'I'm not paying for a loan on a car that I don't have': How a mom's gift for her son turned into a credit nightmare

Tiffany Searight thought she was doing thing peculiar by driving much than six hours to fastener successful a car for her son's graduation gift. Instead, the azygous parent from upstate New York says she ended up spending $3,300 retired of pocket, with nary car successful the driveway and a indebtedness she's expected to pay.

After placing a deposit astatine Regal Autohaus (1), she near without the vehicle, expecting to instrumentality and prime it up. That ne'er happened but what did amusement up, she says, were financing charges from Westlake Financial (2).

"I enactment 2 jobs," Searight told CBS New York (3). "I'm a precocious divorced mother. Single parent. Just got my oldest lad done college."

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Delays, excuses and inactive nary car

In the weeks that followed, Searight says she stayed successful interaction with the salesman, but kept getting antithetic reasons the car wasn't ready, from an lipid alteration to a anemic pulley. She made different travel to the dealership connected January 12, but says the car wasn't determination erstwhile she arrived.

Frustrated, she called the police. According to the report, Searight was told the conveyance needed attraction and that she would beryllium contacted erstwhile it was ready. But the updates ne'er came.

By February, payments tied to financing done Westlake Financial had begun, and by March, determination was nary refund oregon wide way forward.

While Searight's concern is uncommon, it comes arsenic national regulators measurement up oversight of car sales. In March, the Federal Trade Commission (4) warned dozens of dealership groups implicit deceptive pricing, including ads for unavailable vehicles, adding it volition proceed taking enactment to support consumers.

Searight has worked hard to support her recognition but erstwhile a indebtedness is successful your name, missed payments tin rapidly resistance it down. Emails reviewed amusement Westlake Financial told her the relationship had been flagged for a "fraud review," but the indebtedness would enactment unfastened until the dealership returned the concern charges.

"I'm stressed due to the fact that I enactment precise hard to support my recognition wherever it is, and not lone that, I person radical harassing maine and holding maine liable for a indebtedness connected a conveyance that I don't have," she said.

Payment past is the biggest origin successful your recognition score, and according to FICO information (5), adjacent a azygous 30-day missed outgo tin sound a just people down by astir 17 to 37 points, oregon arsenic overmuch arsenic 63 to 83 points (6) for idiosyncratic with fantabulous credit. The harm tin ascent past 100 points, meaning the higher your score, the harder the hit.