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Dealership unfairly disables 7.500 cars remotely in the United States, leaving customers with no option. Understand the case of the 7.500 cars disabled via GPS!
Dealership deactivates 7.500 cars via GPS: A dealership in the United States remotely disabled 7.500 cars via GPS, even when payments were up to date. The case involves US Auto Sales, a company that operated 39 stores in the southeast of the country and sold vehicles to customers with bad credit. As part of its business model, the dealership installed GPS trackers and remote locking devices on the cars. However, thousands of vehicles were improperly disabled, affecting drivers who were up to date with their bills.
Company system sent more than 70 thousand false shutdown alerts
The company's stated goal was to ensure that customers made payments correctly, however, federal investigations showed that the company abused this power, leaving drivers stranded on roads, in parking lots and even unable to get to work or pick up their children from school.
According to a process led by the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the dealership improperly deactivates 7.500 cars remotely. These 7.500 cars deactivated via GPS were up to date with payments, within the grace period or had even already agreed to a settlement.
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The company’s system sent out about 71 false shutdown alerts. Customers said their cars would not start without warning, often when they were leaving work or trying to visit a relative in the hospital.
If the problem happened at night, for example, when the company’s customer service desk was closed, drivers would simply have no options. The dealership remotely disables 7.500 cars, with reports of customers being stuck in supermarkets, parking lots and even sleeping in their cars because they couldn’t get home.
7.500 cars unfairly disabled via GPS result in million-dollar fines
USASF Servicing, the dealership's financing company, was ordered by the court to pay a fine of 42,6 million for these and other abusive practices, such as excessive charging of interest and fees, insurance charged twice and illegal withholding of refunds.
However, the decision came somewhat late, as the company had already closed its doors and declared bankruptcy, making it unlikely that customers who were harmed by the 7.500 GPS-deactivated cars would receive any meaningful refund.
The dealership improperly deactivates 7.500 cars remotely and, in addition, former employees revealed that the company ignored complaints and, in some cases, even took advantage of the confusion to further extort customers.
Those who threatened to take their case to the press or regulators could receive a credit to their account or even a gift card to “calm down.” However, those who did not complain simply received no response and lost money.
Impacts of bankruptcy on consumers
The dealership's impact also brought new problems for customers. When the dealership closed, a new company called Westlake Portfolio Management took over debt collection, but many consumers found that their previous payments were not recorded.
Some drivers had their balances readjusted as if they had never paid any amount, and others continued sending money to the old dealership without knowing that it had already gone bankrupt.
In the midst of this confusion, many customers had their cars repossessed by financing companies, as happened with Ingrid Jackson, who bought a Nissan US Auto's Altima in 2021. Even with all payments up to date, she was surprised during the night by a vehicle collection agent, who simply took her car.
Investigations into the company continue, however, experts say that cases like these are difficult to punish, as companies often disappear before justice can act.
