Police & Fire Federal Credit Union

The following update was provided by our Collections Manager (see below).  It appears that the auto sale process was delayed for 2 reasons.  Since the car was found in another state, the title to the vehicle needed to be updated with the state.  This added about a month to the...

process.   In addition, the inspection revealed body work that had been done on the vehicle.  The verification of this revelation also added time to the process before the vehicle could be sold.  The car was just sold and we are awaiting the buyer to complete the transaction.  If this does not occur, it will go up for auction next month.  We hope this information is helpful.  The Collections Manager's update is below. [redacted]'s car was assigned out for Repo on 12/13/2016 because he was 59 days past due (due for 10/15/2016).  On 12/14/2016 the car was found in Crown Point, IN [redacted] which the member never informed us of his move from Philadelphia to Crown Point.   After waiting the required 15 days plus our 2 additional days (and the holidays), the car was moved to Manheim Arena Illinois (the closest auction).  During this time the member's title was also ordered from the state of PA.   The paper title was received by the collections department on 1/4/2017.  The same day the title was sent to the auction via UPS 2nd shipping.  The title needed to be turned into an Illinois Title with PFFCU's name on it, so it needed to be sent to the State of Illinois for this to be completed and on 2/1/2017 the auction department received the title back from the state.   While the auto was located at the auction, they completed a condition inspection of the auto.  During this time it was discovered that the auto had body work done on the right side of the auto which caused the auto to be offered for sale under a frame damage clause (which would affect the value of the auto).  I made several calls to the auto auction to inquire about this because the car visible appearance look very nice and the [redacted] did not show any accidents.    I asked the auction to re-inspect the auto and in the meantime the auction was placed on hold until the auto could be re-inspected.    We made several calls to the auction to inquire about the inspection over the next two weeks.  On 2/16/2017 after calling several time, I called the manager of the auction department and requested an update regarding this inspection.  I was told that it would be completed that day.  The re-inspection was completed and they showed me via pictures that the Trunk Floor/Tirewell, Right Rocker Panel Inner wall, and the Right inner Qtr Panel were all repaired in fact the car would have to sell as a "frame damaged" car.  So at this time the auto was set for the next Repo sale which was 3/14/2017.   On 3/14/2017 the auto was place in the auction and received a high bid of $7,200 but we were unable to receive this bid due to the snow storm and on 3/15/2017 we accepted the bid of $7,200.  We are now waiting to hear back from the auction as to whether or not the buyer is going to still buy the auto.  If the buyer doesn't buy the auto, it will have to go into the next sale on 4/18/2017.

[redacted] needs to verify with [redacted]s the ACH information that was provided and that shows we received 3 separate charges from them for $110. 
As provided before, we have 3 separate trace numbers for the 3 separate charges that we received from them.
Therefore, if [redacted]s sent the 3 charges in error, then they should refund her the fees incurred due to their mistake.

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
I do not agree with all statement issued by PFFCU and I believe their statement supports my claim that I was provided inadequate opportunity to respond to communications.
A misstatement occurs in the first paragraph. PFFCU states that I asked them to call me on my home phone. I do not use my home phone and therefore asked that they contact in my cell. This may be a minor detail but it supports a lack of attention in how they have communicated with me about this issue.
Their support of my claim that PFFCU failed to effectively communicate with me is shown in that they acknowledge their agent did not offer an alternate method of verifying my identity. I requested an alternate way to verify my identity. This fact was omitted in their statement. Further, I have received sales communications from PFFCU and believe that I am right to question the intention of their communications and deserve a direct response. I feel that the curtesy of ensuring my account was in good order was not extended to me in an earnest way.
I also disagree with the statement that I was "afforded numerous opportunities to respond to our communications." While PFFCU may have reached out to me in various ways, they failed to actually make communication with me. Their efforts were surficial and appear to have been made to cover their protocols rather to provide a service to me, their client. I am very interested in keeping my account up to date and made a correction as soon as was made aware of the issue. I believe the delay in responding was due to the lack in PFFCU's efforts to keep me informed rather than my lack of response. I therefore continue to seek reimbursement for the costs of stopping the repossession service.
Regards,
[redacted]

