Can I Get My Car Back from Repossession?

Repossession?

            YES!   If you were late on payments and a creditor repossessed your car, then in most cases a bankruptcy filing will prevent them from selling or retaining the car.   A Chapter 13 bankruptcy will effectively re-set the debt and allow you to pay the trustee each month who will in turn pay off the car debt.   A Chapter 7 bankruptcy can also stop the repossession, but in order to retain the car long term, a client must become current and stay current in a chapter 7 bankruptcy.

            In certain situations, a car will NOT be returned.  The most common situation is when the car is subject to a Title Pawn instead of a traditional car loan.   Title pawn “loans” are not loans at all and you are not required to repay them.  (This is how they can legally charge 100% interest; because you only pay it if you choose to.)  So, when the title pawn car is repossessed, it already belongs to the creditor, and a bankruptcy will not get it back.  Although sometimes it can, I recommend an attorney consultation.

            Another troubling situation is when you have filed repeat bankruptcies.   Each time you file, the power of the case decreases.  A third case (within one year) carries no bankruptcy stay, and the creditor does not have to return a car; indeed a creditor is even able to go to your home and repossess a car after a third case is filed.

            At the Slomka Law Firm, we help clients evaluate what options are best for them when their car is in jeopardy or has already been repossessed.  In every case, you have more options when you still have the car, so it is best to act quickly and not in response to the loss of the car.