Santander Consumer USA TCPA Violations

Santander Consumer USA recently faced a TCPA class action lawsuit over alleged Telephone Consumer Protection Act violations as well as violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). The lawsuit also alleges Santander breached its own contracts by charging improper fees. Santander Consumer USA and TCPA Violations Santander Consumer USA, which operates in the automotive finance sector, is accused of using heavy-handed tactics—that allegedly violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)— to get consumers to pay their loans. These tactics allegedly include making repeated and harassing calls to plaintiffs' phones. Early in 2017, the US Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case regarding the question of whether a bank that purchases delinquent debts and begins collecting on those debts can be held liable under the FDCPA. The Court will review the Fourth Circuit’s decision in Henson et al. v. Santander Consumer USA, Inc., to dismiss the FDCPA class action that had been filed against Santander, and will look at the Plaintiffs’ request to determine whether a financing company that regularly attempts to collect delinquent debts is, in fact, a “debt collector” that is subject to the FDCPA.

According to its website, Santander is a “full-service, technology-driven, consumer finance company focused on vehicle finance and unsecured consumer lending products. Headquartered in Dallas, the company has more than two million customers across all credit grades.
  Santander has allegedly engaged in collection agency tactics--for example, making harassing phone calls--to collect consumer debts. The company also advertises itself as a direct lender. On its website is the following:

"It may be possible to refinance your auto loan to save money with RoadLoans, Santander Consumer USA’s direct-lending product. You could pay off your existing auto note and replace it with a more affordable loan and monthly payment. Qualified customers can even choose a cash-back option or may even be able to skip a car payment."

Santander's subprime auto-loan business has recently come under state and federal regulatory scrutiny. Many consumers have complained about potentially discriminatory lending practices and the granting of loans with high interest rates to borrowers who may not be able to repay them, as occurred in the run-up to last decade’s housing crisis.

Santander has made many of its customers very angry. For instance, LawyersandSettlements has posted complaints against the lender and collection agency such as the following:

"I entered an auto loan agreement in Feb of 2014 for a 13,000 car. I have made monthly payments of 345.00 that has now reached about 12,000. I called for a payoff amount and was given 14,000... NONE of my payments have been applied toward the principal amount."

"I would like to join this lawsuit. I was constantly harassed by Drive Financial and when Santander took over I wasn't notify by the company of the change and was constantly harassed by the company If I was even a day late. I took out a loan on a 2007 Kia Spectra and my payoff was extended by lots of unexplained fees."

"I bought a 2010 Dodge Caliber in 2012 and Santander picked up my loan with a 24% interest rate. At the time I was aware of the affects of that interest rate. The total of the car was 13,999, I traded in a vehicle which they gave me $3,000 for . I have already paid $11,000 for the car and still owe $9,842 for payoff of this vehicle that is now worth $2,000."
  The TCPA regulates the use of auto/predictive dialers, which are used to initiate pre-recorded voice messages, faxes and SMS text messages. Here is more about the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and restrictions of phone use. Debt collectors may violate federal law if they engage in any of the following practices:
 

• Communicate with your friends, relatives, co-workers, or individuals other than yourself on multiple occasions.
• Disclose to others that you owe a debt.
• Communicate with you at odd times or places without your consent.
• Make repeated phone calls to you with the intention of harassing you or communicate with you in a harassing or abusive manner.
• Communicate with you in a false or misleading manner.
• Call a cellular phone using an automatic dialing machine or a recorded message without express authorization.

Several Telemarketing lawsuits have been filed against the company over the past several years. A lawsuit filed in federal court in the Western District of Wisconsin holds that the federal statute may apply to calls even if an auto/predictive dialer is not used to initiate them. In Nelson v. Santander Consumer USA, Heather Nelson accuses Santander Consumer USA of calling her cellular phone more than 1000 times over the course of a year in an attempt to collect a debt on two vehicles she had financed. In May 2010, Santander repossessed one of those vehicles. In response, Nelson filed the lawsuit, arguing that Santander’s actions violated her rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the Wisconsin Consumer Act, and Wisconsin common law.
  In February 2015 Santander Consumer USA Inc. agreed to pay about $9.35 million to resolve a lawsuit by the Department of Justice alleging that the motor vehicle lender violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). The settlement covers the improper repossessions of 1,112 motor vehicles between January 2008 and February 2013. The proposed consent order represents the largest settlement for illegal automobile repossessions ever obtained by the United States under the SCRA.

In September 2014 Santander was sued by investors over subprime lending practices. Investors filed a lawsuit claiming the lender misled them about the company’s “auto lending business and underwriting practices."
 

TCPA Santander Legal Help

If you believe you have been subjected to abusive or illegal actions by Santander, or any collection agency or bank that has violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act or the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, you may want to seek legal help.
Last updated on Jun-24-20