SCAM WARNING: Consumers are NOT required to submit any additional information to qualify for this settlement. Be cautious of any phone calls or mail that asks for your personal information, claiming to need said information for this settlement.

 

CONSUMERS WILL RECEIVE NOTICE IF THEY QUALIFY FOR RESTITUTION. FIRST NOTICES WERE MAILED TO ELIGIBLE CONSUMERS ON OCTOBER 16, 2020 AND SECOND NOTICES (ONLY TO THOSE WHOSE FIRST NOTICE WAS RETURNED AS UNDELIVERABLE) WERE MAILED DECEMBER 29, 2020.  SOME CONSUMERS ALSO MAY RECEIVE NOTICE BY EMAIL, IF THE SETTLEMENT ADMINISTRATOR HAS A CURRENT EMAIL ADDRESS ON FILE.

 

Who to call?

  • Rust Consulting: This is the settlement administrator for restitution payments. Consumers can call 1-800-253-2171 regarding restitution questions, including but not limited to inquiring whether you qualify for restitution even if you did not receive a postcard or email notice related to restitution. Timing of restitution payments is not yet certain, but updates will be provided on this website once more information is known.

  • Santander: The company will send notices to consumers who qualify for deficiency waivers and loan forgiveness and vehicle titles. You should call (888) 222-4227 if you have questions regarding whether your loan qualifies for either of these forms of relief, or if you have questions in general about your Santander loan. If your loan balance recently was reduced to zero but not as the result of your paying off the loan, this means you received relief directly from Santander, even if you did not receive a letter.

What states are included in the settlement? You may qualify for relief if you were a resident of or purchased a vehicle in one of the following states when you got your Santander auto loan:

    • Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

How do I know if I qualify for relief?

    • The categories of consumers entitled to relief have been established by this settlement, and Rust is working on contacting eligible restitution consumers and Santander is working on providing deficiency waivers to eligible consumers.
    • Loan Forgiveness and Car Title: For the consumers who qualified for this relief, Santander forgave the balance of the loans in August 2020. Consumers who qualified for this relief should have received a notice from Santander regarding this loan forgiveness, as well as title to the vehicle, by the end of September 2020.
    • If you received a postcard or email notice from the settlement administrator, you qualify for a restitution payment. You do not need to do anything else to receive this payment, but if you would like to update your address or elect to be paid via electronic payment as opposed to by check, you can do so on this website. If you did not receive a postcard or email, you can call the settlement administrator at 1-800-253-2171 if you want to know if you qualify for a restitution payment.
    • You should call Santander to inquire whether your defaulted loan (was in default as of December 31, 2019, car repossessed and sold but a balance remains on the loan) qualifies for a deficiency balance waiver.

I have a Santander auto loan that I am currently paying on. What should I do?

  • Even if you may obtain relief under this settlement, you should continue to pay on your loan unless and until you hear otherwise from Santander. If you are unable to pay on your loan under its current terms, you can speak with Santander about your options. Any changes to the terms of your loan will not impact whether you are eligible to receive relief under this settlement.

Will all consumers who have or have had a loan with Santander qualify for relief?

    • No. Only certain consumers who have a loan or had a loan with Santander will qualify for relief under this settlement.
    • If you qualify for relief under this settlement, you will receive notice from either Santander or the settlement administrator for restitution payments. For an update on when to expect that notice, you should check this website. 
    • The types of relief, and who will qualify for them, are detailed below.
    • Some consumers may receive more than one type of relief.

Consumers may be eligible for the following types of relief:

  1. Restitution: Santander must pay $65 million in restitution to be divided amongst the 33 states and the District of Columbia. Over 265,000 consumers across the settlement states will be eligible for this restitution.
    1. Who qualifies? You must have a gotten a loan with Santander between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2019 and Santander must have given you a certain internal score at the time you got the loan. Consumers will NOT know their own internal score. Additionally, neither states nor the settlement administrator know consumers’ internal scores. This is why consumers will have to wait for notice from the settlement administrator.
    2. How much will restitution be per consumer?
      1. The final restitution amount per consumer is not yet known, but the amount will be at least $244.80 per consumer.
    3. When can I expect restitution?
      1. We do not yet have a date certain by which eligible consumers can expect a notice from the settlement administrator. Please check this website for updates.

  1. Deficiency Waivers: Santander is required to forgive the remaining balance on certain loans. Santander will also request that the loans be removed from consumers’ credit reports. As with restitution, consumers who qualify for this relief will have to have had a certain internal score given to them by Santander at the time they got their loans. Consumers will NOT know their own internal score. Additionally, neither states nor the settlement administrator know consumers’ internal scores. Consumers who qualify for this relief will receive notice directly from Santander, and not the settlement administrator. We will update this website when we know of an anticipated timeline for said notice. At a minimum, to qualify for this relief, you must meet the following:

    1. You got your loan between January 1, 2013 and December 31, 2019; and

    1. Your car was repossessed or your account was charged off by Santander within the first 12 months after you got the loan. Making a late payment or missing payments does not qualify you for a Deficiency Waiver; and

    1. You had a certain internal score. Consumers will NOT know their own internal score. Additionally, neither states nor the settlement administrator know consumers’ internal scores.

  1. Loan Forgiveness and Car Title: For certain consumers, Santander sent the consumer title to the car and forgave the balance of the loan. Santander did this until the value of the total amount of loan forgiveness across the participating states reached $45 million. Santander will also request that the loans be removed from consumers’ credit reports. If you qualified for this relief, you should have received notice from Santander in September 2020.

The consumers who qualified for this relief:

    1. Defaulted on the loan but the vehicle was not repossessed; and
    2. Had a certain internal score. Consumers will NOT know their own internal score. Additionally, neither states nor the settlement administrator know consumers’ internal scores.