Sarah S.
You don't truly matter
I was a long-standing customer, gave them good business, including a paid-off personal loan, and in 2017 when I became medically disabled, had my checks deposited directly into my account. I also decided to go through them for a vehicle loan. They initially made the process fairly simple. But when the pandemic hit and my husband lost his job, we had trouble making payments. I called to see if they were willing to do a forbearance, they were not. They told me that after 3 missed payments I was at risk for repossession. We tried really hard to make payments at least every 2 months to reset the clock on being repossessed, but eventually, we had to choose between necessities and the car payment. I continued to communicate with them. A little after this, the transmission blew. This was a 6-year-old SUV that had been kept up to date on all maintenance and oil changes. There was no way that we could afford a new transmission on top of the $17k loan that was still owed. I contacted the credit union again to let them know I'd like to surrender the vehicle, rather than wait around for them to repossess it. They asked about the condition, and I was honest. They told me they didn't want it! I was directed to try and sell it outright, and I could then contact them for the title for whoever wanted it. I would then owe the remainder. I said that was outlandish - they owned the title technically. So I had it towed to the nearest location. They were not happy. They also said they would still consider it and charge me as a repossession. So I'm still fighting that. They obviously closed my account, but they then made a scene when I went with my son to cash a check. He was in line and I was with him. Because he's a minor, I was on the account. They asked if I was the person listed, and I said yes. They said I had to be removed immediately and made me sign a paper. This was all done in a very small branch, and could all be overheard by everyone. It was uncomfortable and embarrassing. Also completely unnecessary.