February 6, 2018Dear Sir/Madam:An extensive audit and review was performed on [redacted]’s account to research, follow up on, and address the concerns outlined in [redacted]’s dispute related to his loan payments. While we were unable to validate any of his stated attempts to contact PFFCU directly (ie: in-person and/or via phone), it has been discovered that [redacted] has recently been handwriting this request below the dollar amount field on the checks he has been sending by mail to PFFCU make his monthly payments. We apologize to [redacted] for failing to notice these notes; however, it must be stated that this method of requesting payment booklets is inefficient, as these notes were not on a memo line, and in addition, check processing is done mainly bycomputers and not directly handled by staff, and as a result, may have gone unnoticed.Per an account audit, were unable to locate any attempt by [redacted] to reach us by telephone in the timeframe provided in his dispute. In addition to this, it appears that [redacted] did not update his mailing address with us on the account holding his loan(s) until July 25, 2017. It is the responsibility of the member to update PFFCU of any changes and/or updates to personal contact information (such as address changes) so that we may ensure timely and accurate delivery of monthly statements and other documents -- up to and including coupon payment booklets.We have reviewed [redacted]’s request with members of the management team in our Consumer Lending department. They have confirmed that coupon payment booklets would be not be able to be produced for [redacted]’s loans for the following reasons:• One of the loan types is ineligible for coupon payment method because it is a credit line that does not have a maturity date (Personal Line of Credit).• We will not provide coupon payments for bi-weekly frequency; documentation must be submitted to modify the loan to be paid on a monthly basis in order to be provided coupon payments.• The loans are not paid up-to-date.[redacted] is encouraged to contact PFFCU by phone at ###-###-#### or ###-###-#### to discuss his loan history and any requested changes to his loans.Sincerely,Danielle D.Call Center Operations Supervisor

September 14, 2017Dear Sir/Madam:We received and researched [redacted]'s complaint. Our responses to each point are outlined below:Notification not provided[redacted] filed 4 debit card disputes over the course of her first year of membership. When working the latest dispute, the representative...

informed [redacted] that we may have to restrict her card at the end of the investigation. The fraud representative called [redacted] at the end of the investigation and left a message since there was no answer. The representative also sent [redacted] a letter informing her that we would be closing the card and she should make other arrangements for debit card services. [redacted] never responded to the calls or letter.Debit card continued working after August until SeptemberBased on the above. [redacted]'s card was to be closed on August 1st; however, due to an oversight it was not. Therefore, when [redacted] experienced other issues and contacted us, we realized the oversight at that time and informed her again at that point that her card would be closed. This is why the card worked even though our notes indicated the card should have been closed earlier.Debit card closed too early[redacted] is correct that we did inform her that we would provide her a week to handle her affairs before closing the card. However, due to a miscommunication we failed to reopen the card for her. We apologize for this oversight. We thought he had reopened her card for the week but did not, When she informed us of this, we reopened her card for a week as promised.Last name not providedWe do not require staff members to provide their last name due to safety and security concerns that the staff have expressed to us. If staff do not feel comfortable providing their last name, they are not required to do so. In lieu of their last name, staff are permitted to provide their PFFCU User IDs or telephone extensions. We need to balance member service with staff safety. We honored our staff's request to not provide their last names since providing this information is not necessary in order to provide members with superior service [redacted] was provided a refund for all disputed amounts as part of the investigations. Therefore, there are no other amounts to refund. We are sorry for the miscommunications. We are always open to work with our members. We cannot restore card privileges, and as [redacted] Wrote in her complaint she is aware of those reasons.Sincerely,Danielle D. Call Center Operations Supervisor

To Whom It May Concern:I am in receipt of the complaint #[redacted] ?led against Police and Fire Federal CreditUnion. The credit union member who ?led the complaint, [redacted], spoke to several staffmembers of the credit union as to why her [redacted] credit card was closed without her knowledge.She was...

told by more than one staff member that her card was closed due to one year ofinactivity and that we do not notify members of [redacted] accounts closed in this manner. Inaddition, I spoke to her directly because she wanted to reopen the card. I explained to themember that she would need to apply for a new [redacted] credit card because it had been more than2 years since her card had been closed and the credit union requires new members to apply for a newcredit card once the closure date goes beyond 30 days. She declined my offer of an application.If you need further information I can be reached via email at the address listed above.Sincerely,Joseph *. M[redacted]Senior Vice PresidentConsumer Lending

In viewing the account, it appears that the account was restricted after a large number of invalid access attempts.  This is a standard security measure that's done to protect the account.  The member was notified to contact our Call Center who should be able to help her reset her account...

access.

May 16, 2017Dear Sir/Madam:We received [redacted]'s complaint on 5/12/2017. Based upon her statement, we investigated the matter and spoke with her directly. Based on our investigation we noted that [redacted] was credited for the funds on 5/8/2017, We believe the file was misplaced; however, we...

are not using this as an excuse. We apologized to [redacted], and we have spoken to the staff responsible for the oversight to ensure it does not happen again. We will also address the miscommunication issue as well.We thank [redacted] for her feedback and input as we are always looking to improve our process to provide the best possible member service.Sincerely,Danielle D. Call Center Operations Supervisor

A $25 payment to a credit card was authorized when the available balance was only $20.
Therefore, a NSF fee was charged.
If [redacted] would like to discuss further, he can contact our Member Research group at ###-###-####.
Thank you.

