EZ Own Auto, Inc.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
The vehicles fair market value price ranges from 4,to 6,That I did not know at the time of purchase and was not toldI feel if I am going to be charged 11,dollars for the vehicle everything should have worked correct when driving it off the lotI have been back to the dealer 2-since purchase of vehicle with check engine lights and different sensorsI and my father at time of test driving vehicle asked about DVD player and they stated it works but the don't warranty the DVD player
Regards,
*** ***

Regarding a few points of clarification on the above referenced complaint by Mr*** ***;I personally spoke with Mr*** and explained to him that we do not repair or install OEMelectronic entertainment equipment, as we do not have the capabilityHis claim that we refusedhelp him is
incorrectI also explained to him that our purpose as a business is to provide safe,reliable transportation to customers such as him can get to and from work to provide for theirfamiliesCertain items, in this case a rear seat DVD player, are a convenience item andsomething that we do not repair/replace prior toor after, sale.Purchasing a vehicle solely because it has one convenience item is a foolish financial decision.His claim that it reduces the value of the vehicle is also not correctWe purchase hundreds ofcars each year from wholesalers and never pay extra, or less, because a vehicle does or doesn'thave an item such as a DVD player in itHowever, I would be willing to provide him with a $50gift card to purchase a portable DVD player to utilize in the rear of the vehicleThis option giveshim the freedom to move the unit from one vehicle to anotherI have no legal, or moral,obligation to do this, but would be willing to assist in an effort to show we are the mostunderstanding dealership of our kind in the State of New York.Should you have any questions regarding this response, please feel free to contact me at 518-399-ITd SP***, GMDiscover Saratoga

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
The vehicles fair market value price ranges from 4,to 6,That I did not know at the time of purchase and was not toldI feel if I am going to be charged 11,dollars for the vehicle everything should have worked correct when driving it off the lotI have been back to the dealer 2-since purchase of vehicle with check engine lights and different sensorsI and my father at time of test driving vehicle asked about DVD player and they stated it works but the don't warranty the DVD player
Regards,
*** ***

I am in receipt of your letter dated May 22, regarding the above referenced complaintIn an effort to respond promptly and accurately, I have enclosed a copy of a document signed by Mr*** at the time he obtained his financing from our company. And to be clear, he purchased
the vehicle from EZ Own Auto, Inc., but it was financed through this company, *** *** ***, Inc. Mr*** has claimed that he does not get notified by my staff regarding account status, i.ethat he does not get notified when the vehicle may be disabledI personally closed his loan and explained the protocol of the devicesIn the disclosure statement provided herein, pertinent details are highlighted, which was done several months ago when we provided this document for a second time to Mr***He clearly knew the process in which they are usedFurthermore, my staff attempts to contact all borrowers via telephone calls, text messaging, or e-mails starting one day prior to their due date as a reminder, then for the next four days past the due dateShould there be no contact made by the borrower to make the payment, or make suitable arrangements to pay, the vehicle may be disabled.Mr*** has claimed that the audible warning notification in the unit does not work, yet has refused to visit our facility so that it may be inspected and replaced should it be defectiveI will add that the warning function and starter interupt function are performed by the same unitI find it hard to beiieve that it would be faulty for only half of its designed functionsRegardless, the solution to Mr***'s complaint would be to visit the office to have it examinedIt would take a mere fifteen minutes to replace the unit if it were defective, and subsequently eliminate his claim that he has not been notified.Mr*** has also made claim that we are a predatory lender, yet he has chosen to come back to us to purchase a vehicleThe claim and the actions seemed to be incongruent. Additionally, the claims that my staff are rude and unprofessional is somewhat mystifying, as I sit within twenty feet of the two employees in questionPerhaps they may have commented to Mr*** in a tone that he didn't like, but people typically get upset when they hear something other than what they wish to hear. I will not go into details of Mr***'s repayment history with regards to this loan, as he is not denying any delinquent statusSuffice it to say, the GPS/Starter Interrupt units are only used when payments are not made, or payment arrangements not keptI can assure you, my collection staff never gets "thanked" by a customer when they call someone, or warn someone via the unit, or disable the vehicleOur days go much smoother without having to collect accounts. We have documentation to respond to Mr***'s complaints readily available should he wish to come in the officeWe have forwarded this information to his household inthe past, but he may not have read it or understood itPerhaps it's incumbent upon him to come in to the office to have it explained in detailI am available to meet with him any time he wishes to come in.Thank you for providing us the opportunity to respond to this claimWe take our reputation seriouslyIf we've made mistakes, we take steps to correct themConversely,when we are right, we will defend our position vigorously, but professionally.*** *** ***, Inc.*** ** ***, GM*** *** ***, Inc

