Complaint Review: Household Auto Finance - San Diego California

I worked for Household/Beneficial for 3 years before I got sick of it and quit. In that time I seen a # of things that would cause a normal consumer to have heart failure. Everything from giving a 85 year old woman a 30 yr mortage for 150k to refinancing a loan and selling disability insurance to a man that was not working due to perm. disability. But honestly that was nothing. The collections reps go through 2 weeks of training, then are thrown out on the "floor" with a goal and headset. In the three years that I worked there I was pulled into the "conference" room because I was too nice and didn't get enough checks over the phone, even though in the three years that i was there I only missed goal 6 times. They don't consider it a payment unless you get a check over the phone. Phone calls started at 8 am sharp, on what was known as an automatic dialer, after 20 minutes the dialer went down, came back up in 10 minutes and we called the same # again. we were instructed to not leave messages until after 8 pm and then only 1 a week. so all day long we would make calls to the same people over and over. And God help you if you had an account over 10k. Each person had a "queue" in this queue they had their own accounts to work so to say. Now these accounts would also be placed in the dialer at certain times of the day, mainly between 8 and 12 am and 5 and 9 pm. Between noon and 5 pm each rep worked their queue, except for about 30 minutes of calling the workplace. Anyway during these 5 hours, while people were working their queue, the managers would get a list of all accounts over 10k and hand them out to their teams. (about 50 teams in our building) in between calling thier own queue, they would call on these high balance accounts, over and over sometimes 10 or 15 people would be calling these accounts. I actually was on the phone with a customer many times and they got another call and it was someone else from beneficial. I think one of the most interesting things that i came across was the account of the man that had been dead for 11 years (according to ssn) when beneficial gave him the loan. Never did get that one figured out. I have heard reps tell customers to have garage sales, eat nothing but ramen noodles, and even sell their blood to come up with the $. While i was there I will admit that I did get harsh with people. I found it hard to be sympathic with a Dr. or a lawyer with perfect credit and million dollar homes. Now on the other hand, I couldn't be harsh with someone who was really having a hard time. The one thing that I hated more than anything was being lied to. When you call a person and there reason changed from week to week it got pretty annoying. I was called every name you can think of, even given death threats. I had to get an unlisted # because people started calling my house. I hated working for that company. the only reason that i was there is because it was one of the highest paying jobs in the area. My advice for anyone dealing with household beneficial collections, call your local office and request the address for a cease and desist. Write a letter to this address telling them that you no longer want any phone calls to your home or business. Make a copy for yourself and send it out. I am sorry that this has rambled on but I just wanted everybody to know that I am personally sorry if i was ever one of THOSE PEOPLE. and most of you are right, the company sucks, they are a big scam and they train their employees to think that the delinquent person is scum and should be treated as such.

