Arkansas Car Title & Repo Laws

In any state, a lender has a right to repossess your collateral if the lender has a valid loan agreement you signed and a perfected security interest in the collateral. This is no exception in Arkansas, where a lender can repossess your car if they have a car title with their lien on it. While lienholders have the right to repossess a car as soon as the account is delinquent, it is usually at least 60 days delinquent before a leinholder will repossess a car because lenders are usually not able to obtain all the money you owe from the sale of your car. Check your loan agreement to determine the time frame that is considered delinquent with the lienholder before they will repossess your car.

Right to Cure

In Arkansas, a lienholder does not have to notify you that you car loan is delinquent by mailing you a right to cure letter. A right to cure letter is required in some states to give you a grace period to catch up your car loan without the worry that your car will be repossessed. Since Arkansas does not require a right to cure, you have no notice that the lienholder is considering repossession of your car. A lienholder can automatically repossess your vehicle if you have violated your loan agreement by not paying your car loan as agreed.

Ten Day Letter

The lender must allow the borrower 10 days to pay the amount the borrower owes plus repossession costs or make satisfactory payment arrangements with the lender. If the borrower does so, he can take possession of his car again. If not, the lender has the right to sell the car after the ten days. The lender may take private bids on the car or sell it at auction.

Requirements to Sell a Repossessed Car

To sale a repossessed car in Arkansas, the lienholder must provide the buyer of the car with a certified copy of the contract that defaulted, title with the lienholder's lien, repossession affadavit and a title application in the lienholder's name. The lienholder's lien must have been recorded with the Department of Motor Vehicles, which will search to ensure the lien was recorded. The DMV search is $1, which must be paid at the time the new title is recorded.