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Tree Falls On Woman’s Car. Then The Dealership Says She Can’t Get Another. Then Another Employee Steps In

'There's so many fragile egos.'

Tree Falls On Woman’s Car

Photo by: Unsplash.com

Ljeonida Mulabazi

By: Ljeonida Mulabazi

Apr 10, at 6:00am ET

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One may think of dealerships as entirely focused on numbers, but there’s a significant human element behind how the business actually operates.

At least, that’s according to one TikTok creator and loan expert who says internal dynamics can shape outcomes just as much as the numbers do.

TikTok creator The Loan Doctor (@theloandoctor), who posts vehicle financing and car salesman content in general, shared what he calls a real example of “dealership politics” at work.

In his video, which has garnered over 10,900 views, he describes a situation involving his higher-up’s girlfriend and bad credit.

What Happened At His Dealership Job?

“This business is rife with people whose income exceeds their education,” he begins. “And as such, they treat people like [expletive]. It's ego-driven.”

The Loan Doc says that this environment, full of “fragile egos,” stifles employees.

“If you do something that shines over your boss, you have to kind of gloss it over and be humble about it,” he says.

He says he recently saw a woman in the accounting department crying in the hallway. “I said, ‘What are you crying about?’” he recalls.

She shared that her car had just been totaled. “A tree fell on my car,” he remembers her saying. “I can't get another one ‘cause my credit's bad.”

He says he pushed back. “You're dating the finance director at a car dealership,” he told her. “What do you mean you can't buy a car?”

She explained she had recently gone through a divorce and had bad credit. The Loan Doc asked her, “Who said you can’t buy a car?”

She responded, “John,” who, he explains, is the finance director.

He says he took matters into his own hands. “I go down to him; he's on the phone with the bank asking for a tier bump.”

For context, a tier bump is when a finance manager calls the lender to ask for a better rate, ignoring the buyer’s low credit score.

According to The Loan Doc, however, that doesn’t work. “I hung up the phone on him,” he says. “I said, ‘John, let me take this over for you.’”

He says he arranged a two-year lease for her, with a monthly payment of $297. “She left in a brand new car … in an hour,” he recalls.

He says he “couldn’t pound [his] chest” to John. “I had to say to him, ‘Listen, things are different than they used to be,’” he says. “‘This is how the bank works now. There's no such thing as a tier bump.’”

Commenters Share Their Thoughts

In the comments section, viewers agreed that dealership politics are complicated.

“It's high school all over again,” one user wrote.

Another said that they related to what he was describing.

“Wow you hit this dead on the head,” they wrote. “I was never humble. I wish I had known this true statement back then.”

A third user questioned how the deal he described was even possible.

“Sorry man but if she had bad credit you're not getting her in a lease,” they wrote.

“FMCC will take a 2 year shot sooner than a 5 or 6 year shot,” he explained. “If you can't get these done it's either you or your captive.”

How Can You Get A Car With Bad Credit?

Having bad credit doesn’t mean you can’t get approved for a loan; it just changes what the deal looks like.

According to a NerdWallet guide, the biggest downside is cost. Borrowers with lower credit scores typically have to pay more in interest rates and fees compared to those with good credit.

The publication suggests starting by finding out where you stand by checking your credit score.

For lower credit scores, lenders may charge up to 16.01% Annual Percentage Rate (APR) for new cars and as much as 21.85% for used ones.

However, lenders look at more than just your score. Documents such as proof of employment, your debt-to-income ratio, and your loan payment history may help strengthen your application.

What do you think?

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In some cases, structuring the deal with a shorter lease period and a higher down payment could also improve your approval odds, which is what the TikTok creator seems to claim happened in this situation.

Motor1 has reached out to The Loan Doctor via TikTok direct message for additional details and will update this story if he responds.

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