Crossing The Border in a Financed Vehicle

Before traveling into Baja or mainland Mexico it is a good idea to check with the company through which you financed the lease or purchase of your vehicle, to see if they have special requirements for international travel. Many lien holders require their clients to request an official letter of permission to be carried with their Mexican insurance policy throughout the entire trip. This letter can be shown at check points and border crossings to verify that you are legally allowed to take your car into Mexico and back.

Individual banks and financial services have different procedures for how you should go about obtaining a letter of permission. It is also important to note that many companies will not allow you to travel in Mexico with your financed vehicle for a period longer than 30 days. You should always contact your lending institution directly to make sure that you know their particular policies and expectations, and are following the correct steps to receive a letter of permission well in advance of your departure date. Some lenders notarize their letters, which lengthens the processing time. Using a FAX machine to send and receive information from your bank or financing company will expedite the process significantly.

Baja Bound.Com recommends that customers who will be traveling with a financed vehicle allow a minimum of 7 - 10 days in advance of travel to complete the steps necessary to get this important letter of permission from your lending institution. Although some institutions work more quickly than others, if you wait until the last minute to make your request you may have to postpone your trip until the permission letter arrives!

Here are descriptions of the step-by-step process that Baja Bound customers should follow in order to receive formal permission to travel south of the border from ten of the most commonly used financing companies:

Bank of America
Bank of the West
Chrysler Financial
Ford Motor Credit
GMAC
Honda Financial Services
Navy Federal Credit Union
San Diego County Credit Union
Toyota Financial Services
USAA
VW Credit
Wachovia/WFS Financial
Wells Fargo

Bank of America

Bank of America clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Fax or mail a written request for letter of permission to 1-804-264-6790.
• Include:
  • Exact dates of departure from and return to USA
  • Copy of vehicle registration
  • Year, Make, Model, VIN number
  • Proof of Mexican insurance on the vehicle
  • Fax number where you can be reached, if you want to receive your letter of permission by Fax.
• Your Bank of America account must be current and have been open for at least 90 days before the request.

If you fax your request, Bank of America can generate the letter of permission on the same day or within 24 hours. If you send your request by regular US mail, expect it to take 3-5 days for your request to be processed.

You must carry the letter of permission everywhere you go on your journey and if you decide to extend the dates of your travel while in Mexico you need to call Bank of America to get a new letter of permission with extended dates reflecting your new itinerary. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-215-6195.

Bank of the West

Bank of the West clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Fax or mail a written request for letter of permission to Bank of the West Collateral Department 1-925-937-6246 (FAX).
• Include:
  • Exact dates of departure from and return to USA
  • Your account number and name
  • Vehicle license plate number
  • Proof of Mexican insurance on the vehicle
  • Fax number where you can be reached, if you want to receive your letter of permission by Fax

Bank of the West clients are strongly encouraged to submit their request in writing at least three weeks prior to travel departure. Average processing time is between 3 and 5 days but depending on the customer account it can sometimes take longer. Once Bank of the West has approved the request, a letter will be generated and can be faxed or mailed back to you. The letter of permission will be on letterhead but not notarized. It must be carried at all times on the journey. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-827-7500 Ext 4900.

Chrysler Financial

Chrysler Financial clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Telephone a Customer Service representative about your individual account at least 7 – 10 days prior to your scheduled departure for Mexico.
• Chrysler representative will give you fax number or mailing address to send your written request and documentation to, depending on your particular account.
• Include:
  • Exact dates of departure from and return to USA
  • Addresses and telephone numbers of where you will be staying in Mexico
  • Proof of Mexican insurance coverage
  • Three personal references in USA including their contact information
  • Proof of citizenship

From the receipt of your request, it typically takes Chrysler Financial 24-48 hours to generate a letter of permission which they will either fax or mail to you according to your preference. This letter must be carried with you at all times on your journey. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-556-8172.

Ford Motor Credit

Ford Motor Credit clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Telephone Ford Motor Credit at 1-800-727-7000 to find out your payoff amount. You are required to have full coverage for the entire payoff amount of the vehicle. Customer Service will also let you know which client service center to fax your request to, based on which time zone you live in.
  • Irving, Texas Service Center Fax # 1-888-868-0359
  • Colorado Springs, Colorado Service Center Fax # 1-866-466-6310
• Call BajaBound.Com to purchase Mexican insurance in the appropriate amount
• Your policy must reflect the exact dates of your travel to and from Mexico, show an accurate VIN number, list Ford Motor Credit as the lien holder on the vehicle.
• The name on your insurance policy must match the name on your Ford Motor Credit account.
• Fax proof of Mexican insurance to Ford Motor Credit.
• Your request is forwarded to Ford Motor Credit management for approval.

