I hate banks(please help me)
 

Hi guys,

Here is the situation. I am in Rochester, NY and am dealing with a local M&T bank branch that is being a pain in the ass. Basically, I bought a 1998 Ford Taurus 7 years ago and took out a loan with this bank, so they had a lien on my car. I finished paying the loan off a couple of years ago. Now I am trying to sell my car before I go back to school because I want to buy a new one. The title on my car says that there is still a lien on it because it was never removed, therefore I am going to have a heck of a hard time selling my car, because no one is going to believe me that the car is, in fact, paid off.

Here's what you may be thinking: Why doesn't this idiot just go to the bank and ask them to give him a lien release letter saying that the car is, in fact, paid off? Well, I tried. I went in yesterday morning and they told me that there were two loan numbers on my account there and they couldn't tell which loan was for the Taurus, so they couldn't give me the lien release letter.

I then went home and dug up an old payment stub with the account number on it from 5 years ago. I take it into the bank this morning, and now they tell me that my loan record was purged from their system since it is so old, so they can't give me the letter. They tell me that they'll have to contact their records dept in Buffalo and have them dig up some proof that I paid the loan off in full so that they can give me the lien release letter. I am very pissed at this and tell them that I need this now. I tell them that I can't afford to wait 3 months for their [censored] department in Buffalo to get the paperwork for me and that this is gross incompetence on their part. They just shrug and I walk out of the bank steaming mad.

I come home and call up the New York State Banking dept and they tell me to fax them a complaint to NYC. I just did so about 15 minutes ago but I don't know how fast the banking dept will work. I really feel like suing them for something. I am wondering if any people familiar with the intricacies of banks can help me out. I just thought that the local banks had to keep the loan information on file. This [censored] just seems preposterous to me.

Thanks very much for reading this.

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

Call the main headquarters and ask to speak to anyone. Then ask to speak to their boss. Then ask to speak to their boss. Once they stop passing you up, tell them your problem. Someone will help you sort it out.

And if they don't, tell them you're selling all your Berkshire-Hathaway stock and you hope Warren Buffett rots in hell.

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

Thanks, good idea.

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

I work in banking. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Post deleted by Mat Sklansky
 

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

It's M&T bank, as stated in the OP. Hence the comment about BH and Warren Buffet which owns M&T bank.

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

Wouldn't your credit file show the loan as being paid in full? That should stay on your record for a good 6 years I believe.

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

Yea, dude. I have an account at M&T and I've gone through a load of [censored] with them. I won't go into detail but let's just say I no longer have my money with them anymore (besides a couple hundred for emergencies). A lot of people in the banking business are incompetent, so you just need to keep calling until you find someone who's not.

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

Update:

I called and spoke to a CSR who basically said that they could fax me a copy of the lien release,, but it wouldn't do any good since the NYS DMV does not accept fascimile copies of that document. It has to be certified and so that will take them 5 to 7 business days which SUCKS because I go back to school in like 3 weeks and so there's no [censored] way I'll be able to sell the car now.

Argh. [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

Re: I hate banks(please help me)
 

Did you ask to speak with the CSR's manager? Just be insistent and then explain the situation to him/her including how long you have been a customer, how you are going to school, how this is EXTREMELY inconvenient, etc. Don't hang up. Stay on the phone for 30 minutes and when you come to an obstacle just ask for the next manager up and be insistent. Keep saying 'if you can't help me, I'd really like to speak with your manager'. I give you a 75% chance of having it work out if you are persistent enough. Trust me. They don't want to be helpful. You just need to fight through the bureaucracy. There is someone in that bank who can get you what you need. You just have to find that person and convince them that it is worth their time and effort to do so.