Chase Auto Finance Trying to extort money from a military member stationed overseas Tampa Florida

In January of 2005 my wife, who is an active duty military member, got orders to PCS to Misawa AB in Northern Japan. I was in the 29th month of a 48 month lease and needed to return the vehicle before we PCS'ed to Japan. I spoke to several customer service reps months prior to our leaving who explained the process on how to go about returning the vehicle without penalty according to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). Under this law, active duty members and dependents are protected from any type of contractual penalties if the AD members service materially affects the dependents ability to pay any said contract. I even had the legal office from Keesler AFB in Biloxi MS. help me with all correspondence with Chase. They continuously refused to acknowledge that I qualified under the provisions of the SCRA and are still trying to hold me responsible for the amount left due on the lease of my vehicle.

They have since sold the vehicle and turned the matter over to collections and reported negative information to the credit bureaus. After Hurricane Katrina, I lost contact with the attorney assisting me and am now left with the burden of fighting this battle while living in Japan 7000 miles away. I would encourage any active duty military member to steer clear of Chase Auto Finance. They are very unsympathetic to AD military members and dependents.

Arthur
APO
Japan