Autotrader sucks!

[SILVER2000SVT]

I swear, dealing with these people is almost as bad as than dealing with the cable company over a billing problem. I've been trying to sell my BMW for over 2 months now and because of the screw ups by the people at autotrader I haven't received a single call yet. They got my zip code wrong the first time, and it took them 3 weeks to get it straight. They can get an ad up in 24 hours but 3 weeks to fix one?:confused:

The next thing was I requested a price change and to update the title to say "automatic" to match other similar cars. I called in and they said they would make the changes. A week later I noticed it's still not updated, and I called again. They told me they can't make a title change because that's filled out by the vin # and can't be manually inputed. I hang up and call right back and speak to somebody else and that person said no problem. Two weeks later it's finally corrected on the website.

Finally got my ad looking somewhat right after over a month. Now, it's been about three weeks and I notice that I haven't recieved the email for automatic ad renewal. I checked online and sure enough I'm not on there. I called and they gave me a big attitude about not answering the email renewal, I told them you didn't send an email that's why I'm calling because you sent one last time. They said you still should have called, I said that's what I'm doing. They said it'll be at least a week before we can get you back online and in the book. I said you can get a new ad up in 24 hours, why is it going to take a week? They said that's the way our system works, sorry. I would file a contest the charge on the credit card but it's long past the 30 days so I just have to suck it up I guess.
:mad:

Just thought I would rant a little.

[my2002lightning]

Jason,

Try this: http://dallas.craigslist.org/ :tu:

[98Cobra]

You post a for sale here? Or in a BMW forum?

[SILVER2000SVT]

You post a for sale here? Or in a BMW forum?

Not yet, but I probably will post it up here sometime soon. I don't talk on the BMW forums enough to be able to post things for sale.

I've always had good luck with Autotrader until now.

[Tex Arcana]

Jason, challenge the bill anyway, explain it to the CC people how AT screwed up, and why it took so long, and they might take your side and deny the charges. Worth a try, anyway.

[Silver_2000]

Not yet, but I probably will post it up here sometime soon. I don't talk on the BMW forums enough to be able to post things for sale.

Good to know we arent the only ones with those kinds of rules

The autotraders problem is that it was a CHEAPLY produced print magazine that 2 weeek dealines was typical. The new era of Internet websites and instant updates is not thier ball of wax...

[QDRHRSE]

Don't mess with the autotrader. Pay them and move on. They ruined my credit a few years ago. Their photographer never showed up at my house and I refused to pay- big mistake. If I was you, I would pay them what you owe them and use somebody else. They have the power to really screw you up regardless of whether you are right or wrong and they pretty much can't undue things. They are a huge nationwide organization and having a massive collections department. It's like dealing with the IRS. Beware!

[SILVER2000SVT]

Don't mess with the autotrader. Pay them and move on. They ruined my credit a few years ago. Their photographer never showed up at my house and I refused to pay- big mistake. If I was you, I would pay them what you owe them and use somebody else. They have the power to really screw you up regardless of whether you are right or wrong and they pretty much can't undue things. They are a huge nationwide organization and having a massive collections department. It's like dealing with the IRS. Beware!

As much as it pains me, I agree. That's the reason for my comment about the cable company above. Charter Communications screwed up my bill 5 years ago. I have well over 100 hours of my time trying to get it straight. They even issued a formal letter of apology and sent the corrected information to the credit bureaus, but there is still a ding on my credit after all this time because the credit bureaus say they didn't get it the first time and according to them the corrections can only be legally sent once regardless of whether or not the bureaus recognized and applied the corrections. This is just a simple mistake and the company admitted their error, I can't even imagine the hassle of identity theft. The idea of dealing with aftermath of identity theft scares the heck out of me. The system is severely corrupt and/or completely non-functional.

[Tex Arcana]

Don't mess with the autotrader. Pay them and move on. They ruined my credit a few years ago. Their photographer never showed up at my house and I refused to pay- big mistake. If I was you, I would pay them what you owe them and use somebody else. They have the power to really screw you up regardless of whether you are right or wrong and they pretty much can't undue things. They are a huge nationwide organization and having a massive collections department. It's like dealing with the IRS. Beware!

Credit laws allow you to challenge anything that gets put on your credit report, and as long as that is being challenged, it cannot affect your credit score. Of course, this takes alot of diligence by YOU to make sure the challenges get lodged, and the reporting services keep the notatiiions up to date. Eventually the people like AT get tired of the letters requesting proof, toss them, and when the credit bureau doesn't get a repoly to a request for proof, they dump the claim.

[Tex Arcana]

The system is severely corrupt and/or completely non-functional.

Well of course! There's BIG MONEY in it! The more money there is, the more it pays THEM to keep it that way. :hammer:

[SILVER2000SVT]

Credit laws allow you to challenge anything that gets put on your credit report, and as long as that is being challenged, it cannot affect your credit score. Of course, this takes alot of diligence by YOU to make sure the challenges get lodged, and the reporting services keep the notatiiions up to date. Eventually the people like AT get tired of the letters requesting proof, toss them, and when the credit bureau doesn't get a repoly to a request for proof, they dump the claim.

I know that's what the law says but that's not how it really works. When you challenge something the burden of proof is supposed to be on the company that placed the charge but it doesn't work that way. When the company gets request for proof all they have to do is reply that nothing has changed. The rules are written so that if the company is lazy and replies "nothing has changed" the credit bureau says the charge is valid. They only way the consumer will win is if they are willing to take it to court, but that will cost tens of thousands of dollars.

[Tex Arcana]

I know that's what the law says but that's not how it really works. When you challenge something the burden of proof is supposed to be on the company that placed the charge but it doesn't work that way. When the company gets request for proof all they have to do is reply that nothing has changed. The rules are written so that if the company is lazy and replies "nothing has changed" the credit bureau says the charge is valid. They only way the consumer will win is if they are willing to take it to court, but that will cost tens of thousands of dollars.

I freind of mine did exactly this, and managed to get a repo'd car off his credit report. Maybe the laws have changed since then, but the basic concepts are the same. Persistence is the key, with a decent knowledge of the laaws in general.

[QDRHRSE]

Credit laws allow you to challenge anything that gets put on your credit report, and as long as that is being challenged, it cannot affect your credit score. Of course, this takes alot of diligence by YOU to make sure the challenges get lodged, and the reporting services keep the notatiiions up to date. Eventually the people like AT get tired of the letters requesting proof, toss them, and when the credit bureau doesn't get a repoly to a request for proof, they dump the claim.

This is technically true but give me a break....only in the America that we wished we lived in.

[Tex Arcana]

This is technically true but give me a break....only in the America that we wished we lived in.
true dat... tho I have to say that I know a few people who managed it, so it *can* be done--like I said, it takes persistence.