Patricia, I first should say that you are 100% accurate concerning the stressing # of calls. I too have gotten my fair share (often several x in one day)from Household. I find them very annoying as well. I too would be interested in a class action suit against them. I have been at war with this company for over 3 months and it has been pure hell. I have an appointment to consult with my attorney this week. They finally pushed the last button I will allow them to. I will give summary of the crap we are being served. Going in detail will only give me cause to think too long about them and thus raise my blood pressure. I have been charged hundreds of dollars in late penalties and balance short penalties, brought to their attention that according to faith in lending disclosure they are commiting fraud each and every time those charges are tagged on to my bill. Only amount required according to it is to be monthly payment only. The portion of the contract that shows late payment penalty and/or other penalty was left blank in one area. In another area that was to have it in has N/A typed into the space where amount goes. We all know that means "NOT APPLICAPLE". When being harrassed by constant barrage of calls at home and at my work place, more often than not the agents calling are cold, impolite, demanding and rude. I have even had the displeasure of speaking to an agent who laughed at me when I again made an attempt to get get some questions answered. I had the money to pay off the account 32 months earlier than required due to it being totaled in a car accident. But the amount they want is not a fair pay off. They are unwilling to take off the money that was charged to me in error by penalty. They also are unwilling to take off the 30 months of interest even though my contract shows no penalty if paid out early. Nor does it say that we forfeit any interest if early. I have been lied to and given as many different stories as there has been different agents I have spoken too. I now have lost count of the # of "so called" managment or those in charge whom have given me their word that they will call me back as soon as they are able to research the account. The only calls I get are from the harassment dept. and each time over the past 90+ days I again have to give them the same information that obviously does not even seem important enoough to doccument in the notes of my account. I began taking everyone I spoke with name in June, so that I will have the names to include in the lawsuit against the company. Several weeks ago the insurance company asked me to allow them to obtain a payoffso they could close the claim out on this. They were able to get a quote in about a week for $1000 less than I was being asked to come up with. Something told me inside that I still hadn't heard the last from Household Finance. Got the call yesterday! They want to know when I intend to pay the remaining $643.00 left owing on their records. For the very first time an agent said that I had some over payments showing about $350.00. When asked what would make me happy I told the man that a zero balance plus a check for about $2500 will make it even. Again I was given his word that he will send me a copy of my payment history (none of the several already promised have gotten here yet) and will call back within a week. I have also given this to the Better Business Bureau and have reached a dead end. Please stay tuned for future episodes!

I also have recently purchased a car with HouseHold auto Finance as my lender. I am sorry that they are my lender at this point. I have paid ontime for over 2 years and now I made one late payment and they call like their finger is stuck on redial. It has gotten so bad that they call 5-6 times at my work. I had set up arrangemnets to make the payment late so they can't say i didn't tell them when,who,where and how the payment was coming. I like the first person do feel like just stopping the payments and disconnecting my phone. Calling multiple times a day isn't right and I don't know how half the people that do that job live with themselves. It causes me undue stress and wastes my time (maybe I could send them a bill for each conversation I have with them since my time is worth money :) Anyways I just wanted to add to this report they are a horrible, bad company and need to get slapped back into line. A lot of the bigger companies do it because they have billions and we have to wooden nickles to rub together when it comes to the challenge of legal issues.

Jennifer, Like you, If I have been a few dates late, they are calling me all day long. I was told it is because it is an autodialer system. I have even been told that The calls are coming from India. That would explain why it is very hard to understand the person calling. My kids have answered calls when I have not been home and they say that they cant understand the person who called. They need to make sure that if they are having people from another country calling, then they need to be able to speak English well enough for us to understand. I have had as many as about 8 calls in day, from 8 am to 9 pm. They dont even leave a message but my caller Id picks up the calls and my answering machine even comes on, but no message is left. Also, when I would have my house phone forwarded to my cell phone, it would use my minutes when then would call. They need to call once and leave a message, not continue to call all day long without even leaving a message. I work all day, the just need to call leave me a message with a good call back # and would call them back. Sometimes when I have talked to a rep, Then have been very rude and nasty on the phone. Not a very good way to represent their company, that's for sure. I have even told them before that the payment is in the mail (and it truley was) but they kept trying to demand another one over the phone instead. They would get nasty when I refused and I insisted the payment was in the mail and that they would just have to wait for it. On a good note, I have had some helpful, professional, reps help me out with my account. They are not all bad, but the ones that are bad are making the company look bad!