November 30,2015*** *** ***Revdex.comBryant Woods SouthAmherst,NY 14228Re: ID ***Dear Ms* ***Regarding a few points of clarification on the above referenced complaint by Mr. *** ***Mr*** does not have a loan account with EZ Own Auto, whom he is
lodging the complaint againstHis loan contract was assigned, as all retail installment contracts are, to another lender/entity; Discover Saratoga Capital, IncAs a professional courtesy and a partner in both companies, I shall answer the complaint on behalf of Discover Saratoga Capital, IncThis is being done as an example of our efforts to address Mr*** complaint.Our company had reported to the credit reporting agency *** *** from up until August of this year - As you may be aware, we pay the reporting agency to compile our borrower's repayment history data and make it available to other lendersIn addition to this, we are not required by law/regulation to report histories, but feel that it is generally a good business practice. Early in we began receiving disputes on customer accounts regarding the reporting by *** ***Research by our data processing company, my company, and even*** *** discovered that *** *** was in error in how they were reporting the data on a large number of our customersAfter nearly four months of no resolution to the problem by *** ***, a business decision was made to cease reporting to themAs a lender, my company is subject to compliance under the Fair Credit Reporting ActThe company could be held responsible in a class action lawsuit due to the failure of Trans Union not correcting the problemAs a small business, we do not have the resources, monetary or human, to get embroiled in a legal battleMoreover, I find it extremely frustrating to be paying for a service that is not correct and could pose some serious legal issues for us in the future.In an effort to assist Mr*** with the re-establishment of his credit rating, I explained to him we will be reporting in the future to either *** or *** (to be determined), which should include the histories of my closed accounts and would reflect his good repayment historyFurther to this, I provided a letter on our letterhead, along with a full repayment and account history that he could utilize as a direct reference. I understand Mr*** frustrationHowever, all of our customers should know that their credit histories include all debts in their name, not just the loan with Discover Saratoga Capital, IncThey need to be mindful that repairing their histories is a process and that what seems minor to them can have a large impact on the overall scoresWe were very happy to have Mr*** as a customer and that we were able to help him in a time of needPerhaps we can continue to help him by getting one of the other agencies to provide services to us in the future. Should you have any questions regarding this response, please feel free to contact me at***Sincerely,Gerald SP***, GMDiscover Saratoga Capital, Inc

The original complaint is regarding the DVD only. My offer has been made to resolve the matter. Regarding the price of the vehicle, it was clearly disclosed to Mr*** at the time of sale. He agreed to the terms of sale and loan at that time, and offered no concerns regarding same. Furthermore, Mr*** was in our office today, January 12, 2017, at approximately 12:PM. At that time, he picked up his registration and made absolutely no remark to me regarding the sale transaction. In fact, he has never once spoken to me regarding the sale price of the vehicle. Today, my service manager gave him a free part simply because his GM "OnStar" unit said it needed it. Mr*** seems to be a nice person, but he doesn't seem to grasp that the terms of his sale and financing are commensurate with the risk associated with the transaction for us. Our vehicles are all priced similarly, and we have had no complaints with our regulators regarding the practice. We do not have the right to change the terms of our contract post sale (i.eincrease the price), nor does he (lower the price). We welcome him as a customer, but the terms were set at the time of sale, and agreed to by him. We will not modify or change them.

