What do I do?

[Anonymous]

Hello all,

I received approval from USAA to buy another car back in September 2015. I went to the dealership and bought a used car that I really liked. Signed the contract and gave them the blank check and went home with my car. Fast forward a few months and somehow they say they finalized the check and faxed it to USAA, but USAA never received it and the dealership can't prove that USAA received it. So fast forward to February 2016 and USAA finally receives the check, but now it's expired. They bank calls me and tells me I have to reapply so I do and guess what I get denied. They changed from using Equifax to Experian and my score is under the threshold with Experian. So I say let me look at my scores and see if I can see any errors and fix it. Fast forward to April 2016 there isn't any difference between the two reports, Experian still scores me lower so I can't get approved. I have the car and the title.

Does anybody know where I stand legally? The car has depreciated and if I get a new loan through someone else or the delearship it's going to value the car less. Am I required to pay the same amount for the car, could I just give the car back or am I required to do anything since they let the check expire.

Any guidance will be greatly appreciated.

[Anonymous]

If you have the car, the title and I assume all the signed paperwork, then its their burden to carry not yours.  I would let nature take its course and see what happens.  They will have to push the loan through.  The dealer will have to recon the decision.  Again this has NOTHING to do with you.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

If you have the car, the title and I assume all the signed paperwork, then its their burden to carry not yours.  I would let nature take its course and see what happens.  They will have to push the loan through.  The dealer will have to recon the decision.  Again this has NOTHING to do with you.

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Bad advice.  It does have something to do with the OP. The dealer cannot recon with USAA as for one it's not their lender and two USAA does not recon any credit decision ever.  There is no 'pushing the loan' thru.  The dealer can and probably will repossess the vehicle if the OP does nothing.  His best bet may be to take the vehicle back and tell them here's your keys and walk away.  I'm shocked that the dealer has let this go on this long.

Also the OP does have some responsibility for the situation. When he took delivery of the vehicle and then no notice was received from USAA that the draft had been completed and the contract finalized he should have been proactive and found out what was going on.  You don't turn in a draft to a dealer and all of a sudden have no payments due.

OP, what communication have you had from the dealer recently?  Have they offered you in house financing for the same terms as the USAA draft?  Have they told you to bring the vehicle back? Do you have copies of all the paperwork you signed including any conditional sales contract?

[6speed8]

I would not sit idly by. Five years ago, a friend was looking for an 04-06 GTO. Found one at a dealer an hour away so I drove him out there. Red, 6 speed, 104,000 miles but immaculate. Owned by a Marine. He put $1000 down, signed the Capital One paperwork and left. Three weeks go by and no payment info from Capital One. At that time, Cap One was capped at cars with 70,000 miles. So when he called them, they said they cannot honor the terms. If he wanted to keep the car, it would be half the duration with nearly double the payment. Like the dealer NEVER did business with Cap One and didn't know 70K was the cut off. I followed him back to the dealer, handed them the keys and sat there until they gave him a $1000 check for his down payment. Sure your dealer EFF'd up but don't sit by waiting for them to correct - or not correct - the situation at your expense.

[6speed8]

Also, I'm no contract lawyer but this is THEIR EFF UP. Don't let them intimidate you into accepting off the wall terms to keep the car, owe them money for mileage/depreciation,etc if you hand them the keys.

[Anonymous]

So Yes I should have been more proactive when I noticed the loan expiration date was getting close instead of waiting until after it expires but I just assumed they were taking their time. I contacted them once it expired they said they were on top of it so I left it alone. Then in February when they called and USAA finally received the paperwork that's when I started taking action. I have signed contract from the delearship and couldn't find anything in the fine print dealing with this type of situation. What does OP mean by the way? Anyways. Can they repo the car if I have the title and its in my name? I called them Friday and told them after a long talk with USAA that USAA has agreed to honor the check if they can prove USAA received it and it was USAA's fault. They said ok and I haven't heard back yet but it's only Wednesday. Would I just sign the title back over to them and hand them the keys if I wanted to walk away? Can they come after me legally if I decide to walk away from the car?

[Skye12329]

They could repo it. But if they take it back, make sure you get your down payment back since the loan didn't go through.
OP means other post
As for the title, its odd it would be to you. I say this because usually the title has the lien holder owning it and then you get it when its paid. This is just a mess.

[Chris679]

OP stands for Original Poster. It is easier than typing out a user name.

[exCYter]

 They're going to repo a car they don't possess the title to? Would love to see a repo company that would touch that one.   Bottom line is it sounds like the dealer lost the check, never submitted it, found it but submitted it too late.  You can either give them the car back and walk away or you can try to play hardball and make them match the payment/terms you were offered somehow--whether they finance it themselves or they find a different bank.  

Your loan with USAA was never executed so you have no path there.  

[Anonymous]

Well I sent the title off to USAA, but after all this cluster they sent it back to me. So the title is free and clear in my name at the moment. Seeing how long it's taken them this long to call me back I think they realize they are in the wrong. I didn't think they could Repo a car with me having the title. I'm going to see if I can reach out to a lawyer and figure out where do I stand legally at this point. I really like the car so I'd rather keep it but they aren't going to corner me either. if anybody knows a lawyer can they ask them where I stand legally?