Patricia, We were getting ready to have our first child and needed a bigger (family) car. We purchased a used car from Household. Our monthly payment is $247.36 Our payment is due on the 2nd of the month. We have had the car for over three years and have one more year to go. Back in May 2002 I was laid off of my job to the company having financial problems. Before this we have never been late with a payment. We have never asked for our payment to be lowered. My husband mailed our payment out on the 2nd (the day it was due) On the 3rd we received 16 phone calls asking us where our payment was. After the first phone call I informed Household that my husband had put it in the mail yesterday. They wanted the check # and I gladely gave it to them. Not 5 min. after the first phone call I received another call from Household asking where the payment is, I explained that I had just spoken to someone and gave them the info. The second called was not nice and again gave them the info that I had given the first caller. This proceeded to last all day. Like you I stopped answering the phone. I considered this phone harrasement. I asked why do you keep calling when I gave you the information you were asking for. There answer to me was they have to continue to call until they receive the payment. At this time it was one day late. No my response to Brandon is just because you get late on a bill or you take on a bigger dept than you can afford does not make you a bad person. I am a college graduate. I had a job that paid me very nicely. My husband has a job. My husband and I work very hard everyday to be able to afford the things that we purchase. Sometime in life things are out of your control. Do you think I had control over getting laid off my job?? I went through a very stressful time last summer (wondering If I could afford the car, morgtage, electric, phone, water, credit cards, food. I do not and I am sure Patricia does not run from her responsiblities. I know that I have to pay my bills, I do not need somone on the other end of the line telling me how wrong I am. I believe it takes a very unhappy person to call you and talk nasty to you about a late payment, especially when it was 24 hours late. To call so many times in one day is not going to change my answer that I gave the first caller. Brandon, Please think before you pass judgement on someone. Not being able to afford a car does not make you a horrible person.

First thing I would like to say to Brandon out of Arizona is this I once was also like you. I use to think that these things happen to people you are careless in their dealings. Just this past year my husband & I had A-1 credit. We have paid cash for our home which was built last year and have since just purchased two used cars same year but with payments of $259.00 to 300.00 month. I was not trying to pull the harp strings I'm just making a legimate complaint on a company such as Household Auto Finance that tends to use bullying and harrassment to make the consumer afraid to stand up for themselves. Since I have written I have three other co-workers that are currently battling them with the same situation that my family experienced and one is being taken to court for a personal loan in the amount of 1,200 which she has documentation that shows she has paid off. But the company wants the 50 for a late payment charge. I think once you encounter one of these sorts of companies you may also become of the few people who feel as if it can happen to anyone. So you need not become so defensive since it's not your company or is it.

Lillian, Nice try with trying to make me look like the bad person and Patricia, who blatently purchased more vehicle than she could afford, look like the victim here. Show me any place in her complaint of Household where it talks about any fees or penalties? Hmmmmm, there aren't any are there? It just talks about how she and her husband, like 90% of all other people in this country, purchased more vehicle then they could really afford. They knew when they walked out of the dealership that the payment would be $500/mo. If the payment was changed after they signed the contract then they had the legal right to get out of the contract. But, once again, you'll see that the payment was $500/mo as they signed the contract. So, maybe before you open YOUR mouth and stick your foot in it you also should be aware of the situation.

This comment is in response to Brandon who responded earlier. I think that it is absolutely none of your business to attack this lady that left this comment. Evidently you haven't had any dealings with Household or you would know how they take advantage of consumers. They put your payments so high and add hidden charges on your accounts that you can't make the payments and if you can you never get them paid off. I think its sad that you can attack someone that you haven't a clue what they've been through. I've been took to the cleaners by household so trust me i know how they work. So before you judge this person, Then read all the complaints about household for yourself. But be prepared to read alot. You tell me if you can. Are all these people wrong? Let me answer that for you....NO, NO and NO. But just one thing for you to keep in mind you're not so special you can't and won't get involved with a dirty company like this. You just think you are. But so have so many other victims that household has ripped off. It may not be household you get involved with but look out because sooner or later people like you that think they know everything will get took too and then maybe you can judge this lady who you haven't a clue what stress dirty companys can put you through.

Patricia, What stress did Household Finance cause you? I see nothing illegal about what they did. Why should Household Finance let you refinance after only two payments? You signed a contract for the $500.00 per month payment. No one put a gun to your head and forced you to sign it. If you and your husband couldn't afford the payment, then you should have looked at a cheaper car. The really mature thing to do was stop paying them. Do you think they care? They sold the vehicle at an auction and you are still responsible for the deficiency balance. Now they can sue you and your husband and garnish your wages. They are going to get what you owe them, and you are the ones with screwed up credit. All because YOU wanted more than you could really afford.