battle over payoff balance

state: florida

this past august my husband and i were excited about paying off our car. we extended 4 payments in the 6 years it was financed. we knew we had to make those 4 payments at the end of the loan and we were late several times and knew that they deducted the late fees from the payments. but even at that we estimated the payoff to be about $2,500 (even if we were late every single 72 payments, which we were not). we have been going back and forth with this finance company (not sure if i can name them) but they say we owe $4,900 but will settle for $3,300 they refuse to come get the car and they still call.

we could not find our original contract explaning this charge. they have offered to send one months ago and we haven't received anything of the kind yet. they are calculating interest from somewhere but they can't show us where. we thought interest was taking off the top.

is this another way to get a couple more thousand from us or is this legal. they have already charged this off on our credit but they are still calling.

we have made them offers to pay over half the original payment just to not fight and pay the 4,900 but they will not accept that but now we are unwilling because something seems fishy about this, they are making us suspicious.

Help

This scenario seems a bit complicated to be answered on this board.

I suggest that you find yourself a lawyer in your area and get good legal advice. Many attys allow for a free consult, take advantage of this if you can.

Good Luck,

[JETX]

Without having a copy of the contract, or any idea of how the interest and penalties are calculated, it is impossible for any of us to determine whether the charges are valid or not.

I would suggest that you WRITE them a letter, certified RRR, and ask them to provide a legible accounting of the claimed charges. Then, when you get it, check the numbers and, if correct, pay it.

Otherwise, it is very possible that the lender could take legal action against you which would increase your costs (attorney fees, etc.). Further, if they got a judgment against you, they could enforce it with seizures of property, bank accounts, wages, etc. as allowed by your state laws.