I have a Honda lease that I got from my Honda dealer only to find out much later that the lease was actually done through a 3rd party company called Fusion Auto Finance (I’m guessing because of my credit union). On my lease paper the payoff amount/end of lease purchase option says $19,000 + $500 Purchase Option Fee (is this legal?) and any other official fees and taxes. I’ve been reading some bad reviews about this company recently when people tried to buyout their lease. Apparently, Fusion has been either ignoring people’s buyout attempts/repo’ing their vehicles or marking up the payoff amount to adjust for the current market situation. Can they legally do this since there is already a fixed price on the lease contract? And can they also deny me the purchase option at the end of the lease? I still have 5 months left on this lease and have decided its best to buyout the car but am worried I’ll get screwed over. Just wondering if y’all have tips/advice to not get screwed.
EDIT: just want to clarify that I wish to purchase my car at the end of the lease term. I’m just trying to prepare ahead of time.
One would need to look at the exact contract language to really say, but generally, no, they have to honor the contract. Forcing them to execute that is another story though, and may depend on the amount of effort that you want to put into it. They certainly can charge a purchase option fee if it’s spelled out on your contract though.
It’s a slightly different story if you’re talking about buying it now vs at the end, as some contracts have early termination language that’s more restrictive you’d need to look at.
Depending on the contract, that may pertain to only the end of the lease. It’s possible you may have no contractual right to buy the car in the middle of the lease.
There may be a consumer affairs department in your state, either stand-alone or as part of the state attorney general’s office, who may be able to help you without the need to retain a lawyer.
@max_g@mllcb42 Thanks for the response guys. Sorry for not clarifying this. I wish to purchase my car at the end of the lease term (5 months from now). I’m just trying to prepare ahead of time (this is my first lease and car). So with this info in mind, can they legally markup the pay off price or deny me the right to the purchase option?
One would need to look at the contract in detail, but generally, no, they have to sell it to you for the amount listed on the contract (which would be rv + purchase fee + fees and taxes based on what you’re saying it says).
I would be careful about people talking about misinterpreting someone talking about them marking up buyouts for 3rd party dealers and extrapolating that to refer to 1st party buyouts though.
@max_g Probably a silly question, but if they do try to charge more and break the contract, who do I call? Do I reach out to my credit union who gave me the loan for it or do I have to get an attorney at my own expense?
@mllcb42 I don’t quite follow. Are you saying the leasing company would mark it up if it were someone else (dealer, Carvana, 3rd party) trying to buy out this lease vs me (1st party) buying it out?
Correct. There’s a long list of banks that charge market rate to 3rd party dealers trying to buy out leases. There’s also a long list of banks that no longer will sell to 3rd party dealers at all.
It would be easy for someone that isn’t familiar with that nuance to see someone saying “Fusion Auto Finance is marking up the payoff amount to adjust for current market situations!” and miss that that is in reference to selling it to a 3rd party dealer vs to the lessee. I mention it just to make sure that when you hear stories about them marking up payoffs to confirm that they’re actually referring to what you think they’re referring to.
When you read reviews for most financial institutions you will find an astonishing percentage that are written by people who don’t understand how banks work. Or how money works.
Or what day it is.
I’ve never read a review from someone who’s enjoyed this experience, which happens after one’s missed multiple payments.
You might be overthinking it. For a financial company to not honor the plain language of contract would be suicidal. They are regulated like hell, and any AG would be on their butt as soon as they get a whiff of bad behavior.
I’d be shocked if you’d have problems to execute your purchase option according to contractual language.
I recently purchased my lease from Fusion Auto and the process was as good as it could be. I have found their communication better than the big companies. They sent me a lease buyout sheet which matched my residual + $500 fee. I sent the check, received lessor released title after a few days. Credit union loan has been paid off soon after.
