it since they are the co-owner (the finance company). The logical thing for her to do would be if she has means and access to obtain another car would be for her to return the car to Americredit. They will then resell it and charge her the deficiency balance. A deficiency balance is a lot easier to negotiate on and settle on when they have the car. I did read this letter and Heather did try to work it out. However when you cannot even speak with a representative without getting cursed out, sworn out, and there is no attempt to compromise here, then conversations become unproductive. She should have told them to take back her car. However, I suspect that if she were to lose her car, she would have lost her ability to get to work. For the future, Heather, there are ways in which you can get help. Credit counselling is one way. Bankruptcy is another. Bankruptcy is not the best thing, but it is not the worse either. However for a person to file bankruptcy, they have to have a certain dollar amount of bills before they will do a bankruptcy and the person has to have a job. At least this is what I was told. There is tons of information about credit, charge offs and so forth in the www.creditinfocenter.com site about this as well as the www.fair-debt-collection.com site which has all kinds of information on it. Furthermore this subject has been discussed in length in the threads containing CAMCO, Conseco, Fairbanks capital and Ocwen. I hope this helps.

Heather obviously doesn't understand that Americredit has already won this battle. Americredit will write this loss off on their taxes and load up her credit with derogatories. That is the least of her worries. She is living on the run. Always having to wonder if the car will be there in the morning or when she comes out of the grocery store is not most peoples idea of winning. She refers to identity changing as a realistic solution. Give me a break. Changing your identity over a 1999 jalopy that is now worth a fraction of what you bought it for is laughable. I want to hear Heather explain to her child that "we need to change our names because the evil car people are chasing us". I think the real issue at hand is morality. Heather has essentially stolen this vehicle and regardless of the legal implications she has convinced herself this is acceptable behavior. It's almost comical how she berates this creditor saying they "will stoop to the lowest levels" but yet justifies her borderline criminal behavior. I have a feeling that there are alot more problems in Heather's life and as with this problem she is avoiding ownership of those problems. We all know that there are unknowns and hardships that lie ahead in life. Running from those problems hurts everyone involved, especially children. Standing tall and dealing with problems at least shows dignity and responsibility even if you lose a car or a home. It also sets a good example to the most important people....your children.

Let me get this straight, Heather signs an agreement to purchase a car, she then defaults on the agreement (fails to make the payments), still keeps the car and then has the arrogance to think she is a victim and Americredit is the bad guy. Let me ask the question. Are all businesses expected to grant you an exception when you lose your job or run into hard times? Sorry, I would like a happy meal and a Big Mac, I cant pay you right now because I lost my job but if you dont give it to me then I will complain that your ripping me off. What kind of logic is that? How about taking some responsibility for your own actions, quit blaming everyone else for your own faults, immature behavior and pay your bills. Who are you going to blame when your electricity is shut off or you get evicted because you haven't paid your bill or rent? I guess its my fault because I choose to be responsible and purchase only things I can afford while paying my bills on time and people like you expect a free ride when you screw up. Grow up and take responsibility for your actions Spare me your rebuttal where you tell me wait until it happens to me, I am 52 years old and it hasnt happened yet, maybe because I take responsibility for my actions and dont blame others for my shortfalls.

Heather, you said that you kept the car and settled out of court. Explain to me how you kept the car and settled out of court and got A free car. By law you can be arrested driving the car if you are avoiding the repo man and hiding the car. Americredit owns the car. I hate Americredit and would love to do what you said you did but I want to know how you did it.

Heather, I hate to break this to you, but your decision to not work things our with Americredit is going to show as an unpaid charge-off on your credit history. Much like a bankruptcy, this will remain on your credit report for up to seven years. Once a charge-off occurs, the debt is considered "due-in-full" due to breach of contract. The account may be sent to a collection agency, to an attorney fo litigation, or sold to another party. (and if it's sold to another party, the seven year thing starts all over again!). With an unpaid charge-off, you will never be able to buy a home. I do very much sympathize with your situation, but for the sake of your future and your childrens' future, see what you can do to rectify this situation. Based on your letter you didn't make any attempt to work something out with Americredit. You can't expect to get something for nothing. Your plan of revenge only hurts you.

We have had nothing with Americredit since day one...They have discussed the account with me and harassed me for the money when Im not even on the loan... People run into situations that they can not help and I dont know about all of you but my house payment, utilities and food for my kids come first..if theres anything left then Ill do the car payment...they refuse to work with you and are so rude I just cant express...I have been told to see if my parents can lend me money...one even told me to sell my wedding ring...well sorry where I come from that ring is sacred and will never leave my finger... My step-mother is a loan originator and told me that Americredit is the worst company to go with...so many people she does loans for have had problems with that company...they post there paymetns late even when they are on time and then still report you to the credit boro and charge you late fees...isnt there something we can do about this

My first question is, are you an Americredit sympathizer? If so you are in the wrong forum. To answer you question Kelly, yes I will be better off later in life. You must not be aware that negative reports on your credit can only remain there for 7-10 years. Even if my personal credit is bad there are other ways around that. Like a book called How to change your identity. What do you think people did before Visa existed? And things like a cell phone are still within my reach. Unlike you, I do not have a bankruptcy on my credit, which does make a big difference. But dont despair time heals all wounds even ones to your credit. I wish I would have known about americredit before hand. I didnt have bad credit before and had I known, I would have gone elsewhere. But the sales manager was a friend of a friend and I trusted his advice. Another lesson learned. I also learned that your credit is not the sum of who you are, it is just a piece of paper, and just because there is negative things on there doesnt mean its the end of the world. I have a good life and I do things on a cash basis now, which is better anyway, because I dont have to pay stupid interest, which saves you money in the long run. People get to consumed by their credit. I did, because I had to have it now. All that has changed and Im better for it..in the long run, as you say.

Heather I feel bad for you but you signed an agreement. Wait until you try to get an apartment, cell phone, credit card or student loan. Unless you plan on hiding forever your basically screwed. I also bought a 1999 Monte Carlo and currently have it financed through Americredit. I am a single parent and have a bankruptcy in my past. When my old 1987 Station Wagon was barely running I tried to finance a car. The only type of car that dealers would sell me were an S-10 pick up or a Cavelier. With my bankruptcy I would have to pay double the amount for a car that I did not want. Americredit loaned me the money for my Monte Carlo. Yeah I'm paying double for it but I love the car and I need to repair my credit somehow. I make sure my payments are on time. Are YOU REALLY GETTING BACK AT AMERICREDIT????? Think about what you are doing to your future and your childs future.