If approved, Ford Motor Credit will generate a notarized permission letter for you to take along your journey. There are many qualifying situations and each case is evaluated individually.

It typically takes between 24 - 48 hours for your letter to be generated. It is then faxed or mailed to you. Each letter of permission is valid only for the dates of travel indicated on your request. If you decide to extend your stay you must call Ford Motor Credit to obtain an updated letter of permission. You must carry your letter with you at all times on your journey.

GMAC

GMAC clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Purchase Mexican insurance from BajaBound.Com
• Make sure insurance policy reflects exact dates of your trip into Mexico.
• Telephone GMAC Customer Service at 1-800-200-4622.
• You will be directed to fax your proof of insurance and written request for a letter of permission to GMAC. The fax number will be given to you by a GMAC representative based upon your account type.
• Your GMAC account will be reviewed to ensure that your deductible requirements are appropriately covered by the insurance policy you have purchased.
• Deductible requirements vary and depend on what type of GMAC account you hold
• If approved, your letter will be faxed or mailed back to you.

It generally takes 24-48 hours for your written request to be processed and a letter of permission generated. You must carry the letter of permission everywhere you go on your journey and if you decide to extend the dates of your travel while in Mexico you need to call GMAC to get a new letter of permission with extended dates reflecting your new itinerary.

Honda Financial Services

Honda Financial Services clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:/p>

• Telephone a Customer Service representative about your individual account 7 – 10 days before your intended departure. Honda recommends allowing 10 days.
• Your Honda representative will give you fax number or mailing address to send your written request and documentation to, depending on your particular account.
• Include:
  • Your Honda Account Number
  • Exact dates of departure from and return to USA
  • Proof of Mexican insurance coverage
  • If you purchased the vehicle: Shows Full Coverage
  • If you are leasing the vehicle: Must show coverage in the amounts of $100,000.00 bodily injury per person, $300,000.00 bodily injury per accident, $50,000 property damage
  • Honda must be on the policy as the loss payee
  • Honda Financial Services Address must be on the policy:
    PO Box 6070
    Cypress, California 90630

From the receipt of your request, there is a minimum turnaround time of 24 hours to generate a letter of permission which they will prefer to mail to you. The letter of permission is notarized, so they prefer not to send it through a fax machine. This letter must be carried with you at all times on your journey, and is valid for only the dates specified on your request. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-445-1358.

Navy Federal Credit Union

Navy Federal Credit Union does not typically require notification if you are going to take your financed vehicle south of the border, unless you plan to move to Mexico on a permanent basis. It is their policy to generate letters of authorization only for customers who are taking their vehicles into Mexico for good. If you are planning a trip of a few months or less, you are not required to notify Navy Federal Credit Union of your plans.

Any further questions can be directed to NFCU Customer Service at 1-888-842-6328.

San Diego County Credit Union

San Diego County Credit Union clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Come into your local branch office to receive this letter of permission.
• Bring your SDCCU ID card
• SDCCU has the rest of your information on file.
• Bring proof of Mexican insurance policy with vehicle coverage
• The amount of coverage you need depends on the worth of the vehicle and the size of your SDCCU loan.
• Tell SDCCU the exact dates of your travel and where you will be traveling.

SDCCU clients are liable for any loss or damage to the vehicle, so SDCCU generally recommends purchasing full coverage for your car including smaller options such as vandalism and partial theft.

Your letter will typically be generated on site, although in some cases it can take several days to receive approval and have the letter generated and faxed or mailed to you. You must carry it with you at all times on your journey. You can reach Customer Service at 1-877-732-2848.

Toyota Financial Services

Toyota Financial Services (TFS) clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Telephone TFS to make sure you have approval to purchase Mexican insurance.
• If approval is given, purchase BajaBound.Com insurance policy.
• Fax proof of insurance to number given by TFS Customer Service Representative.
• TFS reviews your coverage, makes sure that all information is correct.
• TFS mails or faxes you the letter of permission.
• Processing a letter of permission typically takes TFS between 24-48 hours, however it is highly recommended by the company to allow one full week for processing.

