Santander Consumer USA
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Santander Consumer USA Reviews
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Santander Consumer USA has provided me with outstanding customer care and financial services, they financed my Hyundai for a total of 20k when I was a temp and could not get another bank's loan. My credit rating was poor due to inquiries and high balances on my credit cards. They approved me. No income questions asked, assuming all risks, and even though they gave my a rate of 21%. Do you think that is high? Think again. Finance companies like United Finance and OneMain Financial will charge you 36% interest rate so it gets me when people say Santander is bad. It really gets me how unfair those folks are. If you want better rates be responsible, pay in full and have no collections, stop complaining for everything, be an adult.
I have read hundreds of the reviews left here and was afraid to take a loan from them as well but did and haven't had any problems thus far. I called customer service and they told me that I was 1 out of 100 individuals who seem to understand how the interest is applied so I figured I would provide an explanation. So for simple interest calculations you have to remember that it is calculated daily based off your APR and remaining principal. So for example if you were approved for a $20,000 loan at 25% APR, 60 months term with monthly payments of $587.03 then your daily interest would initially be the following: Daily interest = (APR/ 365 calendar days) * Remaining Principal = (25%/ 365 ) * $$20,000 = (.0685% ) *$20,000 = .000685 * $20,000 = $13.7 each day (which is freaking high but bad credit got us here) which would mean out of that $587.03 monthly payment, a whopping $417.85 would go towards interest ($13.7 * 30.5 average days in a month).
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE ESPECIALLY WITH THE VERY FIRST PAYMENT. If you elect to have your first payment not be due for 45 days (like I did) and only make the required monthly payment when due ( like I did ) you will be behind on the interest (like I was), but not late on the payment because... THE FINANCE CHARGES BEGIN THE DAY YOU SIGN THE FOR THE LOAN!!! Meaning that you will be charged 45 days worth of finance charges: Finance charge = Daily simple interest total since last payment = $13.7 * 45 days = $616.5. And if you only made the first payment (like I did) which is based on 30 days not 45, you can see how after making a monthly payment of $587.03 but owing a finance charge of $616.5 would leave you with a finance charge balance of $29.47. That's how they get you!!!! (Because now you have a balance you didn't even know you had.)
Because everything is applied to the interest first and whatever is remaining towards the principal, while the finance charge compounds daily between payments. I quickly realized this after my first payment, so I immediately made another payment and another one multiple days in a row to test it out. Sure enough my second payment included only the interest accrued from the few days of finance charges since my first payment and because I made my 3rd payment the very next day after my second, the finance charge was slightly less than $13.7 and the rest of my payment went towards principal.
If you never even pay late, only make the required monthly payments, but extended that very FIRST payment out past 30 days of when you signed the contract, guess what? YOU WILL NEVER PAY DOWN YOUR LOAN. YOU WILL BE BEHIND FROM DAY ONE. (That's what they are counting on.) PLEASE CALCULATE YOUR DAILY SIMPLY INTEREST!!! Figure out how much of your payment is going towards that and you will be fine. If you have to pay late just know that the interest doesn't stop so you need to know that when they say everything is applied to interest first, they mean it. (fees and interest get paid prior to principal balances). Think of it like this: Do I have a finance balance since my last payment? Do I have a late fee balance since my last payment? If one of these is yes know that your required monthly payment may not cover all outstanding balances, especially if you are early in the loan.
People trust me it works. I know it sucks but if you have the knowledge you will never be behind the eight ball. Now that I am aware of the way the finance charges work I have paid down sooo much of my principal in comparison to my interest. The more I pay down the lower my Daily simple interest becomes and the more my payments get applied towards principal ( and round and round it goes). Hope this review helps at least one person not feel like they are getting screwed because face it, they are in it to make money so they aren't going to tell you how to save it.
So, due to all of poor reviews, I was petrified when Fifth Third sold my loan to this company. I was on edge the entire six years of my loan and I just knew the company would screw me, so I said I would write a review once I paid off the vehicle. In actuality, my experience was not bad! I did not get screwed over! Of course, my note was paid early each month and the car loan was paid off in full. There was never a late payment. My payments were reasonable - but I didn't have a crazy interest rate to begin with. I did not have to call customer service much, so I cannot speak to that. The only reason I had to call was to see where my title was. A few weeks later I was told that my local DMV had the E-Title on file. When I went to pick it up, it was there, as they said.
Santander gave me no problems. The only thing that annoyed me and the reason for only four stars is that I would repeatedly get emails saying the number on file was invalid. Not only did they have no reason to call, but the phone number on file was very much valid, as I've had the same number for over 15 years. The first time it happened, I called to make sure that no one was trying to reach me. They said that they hadn't called so they weren't sure why I got the email. After that, I just got the email and ignored it, but it was quite annoying to get it so regularly. Overall, my experience was the same as any other lender. I paid on time, they gave me no crap. I didn't have to wait lightyears for the title that was rightfully mine. I can't say that I would use them again, but I had a pretty reasonable experience overall. Minus the email thing, no complaints from me.