April4, 2016*** *** ***Revdex.comBryant Woods SouthAmherst, NY 14228Re: ID *** ** ***Dear Ms ***5181384-2886Regarding a few points of clarification on the above referenced complaint by *** * **Ms *** does not have a loan account with EZ
Own Auto, whom she is lodging the complaint againstHer loan contract was assigned, as all retail installment contracts are, to another lender/entity; Discover Saratoga Capital, IncAs a professional courtesy and a partner in both companies, I shall answer the complaint on behalf of Discover Saratoga Capital, IncThis is being done as an example of our efforts to answer *** *** complaint.As I understand *** *** complaint, she is not disputing the fact that she was in default on her loan contract, but rather the liquidation of the collateral and whether or not she is being pursued for a deficiency balance that the company is not entitled to, or greater than actually owed We have been in operation as a licensed lender under the State of New York Department of Financial Services for nearly eight years and have been examined by the department on two occasionsDuring each examination, they review accounts such as *** *** for accuracy and complianceThe result of both examinations was that there were no violations regarding repossessed vehicles and subsequent liquidation Our practice is that we very rarely auction vehicles that have been repossessedRather, we will wholesale .vehicles out to various wholesale companies/dealers, as well as wholesale them back to our sister company, EZ Own Auto, IncIn order to do this, we do not have the legal right to pursue any debtor for the deficiency balance owedAs a point of clarification, a deficiency balance is any remaining balance on the loan afterproceeds from the sale are applied to the loan account. As *** *** is concerned that she is being charged multiple times, she can be assured that the deficiency balance post-sale was written off as a loan lossA record of the salewas forwarded to her, which is standard practice for all accountsTo further ensure that she fully understands we are not pursuing the balance and are waiving our right to it, we must comply with IRS tax code and issue a 1099C for loan balances in excess of $600. The IRS treats this as "debt forgiveness", which means that any borrower that has a debt (credit card, personal loan, auto loan, overdraft, etc) written off greater than the $600threshold, where the institution has no intent to collect it, will receive a 1099C the following tax yearIn conjunction with this, the lender is also required to notify the IRS of all accounts that fall in to this category. *** *** was kind enough to acknowledge our efforts to assist her, which is greatly appreciatedUnfortunately, the account did not progress as desired and a business decision needed to be made to protect our interests.Thank you for the opportunity to respond to the complaintShould you have any questions regarding this response, please feel free to contact me at ***SincerelyGerald SP***, GMDiscover Saratoga Capital, Inc

November 30,2015*** *** ***Revdex.comBryant Woods SouthAmherst,NY 14228Re: ID ***Dear Ms* ***Regarding a few points of clarification on the above referenced complaint by Mr.? *** ***Mr*** does not have a loan account with EZ Own Auto, whom he is
lodging the? complaint againstHis loan contract was assigned, as all retail installment contracts are,? to another lender/entity; Discover Saratoga Capital, IncAs a professional courtesy and a partner in both companies, I shall answer the? complaint on behalf of Discover Saratoga Capital, IncThis is being done as an example? of our efforts to address Mr*** complaint.Our company had reported to the credit reporting agency *** *** from up? until August of this year - As you may be aware, we pay the reporting agency to? compile our borrower's repayment history data and make it available to other lendersIn? addition to this, we are not required by law/regulation to report histories, but feel that it? is generally a good business practice.? Early in we began receiving disputes on customer accounts regarding the reporting? by *** ***Research by our data processing company, my company, and even*** *** discovered that *** *** was in error in how they were reporting the? data on a large number of our customersAfter nearly four months of no resolution to the? problem by *** ***, a business decision was made to cease reporting to themAs a? lender, my company is subject to compliance under the Fair Credit Reporting ActThe? company could be held responsible in a class action lawsuit due to the failure of Trans? Union not correcting the problemAs a small business, we do not have the resources, monetary or human, to get embroiled in a legal battleMoreover, I find it extremely frustrating to be paying for a service that is not correct and could pose some serious legal issues for us in the future.In an effort to assist Mr*** with the re-establishment of his credit rating, I explained? to him we will be reporting in the future to either *** or *** (to be determined),? which should include the histories of my closed accounts and would reflect his good? repayment historyFurther to this, I provided a letter on our letterhead, along with a full? repayment and account history that he could utilize as a direct reference.? I understand Mr*** frustrationHowever, all of our customers should know that? their credit histories include all debts in their name, not just the loan with Discover? Saratoga Capital, IncThey need to be mindful that repairing their histories is a process? and that what seems minor to them can have a large impact on the overall scoresWe? were very happy to have Mr*** as a customer and that we were able to help him in a? time of needPerhaps we can continue to help him by getting one of the other agencies? to provide services to us in the future.? Should you have any questions regarding this response, please feel free to contact me at***Sincerely,Gerald SP***, GMDiscover Saratoga Capital, Inc.?

