Woman told to pay RM18,000, or else…

Car repossessing agent tells woman she had stood as guarantor for someone who purchased a car, but she knows nothing about it.

GEORGE TOWN: A woman is being harassed by a car repossessing agent over a default on a car loan which she knows nothing about.

The agent, claiming she had signed as guarantor, is demanding that she cough up RM18,000 in arrears.

The 38-year-old restaurant assistant was even threatened, last Saturday, with a civil suit and told, by someone claiming to represent Maybank, that her name would be blacklisted.

The harassment came even after she had, in February, lodged a police report and faxed the report to the person who was harassing her at that time.

So, she decided to take the matter to the Bayan Baru PKR office where she met Penang PKR Youth deputy chief Kumaresan Aramugam.

At a press conference, the woman, who only wanted to be known as Cheah, said she had received calls from a debt recovery company twice, demanding that she pay RM18,000.

She was told that she had stood as guarantor for someone who had bought a used 1999 Perodua Kancil at a dealer in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.

The purchaser had defaulted on the loan, and therefore, she was told, she had to pay the balance.

Kumaresan said investigations by his team showed the loan for the Kancil was given by Maybank.

“Shockingly, Maybank told us the car had already been repossessed and sold off. They even told us the ‘case has been closed’.

“The question is: Who are these recovery agents who have been going after her?” Kumaresan asked.

Cheah first received calls from a repossessing company agent in February, demanding she pay up or risk being blacklisted.

“I told the agent that my identity might have been stolen and I could not afford to pay RM18,000.

“The man then told me ‘okay, let’s negotiate, perhaps you can pay about RM8,000’.

“I said no, I cannot afford that much. I decided to lodge a police report,” she said.

Cheah said she then faxed the report to them and they stopped contacting her.

However, last Saturday, she received a SMS from a debt recovery agent named “Fauziah”, saying they were acting on behalf of Maybank.

Cheah was told that they would file a civil suit and “blacklist” her.

“Desperate, I even offered to pay RM1,000, but they wanted the full amount. They then made me call five other agents, and put me on hold for hours.

“Then an agent told me that I could pay RM3,000 to ‘settle the case’. I was ready to ask my father for a loan.

“Luckily, I came to (Member of Parliament for Bayan Baru) Sim Tze Tzin’s office for help and I was advised to stop engaging them,” she added.

Kumaresan took Cheah to Bank Negara Malaysia’s branch here to check her credit status, which showed the latter had not been blacklisted.

“This is clearly a case of cheating by car repossessing agents. We wonder if there are more unsuspecting people who have given up their money to these con-men?

“We would like to urge the police and Bank Negara to investigate this matter thoroughly,” Kumaresan said.