Harley-Davidson Financial Services (HDFS), the financing arm of America's most popular motorcycle manufacturer, has agreed to settle a case brought against it by the Massachusetts attorney general's office. Under the settlement, the company will reimburse as many as 600 Harley owners a combined $228,000. HDFS will also reimburse the state of Massachusetts $25,000 for legal fees.
The case came about after on number of Harley owners accused HDFS of not properly reimbursing them for fees incurred at the time of purchase. According to the complaint, loan contracts offered Harley buyers special loan terms if they were willing to pay contract enrollment fees as part of a loan agreement. A prorated portion of the fees was to be reimbursed if an owner paid off his or her loan early.
A problem arose in how the payoffs were to be made. HDFS arranged for reimbursements to be made through the dealerships that sold qualifying bikes to customers. However, some of those dealerships closed down before customers finished paying off their loans. Those customers had nowhere to go for their refunds but directly to HDFS; something that proved to be somewhat difficult as HDFS was not forthcoming in issuing refunds.
News reports say the refunds will be sent out to qualifying customers sometime in early July. In the meantime, Harley-Davidson has also agreed to implement a number of policy changes and procedures to ensure customers do not have any trouble obtaining refunds down the road. No details of the policy changes and procedures have been disclosed at this time.
'We are pleased that this finance company stepped forward to reimburse Massachusetts customers and promptly adopted changes to its procedures', Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said in announcing the settlement. 'We are continuing to review the practices of other motor vehicle finance companies operating in the commonwealth to ensure compliance with contractual obligations'.
The Business End of Motorcycles
Unfortunately, this is the second time in as many months that Harley-Davidson has been accused of being less-than-loyal to their loyal customers. Back in May the company made the papers after it refused to honor the warranty of a Wisconsin rider whose transmission failed. The company contends a violation of warranty terms by the biker, by way of regularly flying as many as seven flags from his machine.
While Harley's position has angered some bikers, there's no denying the fact that the business end of motorcycles has to be attended to if companies like Harley are going to remain competitive. It is regrettable that both of these incidents ended up becoming a high profile news items, but that is also part of the business.
Harley-Davidson remains one of America's most loved motorcycle brands despite its recent legal troubles. We do not expect that's going to change anytime soon. There's nothing quite like the sound and feel of a powerful Hog traveling down the road at 60 mph. It is what biking is all about and will always be about, for generations to come.
