Additionally, Nissan MAC must pay $62,029 to the United States Treasury. The agreement requires Nissan MAC to create a $2,937,971 settlement fund to compensate servicemembers whose rights were violated under the SCRA. It covers all repossessions of servicemembers’ vehicles and leases terminated by servicemembers since Jan. The agreement resolves a suit filed today by the Department of Justice in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. The Department’s investigation revealed that when servicemembers terminated their motor vehicle leases early pursuant to the SCRA, Nissan MAC retained the entire CCR amount. The remainder, which is called the CCR amount, reduces the monthly payment the lessee must make over the term of the lease. A portion of this up-front amount can be applied to the first-month’s rent and certain up-front costs such as licensing and registration fees. Individuals who lease vehicles from Nissan MAC often contribute an up-front monetary amount at lease signing, in the form of a cash payment, credit for a trade-in vehicle, rebate, or other credit. Nissan MAC is a Tennessee-based auto financing company that provides auto loans and leases for customers of Nissan and Infiniti. When servicemembers lawfully terminate motor vehicle leases, the SCRA requires that they be refunded all lease amounts paid in advance for a period after the effective date of the termination. The SCRA also permits servicemembers to terminate motor vehicle leases early without penalty after entering military service or receiving qualifying military orders for a permanent change of station or to deploy. The SCRA prohibits repossessing a motor vehicle from a servicemember during military service without a court order if the individual made a deposit or installment payment on the loan before entering military service. Attorney Don Cochran, for the Middle District of Tennessee. “We will aggressively hold those institutions and businesses accountable who are required to comply with the Act. Our military deserves no less.” “The SCRA exists to offer protections to our military service members and to minimize undue financial burdens associated with deployments and other instances where our military servicemembers experience a profound and prolonged lifestyle change,” said U.S. Department of Justice will continue to enforce the Act vigorously in order to protect servicemembers and to ensure that all covered industries comply fully with the law.” “Men and women in uniform risk their lives to serve our country, and Congress enacted the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to protect them when they serve our nation,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. This settlement is the Justice Department’s 10 th settlement with an auto finance provider since 2015 and exemplifies continued efforts to enforce the SCRA’s motor vehicle repossession and lease termination provisions. The suit alleges that Nissan MAC repossessed 113 vehicles owned by SCRA-protected servicemembers without first obtaining the required court orders, and failed to refund up-front capitalized cost reduction (CCR) amounts to servicemembers who lawfully terminated their motor vehicle leases early after receiving military orders. The Department of Justice announced today that Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation (Nissan MAC) has agreed to pay $3 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA).
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