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: I will now be closing all of my accounts and taking my direct deposit elsewhere.  
Regards,
[redacted]

The NSF Fees were charged because items were presented when there were insufficient funds in the account to clear the items.  The transaction history is shown below, which confirms the accuracy of the charges.
4-22-15   NSF...

Fee

Our Operations department researched this matter on July 14th and determined that the ATM showed error messages but was not off by the $130 amount.  However, they refunded the full $130 amount to the member.

Review: On 08/28/2014 and 09/02/2014, I was charged overdraft fees. The bank is refusing to refund my fees. I had the money in my account at the time. There was a delay on my atm cash deposit, and I have been having on going issues with my account. I want to continue banking here, but will close my accounts and open accounts elsewhere if my fees are not refunded.Desired Settlement: I want the $38 dollars I was charged in fees credited back into my account.

Business

Response:

We researched [redacted]'s complaint. The results of the investigation are as follows:1. The NSF fee charged on 8/28 was due to a $25 [redacted] charge trying to hit his account when the account failed to have sufficient funds available to clear the item. His balance was $37.16; however, that balance was already being held for $25.86 from various restaurant charges. Therefore, the balance available was not sufficient to cover the $25 [redacted] charge. Consequently, the NSF fee was assessed. On 8/28 [redacted] filed a request for a refund of the fee and stated that he thought the [redacted] charge had already come through on an earlier date. However, he was mistaken.2. The NSF fee charged on 9/2 was due to a $25 [redacted] charge trying to hit his account when the account failed to have sufficient funds available to clear the item. His balance was $0. Consequently, the NSF fee was assessed. On 9/2 [redacted] filed a request for a refund of the fee and stated that he initiated the [redacted] payment on the 28th thinking that's when it would have been charged to his account but it didn't come through until 9/2 and he had transferred his balance earlier that day to make his loan payment. Based on the above, the assessment of the NSF fees was correct. We have provided [redacted] with refunds of fees in the past. However, we cannot do so for these items.

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because: I will now be closing all of my accounts and taking my direct deposit elsewhere.

Regards,

Review: On Tuesday, 7/8/2014 I made an atm deposit at Police and Fire Federal Credit Union at [redacted] and [redacted] after 9 pm. I deposited $130, and during the transaction, the atm malfunctioned. My money was already in the machine, and my money was never given back. I filed a dispute with the bank, and they are denying my claim. Now I am at a loss of $130 due to the banks fault. I want my money credited to my account.Desired Settlement: I want the $130 deposited to my account now.

Business

Response:

Our Operations department researched this matter on July 14th and determined that the ATM showed error messages but was not off by the $130 amount. However, they refunded the full $130 amount to the member.

Consumer

Response:

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,

Review: The Police and Fire Federal Credit Union refuses to provide me a lien release letter for a car loan that was paid off in 2005. I need the lien release in order to get a replacement title to move forward with the private sale of my car.

I took a car loan with the Credit Union in 2000 to purchase a new Toyota Ca**y. The loan was paid off by 2005. In recent months, I decided I wanted to sell the car. When I went to find my title, in preparation for the sale of the car, I discovered I did not have it.

An inquiry of the District of Columbia's Department of Motor Vehicles, pointed me to the Police and Fire Federal Credit Union in [redacted], PA. This is the credit union that provided the auto loan for the Toyota. In order to proceed with the acquisition of a replacement title, the DC DMV requires a lien release letter from the Credit Union. I am being refused the lien release letter because there is a "no service" flag on my e-file. The "no service" flag has to do with two signature loans for which I am in default but for which I am currently negotiating a payment plan, including the possibility of a full settlement.

It is my contention that the signature loans are separate business items from the automobile loan. The credit union is punishing me for defaulting on the signature loans - even while we are negotiating a payment plan - by refusing to supply the lien release letter for the loan that WAS actually paid off.

I have called many times written at least three times. The staff, while well meaning, is ineffective in helping me resolve my issue. I tried to escalate my issue within the credit union but was unsuccessful.

If you communicate with the credit union, they will ask for account numbers. I have two account numbers but you should know that these are for the defaulted signature loans. Nobody seems to be able to provide my car loan information, which, I am sure, would not be flagged for no service. The two account numbes are 1). [redacted], 2) [redacted].Desired Settlement: I want the credit union to provide a lien release letter so I may acquire a replacement title.

Business

Response:

We

are aware of the issue with **. [redacted]. We had mailed the title to him

some time ago. He lost the title and we instructed him to call [redacted]. He would like us to give him a letter instead; however, this

cannot be considered until the charged off loans are addressed.

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason I is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because the Credit Union is aware that [redacted] has nothing to do with this situation. My automobile was purchased in Washington DC, not Pennsylvania! So, I went to the DMV in Washington and they told me to get a lien release letter. As far as the title is concernd, the Credit Union probably DID send it years ago. But I LOST IT. That is why we are where we are. I need a replacement title so that I can sell my vehicle.