What Happens If Your Car Is Repossessed

Know Your Rights After Your Car Is Repossessed

One of the greatest fears of people who are paying off a car loan is that they might one day be unable to keep up with their payments – for various reasons – and their car will be repossessed. Not only does it put you in an embarrassing position when other people start asking what happened to your car, but it also takes away the comfort of your freedom of movement. Regardless of the events that lead to this unfortunate situation, you should be aware of the rights you have. This article will tell you what you need to do to avoid having your car repossessed, and what you can still do if you haven’t been able to avoid it.

It will probably not come as a surprise that repossession is easier to prevent than to undo. Once the process has started, there is not much you can do to reverse it, because it will just follow its preset steps without letting you influence anything. However, if you talk with your lender before the car is repossessed and explain to them why you are unable to make your payments on time, you might convince them to allow you a short grace period or even renegotiate the payment schedule. Don’t forget that any such agreement should be written and signed by both you and the lender.

If you cannot get the lender to cooperate and repossession becomes imminent, it is a much better idea to turn in the car yourself. The reason is that, if it is repossessed, you will also have to pay for the costs of the repossession, in addition to being responsible for the balance due after the car is sold.

You should not see the lender as the bad guy. It is simply their legal right to take your car away if you are late with your payments. However, there are things they are not allowed to do, such as making a big scene and letting everyone know that your car is being repossessed. In some states, they cannot come to take your car without notifying you in advance. Furthermore, they must return to you any belongings you had in your car at the moment when the repossession took place, or reimburse you for them if they disappear. These laws are not identical in each state, so it is a good idea to check them and get an idea of the situation where you live.

The lender will typically try to sell your car after repossessing it, so that they can get at least some of the loan balance back. They are legally bound to notify you of the time and place of the sale, so that you can try to buy it back. Of course, if you want to buy back your car, you will be required to pay off the entire loan balance and any additional costs incurred by the lender in the process of repossession.

If you believe that the car was sold for less than it was worth, you are entitled to dispute the sale. An attorney will be able to explain your options to you.

The above paragraph becomes particularly relevant when you think that, if the price for which the car was sold does not cover the loan balance, you’ll still be required to pay the remaining sum. If the lender is not honest, they will be satisfied to get a considerable percentage of the money back from the sale and let you pay the rest – it won’t really matter to them where the money comes from.

If you have to step up in front of the judge and dispute the lender’s claim that you still have some loan balance to pay off, you’ll need to be able to support your dispute with arguments. For that, you should pay attention to the details of the repossession process, so that you can spot any actions that might infringe upon your rights.

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