SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- "It's been an absolute nightmare. I've gone from handi-capable to handicapped."
Carolyn Pridgen can't feel her feet. But she can drive her 2002 Chrysler Voyager with hand gears. Well, she could if she had it.
The van was seized by Chrysler last week, despite the lien release the Pridgen's received just a few months before congratulating them for paying the vehicle off.
"I knew that my payments were low. And at this point it was anytime that I should be finished paying off the car," Albert Pridgen said.
But somehow, somewhere, Chrysler made a mistake. Deferred payments that should have been tacked on to the end of the Pridgen's loan had somehow been over-looked. Once Chrysler realized their mistake, they called the Pridgens asking for the return of the lien release and immediate payment of their remaining balance, plus late fees. Albert Pridgen says that's when the phone calls came.
An older, disabled couple says an injustice has been done by Chrysler Financial. The Syracuse couple says they were a hair away from paying off a six-year car loan, but a paperwork error on the part of Chrysler has left them stranded. News 10 Now's Joleene Des Rosiers explains.
"What I did get was calls of accusations and harassments! I mean, we would get calls from them six, seven times a day," Albert Pridgen said.
These phone calls, the Pridgens say, accused them of trying to steal the Voyager, a vehicle they've been driving for the past six years. Albert says he tried to reason with them, but to no avail. Then they got a letter from Chrysler advising them to seek legal assistance and so they did.
"My lawyer knows we've been trying to work out an arrangement so they would be satisfied and we would be satisfied. Haven't heard anything," said Albert Pridgen.
The couple, well into their 60s, even sent Chrysler Financial $800 overnight in an effort to negotiate. Days later, a tow truck took away their vehicle, now peaked at over 93,000 miles.
They've sought council from Rob Wells, a local defense attorney, who is handling the case pro-bono.
"We are trying to get every bit of influence, pressure, contact we can get with Chrysler just to work with us. Just to return these people's car and let them pay the bill," said Wells.
"I am not trying to fight with Chrysler. I'm trying to let them know, okay, if I owe you, I'm willing to pay! I'm not trying to dodge from paying you. I mean, six years I've been paying you! It should count for something!" Albert Pridgen said.
"I can do nothing without that vehicle. And so they've held me hostage to their mistake," said Carolyn Pridgen.
The Pridgens figure they have roughly four more payments left at $539 a payment. But they say the monster corporation simply won’t negotiate.
"I haven't heard from Chrysler. Nothing. No letter, nothing," Albert Pridgen said.
Attorney Robert Wells has reached out to local government officials looking for help. State Senator John DeFrancisco and Assemblywoman Joan Christensen have both written letters to the company asking them to return the 2002 Voyager and negotiate a reasonable payment plan with the Pridgens.
We wanted to know what the protocol was when mistakes like this are made. Could a payment plan be worked out for the couple? We placed calls to Chrysler Financial over a two day period, but our questions were not answered.