I have poor credit, but I found a late model car that I fell in love with. I had a down payment, but my own bank wouldn't give me a loan for it. Santander was the only one who would. I had never heard of them, the dealer dealt with the whole thing. The interest was high, but it was my only option, so I accepted it and drove away that day. When I got home, I researched the bank and was terrified of the reviews I read here. I thought I had made a big mistake.
Well, they did EVERYTHING exactly right by me! I paid extra every month from day one, I was never late, the payment was credited to the principal correctly, I had zero complaints. When the principal withered down to under $2000, I mailed one last check to pay it off. When I checked my account 3 days later it was closed. I don't understand all of these bad reviews! My loan was for 4 years, I paid it off in exactly two and never had a problem. Thank you Santander! I am driving the car I wanted but couldn't afford to pay cash for only because you were there, nobody else would take a chance on me, not even my own bank. Sure, the interest is high, I have poor credit! My FICO score is under 600! Yet, they loaned me what I needed and I appreciate that. I would gladly accept another loan in the future from this bank with gratitude! They held up their end of the bargain exactly as agreed.
I'm so used to writing reviews out of frustration, that it's refreshing to write a good one for once. The JDC dealership I purchased a little Fiat to use as a work car from is a bit of a different story, but the service received from Chrysler Capital financing is something I was very happy with. My experience was quite different than 99% of the reviewers on here. I never had any issues throughout the life of my loan, which was only about a year and a half, but I initially had to call them every month since I would pay additional principal that I had to have allocated correctly. They eventually changed that to where additional funds received automatically goes towards the principal, so I was pleased to see that they were trying to better the customer experience.
I paid the loan off about 2 months ago, and have called the dealership several times to cancel my GAP insurance and get that refund. I finally spoke to someone who told me that Chrysler Capital had already done this, and that the check was on its way. If you've ever tried to get a refund on Gap insurance, you know this is rare! For every other car I've ever paid off, you have to contact the dealership and jump through hoops to get your money back. Even the woman at the dealership was surprised by this. I appreciate anything that results in me having 1 less thing on my plate to worry about! Personally, I would recommend them for funding a loan, and I will certainly use them again if the need arises.
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Santander customers services do not listen to nothing you or saying even the supervisors or just as slow as the reps. I made 2 payments on my SUV. I called to get one of the payment reverse. The rep say, "I see you made 2 payments but however I still need your bank statements on both accounts" which did not make any sense if you see both payments. Once I'm done I will not recommend them to no one.
This company is not one to go with. They take advantage of people who are down on their luck and have no choice, but to finance through them. I have tried numerous times to change payment dates (not skip) and they refused. All I want is a company who is empathetic to customers. Is that too much to ask? I think not, but Santander Consumer USA obviously does.
Customer services is slow to reply, doesn't answer your question, refers you to phone support and gives you the wrong phone number and hours of operation, and generally is awful. It's a miracle they're still in business.
I would like to warn consumers about dealing with Santander Consumer USA concerning your auto financing. I tried to get assistance for a natural disaster (Hurricane Imelda) that occurred here in Houston, Texas and I explained to the assistant that my area was declared a FEMA disaster area. Then the conservation quickly turned around towards me and how I am not getting assistance. Now to my knowledge, the federal government tells companies that in a disaster area to assist their customers and provide help with their situation. Santander Consumer USA is a greedy company and I recommend to not give them your money or do business with them.
I bought a boat in 2006 while a resident in California. I have since moved to Colorado, and in July, sold the boat to a local couple. I have been trying since that time to get the title to this boat/trailer from Santander (4 months). Because California does a paperless title, it is required for the original lienholder to file a ELT 227 form to request electronic title. Santander to date has not done this. I have called daily, I have lost time from work. At one point in this I was told by Santander I could go to California myself with a REG227 form that was notarized by them and obtain paper title.
I purchased airfare, rented a car and hotel, missed time from work and went with the form that Santander assured me was the correct form to the DMV, only to find out that the ONLY way to get title is to have Santander file a ELT 227 form to request paper title. It is now 4 months later, I do not have title, I cannot bond for title in Colorado because they show a lienholder in California. Santander has not held up their end of the bargain, they don't return calls and they don't answer emails. I am having litigation pursued from the buyers of the boat as they understandably want their titles. Do not ever consider this company for a loan, they will not fulfill their end of the agreement and you will be without title for your property.
Santander Consumer USA Company Information
- Company Name:
- Santander Consumer USA
- Website:
- www.santanderconsumerusa.com