Mercedes Benz Financial - Lease Scam

[edlosangeles]

Has this happened to anyone else? MB payed last 5 payments of lease when you get into a new lease... but if you mistakenly continue to send money on old lease they will not refund the money to you!? Here's a detail of what happened to me - a letter sent to them yesterday. Ed Klaus Entenmann President DaimlerChrysler Financial 27777 Inkster Road Farmington Hill, MI 48334 T: 248-427-6800 F: 248-991-6209 Dear Mr. Entenmann: I’m writing you and your team about my poor experience with your company in the hope that someone with common sense will correct the error. This is the situation: - I had a 2005 230 Mercedes Benz lease - it was up in October 2008 - 5 payments away. - Mercedes contacted me and basically said "we'll pay your last 5 lease payments, take the car back w/o a return fee as long as you get into a new lease." - I was negotiating the lease for a week with several dealers and finally took W.I. Simonson up on the offer on the last day of the promotion (April 30th) - during the signing of contracts, I told my dealer that I have my payments on auto-pay at my bank and that I thought the payment for May (the next month) may already have been sent or would be sent that very day (it was not due for another week however... ). I was told to check into it and cancel it. - Because of this I specifically had them write in my contract the 5 payments that would be made – to make sure there would not be a problem… because after all, it was because of this that I was getting a new lease. - That night I looked and sure enough it was sent from my bank that day - it was after business hours so I called them the next day 1st thing. - My bank (ING Direct) said that since it was sent electronically (there choice not mine) that they could not cancel the “check.” - I next made a call to Mercedes Financial and was told and I quote "you'll get the over payment back as soon as the paper work comes through - it will show as a credit and be returned to you." - I let it go thinking all would be fine. - I got my bill for the second lease payment on the new car (a 2008 C300), and thought I'd check w/Mercedes Financial about the credit. - From the start, I was treated very poorly - as though I was lying and that everything I was saying was not true (I was told by the phone rep that he could not find my previous call in the log) - but after 10 minutes on the phone with him he magically found it... and actually read the post about my previous call out loud - it stated the exact same thing I said... that a credit could not be refunded until after the paper work was put through. And then he said he could not do anything for me... I was shocked and asked him what he was talking about – it clearly said what I said… it did not say “he is not entitled to a refund or credit – it did not say anything of the sort – it backed up my previous statements to him. I pressed him and he said he'd talk to someone else and get back to me.... to see if they would make an exception - - - as if he'd be doing me a favor. - He called me back a short while ago (6 hours later) and told me that they would not be crediting me the money - that the payment was considered a “prepayment” and would be kept and that Mercedes would simply pay the last 4 payments of my lease - not the 5 listed in my contract with them... I reminded him that my contract states 5 payments (all dates are even listed in the contract) - not just language of "up to five" - but an actual 5 payments noted to be paid on my behalf... - In addition, my paperwork is dated 4/30 and the May payment was received by Mercedes Financial on May 1st. I don’t understand how your company and it’s representatives can not see the common sense in this matter… you are keeping a payment made on a car I no longer have. How can you advertise something and then when you are overpaid - to simply keep the money? It is not your money! Think about it… what if I forgot to cancel the auto pay and paid for June, July and August as well... would you simply keep that money too? I called your customer service again tonight and asked that very question… and was told that “it would be noted as an over payment and would sit in the account for 21 days – and then returned to me” …but, when I asked “why then are you keeping my May payment?” the rep did not know – since it showed on her screen the payment was not received until May 1st – a day after I signed a contract for the new car (I returned the old car and picked up the new car on May 1st – only because W.I. Simonson did not have my new car ready the night before – when the paperwork was signed). This is common sense to me (common sense to my dealer in fact) - if the customer no longer has possession of the car (and Mercedes took it back happily - under its own promotion), then how can you justify taking my money? I hope you will be able to look into this. I know I will never lease or buy another car with Mercedes (sadly I have 38 more months on this one). I loved my Mercedes – in fact, my first car when I was 15 was a 1974 280 SE – grey four door sedan – beautiful… but this – over a stupid $387 overpayment has soured my feelings for your company. This was a grave error in judgment on the part of your employees. I hope someone will see this and correct it. My dealer offered to pay me the money - I told them I did not want THEIR money... I wanted MY money. I have decided to not pay a dime towards the new car lease until this matter is resolved – if it comes to you repossessing the car then so be it – I am a man of principle and will invite the media to document my experience should Mercedes decide to take that route. I hope someone comes to their senses so I can make my June 1st payment. Sincerely,

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[Kar don]

the dealer offered to repay you? So take it! Why are you making such a big fuss over nothing... life is too short man.