Mechanics Bank (CA) is headquartered in WALNUT CREEK and is the 8th largest bank in the state of California. It is also the 112th largest bank in the nation. It was established in 1905 and as of March of 2025, it had grown to 1,426 employees at 113 locations. Mechanics Bank (CA) has an A health rating.
Terrible Experience
I am deeply disappointed with my experience with Mechanics Bank and feel compelled to share my story to warn others. I used this bank for a car loan, and for five years, I made every payment on time without fail. However, during the last month of my loan, their lack of communication caused a significant problem that has now impacted my financial standing.
Without any notification or warning, my auto-payment was stopped. I received no email, text, phone call, or letter alerting me to this issue. As a result, I unknowingly missed my final payment. Instead of notifying me or reaching out in any way to resolve this matter, they waited 45 days before reporting the missed payment to the credit bureaus.
This single missed payment has tarnished my 800 credit score and jeopardized my ability to close on a loan, even though I have been a responsible borrower and recently closed on a house. It is beyond frustrating that a company would be so careless in its customer communication, especially given the stakes involved.
Mechanics Bank’s failure to provide even the most basic courtesy of a notification is inexcusable. Their actions—or lack thereof—have caused unnecessary stress and financial complications for me. I would strongly advise anyone considering doing business with them to proceed with caution. There are better financial institutions that value their customers and prioritize clear, timely communication.
This experience has been nothing short of infuriating, and I will never use Mechanics Bank again. I hope this review helps others avoid the frustration and financial harm I have endured.
Predatory Lender Beware Car Dealers And Loan Seekers
This has got to be the worst bank ever. This bank is a predatory lender and takes advantage of people with health issues and disabilities. My 30+ year old niece obtained a loan from this company in Minnesota through a car dealer located in the Minneapolis area. She diligently paid her loan for over 30 months but was stricken with a severe case of COVID-19 last year and hospitalized. During this time, she developed a disability due to her failing pregnancy. She has her master's degree in education and is a teacher at a high school in rural Minnesota. She was late only a few times from March 2023, and they came to repossess her car without notice in November. I had made a payment of $1633+ on her loan in late November to catch her up completely, and my elderly parents mailed two checks, one of which was cashed for another payment of $335. This heartless bank took her car from her at a critical time in her rehabilitation during the Thanksgiving holidays and at the very cold start of a harsh Minnesota winter. Now 35 years old, she requires a cane to walk and has a 5-year-old son to care for and drive to daycare while she works. To help her, I linked my checking account to her online account to make any necessary payments. After I paid the $1633 payment, they locked her out of online access to her account and payment processing, and automatically mailed a form letter stating that her car would be sold at a car auction on December 11th, just in time to leave her without a car for Christmas.
As her uncle, who recently found out she lost the baby she was carrying, I was not going to let her lose anything else. So, I had her contact them for the total payoff information. They gave us the payoff amount of $6209.90, which was well under what the Subaru car was worth on KBB.com. We had also made recent sizable payments. They received the payment exactly as requested. I spent $3.00 to draw the cashier's check from my Iowa-based credit union through MoneyGram services on December 3rd and paid an additional $32.00 for priority/signature required to send the cashier's check via USPS. They said they couldn't process the payment, though they received it on December 5th (we have signature proof of receipt), as we drew ever closer to the December 11th deadline, not citing any real reason why they couldn't process the payment.
I truly believe they were trying to benefit from the sale of this car at auction, as used cars in this price range are in high demand. They then sent a mysteriously lower payoff amount, as they had miscalculated the payoff with all the extra payments we had made, now an extra $5584.94. Never one to give up, I complied again on December 10th with two more MoneyGram payments of $89.99 each for $2882.96 each to make that total amount of $5584.94, due to a limit on making two payments over $3000 within 30 days via their bill pay system. They acknowledged this complete payoff but stalled in returning her car for an additional five days. Then, to add insult to injury, they added a $450 parking fee for her car, and she had to drive to a repossession lot in the Minneapolis area 1.5 hours away. There's also the issue with the other $6209.90 cashier's check they were holding—my money—for no reason at all, that was immediately withdrawn from my account. Incredibly, they are still holding onto it without any reason whatsoever, other than complete disregard for the law.
My niece called many times, but this bank doesn't answer phone calls and will not call back. We called the main branch in Irvine, CA, and after explaining the entire fiasco their auto loan branch had caused us, they pretended to care and then disconnected the call before it was finished, twice. Upon calling back the Mechanics Bank Auto division again, we actually got through to someone who said they would check but then the call was disconnected again. This bank doesn't care about people, much less common decency or the law. They flagrantly break lending and repossession laws without regret. It's baffling how they are still in business with a 1-star Google review. They are a pathetic excuse for a lender, lacking common courtesy, communication, or accountability. Please be aware of this bank's fraudulent activities. This matter will be pursued further.
Worst Bank.....
This Bank is trash they do not communicate with you..I got my car repossessed unfortunately and I have called and called and called to see about trying to get the car back and haven't gotten a response from anyone regarding this matter..If I can be helpful to anyone please do not bank with this company.
Auto Loan Finance
the worst bank in the world
close to 10 years I had an auto loan with this bank.
If I was late they would charge me daily interest.
you pay more interest than what the car is worth.
Finally, I paid the bank off and have been waiting to get my title for almost one month.
first, they told me they will mail the title and electronically inform DMV.
after one week of going to the DMV. DMV told me if they would have released the lien it would show up within a few days, so I called them back and explain to them what DMV had said, at that point, they told me that they didn't file with DMV and I haven't received my title in the mail. Stay away from this bank as much as you can.
Data as of Q1 2025
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| FDIC Certificate # | 1768 |
| Year Established | 1905 |
| Employees | 1426 |
| Primary Regulator | FDIC |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 1.06% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 7.49% |
| Annual Interest Income | $173.6MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q1 2025vs Q1 2024 | $16.54B$17.34B |
| Loans | Q1 2025vs Q1 2024 | $9.34B$10.33B |
| Deposits | Q1 2025vs Q1 2024 | $13.99B$14.17B |
| Equity Capital | Q1 2025vs Q1 2024 | $2.37B$2.2B |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q1 2025vs Q1 2024 | $75.5MM$120.8MM |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q1 2025vs Q1 2024 | $9.3MM$36.1MM |
| Real Estate Owned | Q1 2025vs Q1 2024 | $13.4MM$19.3MM |
