Repossession laws vary from state to state and from contract to contract. Generally, there's no difference between not making lease payments on a vehicle and not making your payments on an auto loan. In both cases, you've signed a contract to pay a certain amount of money over an extended period of time. Most lease contracts include fine print that the leaseholder can repossess the auto immediately, or right after the grace period, if you default on a payment. While it's unlikely that your auto would be repossessed for just one missed payment, you're more at risk with each successive payment you don't make.
Notification
As of May 2011, in all but two states, a leaseholder can't send a repo agent for your car without getting a court order first. The exceptions are Wisconsin and Louisiana. Everywhere else, you should receive at least two written warnings from the leaseholder. In most states, you'll first receive a "right to cure" notice. The leaseholder will give you a certain amount of time to make your past due payments and bring the account current before the company takes action. Next, you may receive notice that the leaseholder has begun legal proceedings to get the court order allowing the repossession.
Leaseholder's Obligations
Once the leaseholder has gotten a court order to repossess your vehicle, some states require that the company must again give you a certain amount of days to pay what you owe before it can send a repo agent for your car. Once the company has taken your car, you should also receive notification of it being up for sale so you have a chance to buy the vehicle if you want to. Your lease agreement terminates with the repossession, but you can purchase the vehicle at auction.
Repossession Agent's Limitations
Most states prohibit a repossession agent from committing any "breach of the peace" when he comes for your car. In some states, this can include taking the car over your objections. However, objecting only buys you a certain amount of time. The agent will surely come back unless you cure the default. He also usually can't take your car from a closed garage or threaten you into letting him take it.
Tips
Rather than let your lease payment lapse for more than one month, contact the leaseholder immediately when you know you're going to be unable to make a payment. In many cases, the leaseholder will work with you to get you back on track. The leaseholder wants your money, not your car. If there's no way you can make the payments any longer, you may also have the option of giving the car up voluntarily. You'll still be responsible for the balance of the lease payments you contracted for, minus whatever the leaseholder sells your car for, but you can potentially save yourself some collection fees, court costs and penalties if you simply surrender the car.
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