How to Stop Repossession of a Vehicle

Having your vehicle repossessed can be a difficult and embarrassing situation. Once a vehicle has been repossessed, you cannot recover the vehicle until you pay all amounts due to the lender, which will now include the fees to repossess and the costs of storing the vehicle. Stopping a repossession is not easy, but you should attempt to stop the process as soon as you are advised of the pending repossession. Successful negotiation or bankruptcy proceedings are the only two methods to halting a repossession. Hiding the vehicle is a temporary solution and could ultimately result in a contempt charge with the court.

Instructions

Negotiate

1

Resist the urge to hide and pretend the problem does not exist. People who deal with repossessions have years of experience locating people. Hiding is not the answer. You will be found in the long run.

2

Examine your finances closely and determine what you can afford to pay immediately on the vehicle and how much you can apply to the loan over the next month. Be willing to give up luxuries such as eating out, going to the movies or anything else you can give up. Examine any areas you can save money out of your budget to put towards saving your car. Remember your car is what allows you to get places and even get to work. Losing your car to repossession will also damage your credit and you want to avoid this at all costs.

3

Contact the creditor. Go into the call knowing she is going to play hardball. Stress that you want to keep your car and tell her what amount of money you can pay and when you can pay. Explain what caused your situation and how you plan to recover and repay the past due debt.

4

Do not lose your patience and remain calm. If you are unable to negotiate a payment arrangement, end the call and try to call at a later time. Each representative will handle the call differently. If you have been assigned the same representative, try to call again. Your repeated calls may convince her that you are serious about making an arrangement that you will follow through with.

5

Follow through with any agreement you can make. If you fail to follow through, the chances of getting a second chance are very low.

Contact a Bankruptcy Attorney

6

Contact a local bankruptcy attorney to set up an appointment to discuss your options. Bankruptcy proceedings will halt all repossessions and any other debt collection.

7

Gather all of your income information and debt information. The more information you can give the attorney during your consult, the better he can advise you of your options.

8

Meet with the attorney and show him your financial information. Listen to his suggestions on your situation. If you decide to proceed with bankruptcy, refer all creditors to the attorney and he will handle all contact with the creditor and will ensure the repossession process is halted.