It is important to note that letters of permission from TFS are only valid for 30 days or less. If you want to stay in Mexico longer than 30 days, you must actually return to the USA and get a new consent letter. (It may be possible for you to have the letter faxed to your location in Mexico, each decision is made on a case by case basis.) The letter of permission must be carried at all times on the journey. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-874-8822.

USAA

USAA clients are apparently not required by USAA to carry a letter of permission on their journey, however it is highly recommended and USAA will generate a letter of permission for clients who request it. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Telephone USAA at 1-800-531-2265 to find out what the procedure is to get a letter of permission based upon your individual account.
• Provide USAA with the exact dates of your travel and proof of Mexican insurance policy.
• Allow 1 – 2 weeks advance notice for the letter of permission to be generated.
• A notarized letter will be faxed or mailed to you at the number or mailing address you provide to the USAA Customer Service Representative.

It is important to note that letters of permission from USAA are only valid for 30 days or less. If you want to stay in Mexico longer than 30 days, USAA will fax a new letter to your location in Mexico, however they caution that Customs does not always accept faxed letters and sometimes require an original notarized letter. If you decide to request a letter of permission to verify the legality of taking your vehicle into Mexico, you should carry it with you at all times on your journey.

VW Credit

VW Credit clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Telephone a Customer Service representative about your individual account at least 7 - 10 days prior to your scheduled departure for Mexico.
• Your VW representative will give you fax number or mailing address to send your written request and documentation to, depending on your particular account. You can also make the request verbally via telephone and then mail in your documentation.
• Include:
  • Name, telephone number.
  • Exact dates of departure from and return to USA.
  • Addresses and telephone numbers of where you will be staying in Mexico.
  • Proof of Mexican insurance coverage.
  • Insurance policy must cover cash value for total theft and damage - the value of the policy must be more than or equal to payoff amount.
  • Co-buyer and customer must both be on the insurance.
  • Three personal references in USA including their contact information.
  • References cannot be living at the same address.

From the receipt of your request, it typically takes VW Credit 48 hours to generate a letter of permission which they prefer to mail to you as it is a notarized document. They will fax it to customers upon request but caution that the document may not be considered legal if it is merely a fax copy. Your letter of permission must be carried with you at all times on your journey, and is valid for only the dates specified on your request. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-428-4034.

It is important to note that letters of permission from VW Credit are valid for only 3 months or less.

Wachovia/WFS Financial

Wachovia clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Fax or mail your written request to Wachovia Dealer Services including:
  • Proof of Mexican insurance including BajaBound.Com policy number and telephone number.
  • Evidence that insurance coverage is equal to or greater than 80% of the current loan balance; average cash value is acceptable.
  • Your Wachovia account number.
  • Whether or not your title has been perfected.
  • Your contact information.
  • The declaration page for your policy.
• Fax Number: 1-888-291-2886
• Mailing Address:
  Wachovia Dealer Services
  Attn: Correspondence
  P.O. Box 168048
  Irving, Texas 75016-8048.

When your request is received, Wachovia will contact BajaBound.Com to verify your insurance and process the authorization. A letter of permission will be sent to you at the fax number or mailing address that you provide. It typically takes between 48-72 hours for a request to be processed once it is received by Wachovia, not including return mailing time.

It is important to note that letters of permission from Wachovia are only valid for 30 days or less. If you want to stay in Mexico longer than 30 days, you must get a new consent letter. If there are extenuating circumstances it may be possible for you to have a new letter faxed to your location in Mexico. The letter of permission must be carried at all times on the journey. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-289-8004.

Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo clients are required to carry a letter of permission on their journey. To receive this letter, you must complete the following steps:

• Telephone Wells Fargo Customer Service to alert them about your upcoming trip.
• Provide:
  • Dates you will be traveling to and from Mexico
  • Your name, address and telephone number
  • Contact information for one of your relatives in the USA

Wells Fargo will generate a letter for you and send it to you via fax or regular US mail. Faxed letters of permission can be generated and sent within the same day or 24 hours. Allow at least seven days before travel to receive your letter of permission from Wells Fargo by regular US mail.

It is important to note that letters of permission from Wells Fargo are only valid for 30 days or less. If you want to stay in Mexico longer than 30 days, you will need to have a new letter faxed or mailed to your location in Mexico. The letter of permission must be carried at all times on the journey. You can reach Customer Service at 1-800-869-3557.