I to have had horrid experiences with my auto financing through Wachovia. To begin with the original loan application was done with my father as co-signer, he resides on the east coast so the paperwork was Fed-Ex'd to him for signatures. The dealership did not review it properly to ensure that all the necessary ratio's were met causing a rejection of the original application. The loan was submitted on June 22nd, I was allowed to drive off lot with car. I continually contacted them asking for updates on financing. I was also told that when approved my first payment would be 45 days out giving me ample time to adjust to the new payment obligation since this was the first time I had ever financed anything. Days turned into weeks until on the last Friday in July I was notified that my loan was not approved. Now the scramble was on the dealership allowed me to keep the weekend to secure another vehicle, I had to have one to get to work. So I placed my 500.00 for my first payment down on a private sale vehicle. Low and behold Monday I received a call from the dealership that the financing came through. Now the first of my troubles...I already put my car payment money down on another vehicle but I was promised 45 days from the getting financed before 1st payment was due so I had time. Right? WRONG! I was told yes we secured financing and you are more than 30 days late with your first payment! I fought with this issue for months...my 500 deposit on the other vehicle was not fully refunded on the private deal leaving me way short on my first payment. So I started out on my first auto financing that was going to catapult me into credit worthiness, has now turned into a total nightmare. Wachovia would not consider any options to correcting this discrepancy blaming the car dealer who they say should have re-written the loan with new dates, the car dealer in turn saying that it was out of thier control, it was in Wachovia's hands. So I was left trying to catch up on the payments trying to correct it the best I could on my own trying to save my credit. Now the gigantic blow! I was hit in a company wide layoff that very December! I continued to receive enough in benefits from my company to make my payments until April. I tried over and over again to get some help from Wachovia to no avail. Adding insult to injury, they were the rudest, most personally degrading customer service people I have ever dealt with. My employment background was previously targeted in the customer service industry. If I had even ever thought of speaking to our customers the way they did to me I would have been fired. They humiliated me personally attacking my character while I am on the phone practically begging them to help me with a solution. They yelled at me insinuating that I was in essence stealing from them, like it was their own personal account. At that point I had been in touch with them prior to being late again(only a few days til I was, still catching up from original financing problems) to get a grace period or a deferment(the one pleasant, helpful service rep had told me about). They still berated me on the phone stating that since I was going through these issues that I didn't deserve, yes deserve to have this car or any help that may be available to me. I was not even late at that point! I was told at one point I was approved for deferment, I gave my bank info so the fee for this could be billed and didn't question if it was taken or not. (My bad, should have check my bank) it was never taken and I was never informed that they were changing their minds on the deferment approval. So I think, finally, I'm going to get on schedule...right? Wrong! Now I am 2 payments behind...(or one and a half). It gets worse, they eventually send someone to my in-laws house, inferring, they are from a legal government office, like Attorney General's or something with business cards that were hard to distinguish as being from anywhere but an official government law office. Telling them to relay a message to me that they want to repossess my car and if I don't cooperate that if I am caught driving the car I will be charged with Grand theft auto and would be arrested on the spot! As I am to understand it, in the state of California, it is illegal, in the process of collecting a debt, to threaten arrest or imprisonment! So how can they break all these laws and provide unethical and illegal business practices and stay in business. Is there any recourse we as consumers can take?, that doesn't cost thousands of dollars to those already struggling? I was not unwilling to make payments or arrangements to bring my account current. I was just trying to get things straightened out from the original screw up by which ever, the dealership or Wachovia! I was set up to fail before I even got funded! How is that fair and how many others have been through the same nightmare? When is it going to sink in to these financial institutions that repossessing the car, especially when it is still upside down in payments, is as detrimental to them as the consumer? I'm sure having to write off so many loans either partially or in full, to bad debt, will eventually be a hardship to their financial stability as well. Sorry this is so long..but it has been an ordeal that I never want to experience again. I will not finance another vehicle again...its cash or I walk!...