A Tennessee Man Sold His Pickup After GM Financial Said the Balance Was Zero—Now He’s Out the Truck and the Cash

An ordinary Facebook Marketplace sale turned into a nightmare for a Tennessee truck owner who says he did everything right, only to watch his money disappear and his nearly new pickup vanish across state lines.

Michael Phillips listed his 2025 Chevrolet Silverado for sale online, expecting the usual back and forth that comes with private party transactions. What he did not expect was to become the latest victim in what appears to be a growing scam targeting customers of GM Financial.

According to Phillips, the buyer presented himself as a legitimate purchaser and suggested completing the payoff through a three-way call with GM Financial. It sounded safe.

During the call, Phillips says he received confirmation that the loan balance showed zero and that he was released from the contract. To him, that was the green light. The lender’s word was good. The truck was paid off. The deal was done.

Trusting that confirmation, Phillips handed over the keys to his Silverado.

Then everything shifted.

The Confirmation Vanishes, and the Lender Says He’s Still on the Hook

Shortly after the transaction, the money that had supposedly cleared was gone. The balance that had shown zero was no longer settled.

Phillips says GM Financial later reversed course, telling him that because he sold the truck to a third party rather than through a dealership, he was still responsible.

“I would never release my vehicle to somebody had it not shown a zero balance,” Phillips said. From his perspective, he had followed the rules. He had involved the lender. He had obtained confirmation. Yet he now found himself without his truck and still on the hook financially.

Phillips provided documentation to local reporters that he says confirms GM Financial initially approved the sale. But after that moment, he claims communication stalled. With no truck and no clear resolution, he tried to report the vehicle stolen.

That led to another roadblock.

Police Say It’s Not Stolen

When he contacted the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Phillips says deputies declined to list the truck as stolen because he had voluntarily handed over the keys. From a legal standpoint, that distinction matters. He was not carjacked. He was not physically forced. He had completed what he believed was a legitimate sale.

Frustrated and determined, Phillips took matters into his own hands. Using the truck’s transponder data, he tracked its location to Georgia. He rented a car, gathered paperwork, and drove to the Atlanta Police Department to pursue the lead in person.

By the time authorities investigated, the truck itself was gone. All that remained was the transponder.

Police told Phillips that the man he believed he had sold the truck to, identified as Robert James Durden, was not who he claimed to be. The buyer allegedly said he owned a company called 3 Brothers Trucking in Atlanta. Investigators informed Phillips that Durden is a convicted felon and that the identity presented during the transaction was false.

Only after more than a week did Phillips manage to file a formal report back in Knox County. He says an officer told him incidents like this happen dozens of times a day, a comment that left him stunned. For Phillips, this was not a routine case file. It was a 9,000-pound pickup truck and a major financial obligation.

A Growing Pattern

What makes the situation even more troubling is that Phillips is not alone. Just days earlier, another victim, Sean Berger, described nearly the same experience. The pattern is hard to ignore.

Sellers with vehicles financed through GM Financial are approached by buyers who orchestrate payoff confirmations, often involving specific banks. The balance appears cleared. The seller releases the vehicle. Then the funds vanish.

Whether the scam exploits procedural gaps, verification weaknesses, or internal policies remains unclear. What is clear is that multiple victims believe GM Financial’s processes were central to how the fraud unfolded.

 

For private sellers, the story is a jolting warning. Apparently, a zero balance on a phone call may not be enough. In an era of increasingly sophisticated fraud, even steps that seem secure can be manipulated.

Phillips says he is speaking out so others do not learn the hard way. He thought he had covered every base. Instead, he is left fighting to recover either his truck or his money, while the people responsible remain a step ahead.

Editorial Note: Video playback may be limited or restricted on certain platforms. If you are unable to watch the video here, please visit our main website and search the article’s title, where full playback will be available.

Read More