Maria Elena's Insurance Agency

Abby Pineda _{on Google}

May 19th, 2022

I went in a couple weeks ago to fix my registration, she ran my card, gave me a paper and said she wouldnt charge me until I got back to her. She ended up charging me $65+ Just for a printed sheet of paper. Her attitude was horrible as soon as I got there, if I could give her zero stars I would.

merrill martin _{on Google}

Mar 28th, 2022

THIS BUSINESS IS RUN BY A THIEF ! I ATTEMPTED TO DO A TITLE TRANSFER WITH HER , SHE TRIED TO CHARGE ME FEE'S THAT DID NOT APPLY TO THIS ! OVER A THOUSAND DOLLARS !!! WHEN I CORRECTED HER SHE DEMANDED I LEAVE AND WOULD NOT RETURN THE $100 CASH THAT SHE ASK FOR UPFRONT BEFORE DOING ANY WORK ! SHE SHOULD BE IN JAIL !!!

C E _{on Google}

Feb 10th, 2022

Best case, Maria Elena Sanders does not fully understand DMV requirements and should not be in charge of your paperwork. Worst case, she's knowingly overcharging people for profit. Stay far far away.
My husband and I just moved to CA from out of state and needed to update our car's registration. The DMV site said they weren't currently offering out-of-state registration and to use a partner office instead, so we made an appointment with Maria Elena Sanders, who is listed on the DMV website as a licensed partner. When we arrived for our appointment, she immediately asked for money upfront for the registration, $135. Since this was similar to our online DMV quote, we felt comfortable paying and proceeding with our paperwork. As we got started, she insisted my name could not be added to the title (the car was only in my husband's name previously). She asked us to fill out our own Verification of Vehicle form, even though the form said very clearly it was "Not To Be Completed By Applicant," and tried to charge us $95 for it (which we didn't see until she gave us the invoice later). She was in and out of her side office several times, and without getting full details from us or having us fill out a Title Application, she came back with an invoice amounting to $975 to register our car. Even after I disputed the hundreds of dollars charged for taxes (we've owned our car outright long past the 12 month DMV tax window, I showed her documentation for this, and it would have been reported on the Title Application if she had ever given us one), she refused to update the invoice and still tried to pressure us into paying by telling my husband and I that the DMV would charge us the same amount anyway. She was not clear about where the other itemized charges were coming from and said I could not take a copy of the invoice with me unless I paid her. She did allow me to take a picture. When I made it clear I would not be paying her invoice, she returned my documents and part of my money. She kept $65 as a "service charge" for "cancelling our appointment."
The DMV made an exception for us and we were able to register our car (under both of our names) the same day for a grand total of $183, a nearly $800 difference in cost.