I am in receipt of your letter dated May 22,2015 regarding the above referenced complaint. In an effort to respond promptly and accurately, I have enclosed a copy of a document signed by Mr. [redacted] at the time he obtained his financing from our company. And to be clear, he purchased the vehicle from EZ Own Auto, Inc., but it was financed through this company, [redacted], Inc.Mr. [redacted] has claimed that he does not get notified by my staff regarding account status, i.e. that he does not get notified when the vehicle may be disabled. I personally closed his loan and explained the protocol of the devices. In the disclosure statement provided herein, pertinent details are highlighted, which was done several months ago when we provided this document for a second time to Mr. [redacted]. He clearly knew the process in which they are used. Furthermore, my staff attempts to contact all borrowers via telephone calls, text messaging, or e-mails starting one day prior to their due date as a reminder, then for the next four days past the due date. Should there be no contact made by the borrower to make the payment, or make suitable arrangements to pay, the vehiclemay be disabled. Mr. [redacted] has claimed that the audible warning notification in the unit does not work, yet has refused to visit our facility so that it may be inspected and replaced should it bedefective. I will add that the warning function and starter interrupt function are performed by the same unit. I find it hard to beiieve that it would be faulty for only half of its designed functions. Regardless, the solution to Mr. [redacted]'s complaint would be to visit the office to have it examined. It would take a mere fifteen minutes to replace the unit if it were defective, and subsequently eliminate his claim that he has not been notified.Mr. [redacted] has also made claim that we are a predatory lender, yet he has chosen to come back to us to purchase a vehicle. The claim and the actions seemed to be incongruent.Additionally, the claims that my staff are rude and unprofessional is somewhat mystifying, as I sit within twenty feet of the two employees in question. Perhaps they may have commented to Mr. [redacted] in a tone that he didn't like, but people typically get upset when they hear something other than what they wish to hear. I will not go into details of Mr. [redacted]'s repayment history with regards to this loan, as he is not denying any delinquent status. Suffice it to say, the GPS/Starter Interrupt units are only used when payments are not made, or payment arrangements not kept. I can assureyou, my collection staff never gets "thanked" by a customer when they call someone, or warn someone via the unit, or disable the vehicle. Our days go much smoother withouthaving to collect accounts.We have documentation to respond to Mr. [redacted]'s complaints readily available should he wish to come in the office. We have forwarded this information to his household in the past, but he may not have read it or understood it. Perhaps it's incumbent upon him to come in to the office to have it explained in detail. I am available to meet with him any time he wishes to come in. Thank you for providing us the opportunity to respond to this claim. We take our reputation seriously. If we've made mistakes, we take steps to correct them. Conversely, when we are right, we will defend our position vigorously, but professionally.Sincerely,[redacted], GM[redacted], Inc.

The original complaint is regarding the DVD only.  My offer has been made to resolve the matter.  Regarding the price of the vehicle, it was clearly disclosed to Mr. [redacted] at the time of sale.  He agreed to the terms of sale and loan at that time, and offered no concerns regarding same.  Furthermore, Mr. [redacted] was in our office today, January 12, 2017, at approximately 12:00 PM.  At that time, he picked up his registration and made absolutely no remark to me regarding the sale transaction.  In fact, he has never once spoken to me regarding the sale price of the vehicle.  Today, my service manager gave him a free part simply because his GM "OnStar" unit said it needed it.  Mr. [redacted] seems to be a nice person, but he doesn't seem to grasp that the terms of his sale and financing are commensurate with the risk associated with the transaction for us.  Our vehicles are all priced similarly, and we have had no complaints with our regulators regarding the practice. We do not have the right to change the terms of our contract post sale (i.e. increase the price), nor does he (lower the price).  We welcome him as a customer, but the terms were set at the time of sale, and agreed to by him.  We will not modify or change them.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
This said contract does not put into writing when a vehicle will be disabled at what point. In addition the statement that his staff does everything to contact is not accurate. They pick and choose what methods and when and they are never consistent. Just 3 weeks prior they could not reach me by phone so they emailed to which I responded immediately and to confirm arrangements. This particular time when they could not reach me they did not bother to contact in any other format for which they have been provided.  I need to have in writing what steps they agree to follow prior to disabling my vehicle not just this contract which does not state any definitive process or steps.  In addition the warning beep to which they say I needed to bring in to be repaired I do not believe to be true as I can provide you with 3 other vehicles through them where the beep is not operating and that is the same response each of those get. Either faulty equipment is being installed or the staff is misrepresenting what they say they are doing during the collection process. I believe it to be the latter of the two. When I went to the office last Wednesday I asked specifically to speak with Mr. [redacted] and was told he was on site but not available to deal with customer accounts.  Had I known when I was offered to turn my last vehicle with them and get a new one that I would be dealing with this I would have declined. This is not the only vehicle I have as my wife also has one and has the exact same issues. We would be more than happy to meet in person regarding this.
Regards,
[redacted]

April4, 2016[redacted]Revdex.com100 Bryant Woods SouthAmherst, NY 14228Re: ID [redacted]Dear Ms [redacted]5181384-2886Regarding a few points of clarification on the above referenced complaint by [redacted] **1. Ms [redacted] does not have a loan account with EZ...

Own Auto, whom she is lodging the complaint against. Her loan contract was assigned, as all retail installment contracts are, to another lender/entity; Discover Saratoga Capital, Inc.2. As a professional courtesy and a partner in both companies, I shall answer the complaint on behalf of Discover Saratoga Capital, Inc. This is being done as an example of our efforts to answer [redacted] complaint.As I understand [redacted] complaint, she is not disputing the fact that she was in default on her loan contract, but rather the liquidation of the collateral and whether or not she is being pursued for a deficiency balance that the company is not entitled to, or greater than actually owed.  We have been in operation as a licensed lender under the State of New York Department of Financial Services for nearly eight years and have been examined by the department on two occasions. During each examination, they review accounts such as [redacted] for accuracy and compliance. The result of both examinations was that there were no violations regarding repossessed vehicles and subsequent liquidation.  Our practice is that we very rarely auction vehicles that have been repossessed. Rather, we will wholesale .vehicles out to various wholesale companies/dealers, as well as wholesale them back to our sister company, EZ Own Auto, Inc. In order to do this, we do not have the legal right to pursue any debtor for the deficiency balance owed. As a point of clarification, a deficiency balance is any remaining balance on the loan afterproceeds from the sale are applied to the loan account. As [redacted] is concerned that she is being charged multiple times, she can be assured that the deficiency balance post-sale was written off as a loan loss. A record of the salewas forwarded to her, which is standard practice for all accounts. To further ensure that she fully understands we are not pursuing the balance and are waiving our right to it, we must comply with IRS tax code and issue a 1099C for loan balances in excess of $600. The IRS treats this as "debt forgiveness", which means that any borrower that has a debt (credit card, personal loan, auto loan, overdraft, etc) written off greater than the $600threshold, where the institution has no intent to collect it, will receive a 1099C the following tax year. In conjunction with this, the lender is also required to notify the IRS of all accounts that fall in to this category. [redacted] was kind enough to acknowledge our efforts to assist her, which is greatly appreciated. Unfortunately, the account did not progress as desired and a business decision needed to be made to protect our interests.Thank you for the opportunity to respond to the complaint. Should you have any questions regarding this response, please feel free to contact me at [redacted]SincerelyGerald S. P[redacted], GMDiscover Saratoga Capital, Inc.

Regarding a few points of clarification on the above referenced complaint by Mr. [redacted];I personally spoke with Mr. [redacted] and explained to him that we do not repair or install OEMelectronic entertainment equipment, as we do not have the capability. His claim that we refusedhelp him is...

incorrect. I also explained to him that our purpose as a business is to provide safe,reliable transportation to customers such as him can get to and from work to provide for theirfamilies. Certain items, in this case a rear seat DVD player, are a convenience item andsomething that we do not repair/replace prior to. or after, sale.Purchasing a vehicle solely because it has one convenience item is a foolish financial decision.His claim that it reduces the value of the vehicle is also not correct. We purchase hundreds ofcars each year from wholesalers and never pay extra, or less, because a vehicle does or doesn'thave an item such as a DVD player in it. However, I would be willing to provide him with a $50gift card to purchase a portable DVD player to utilize in the rear of the vehicle. This option giveshim the freedom to move the unit from one vehicle to another. I have no legal, or moral,obligation to do this, but would be willing to assist in an effort to show we are the mostunderstanding dealership of our kind in the State of New York.Should you have any questions regarding this response, please feel free to contact me at 518-399-8689. ITd S. P[redacted], GMDiscover Saratoga