When you fail to pay for the car you’re driving, your lender will come and repossess the car.
Repossession is the process of reclaiming a car from a debtor who has failed to make payment for the car in his/her possession.
The loan company will proceed with sending a repo man who will come and repossess the car.
It is the responsibility of the repo agent/man to repossess the car by following the repossession laws. Even if you moved to a new address, a repo man will come repossess the car.
A repo man can find your new address through:
- Skip tracing
- Social media and online presence
- Contacts and networking with related industries
- Surveillance to monitor your movement
- Mail forwarding services and records
Can the Repo Man Find My New Address?
Yes, a repo man can find your new address by using skip tracing techniques, checking public records such as social media presence, etc, or conducting surveillance.
If you’ve moved or you changed your address and are yet to update the new address with your creditors, DMV, or other relevant authorities, a repo company will employ other tactics to locate you.
As reiterated earlier, the repo man can make use of skip tracing, social media presence, surveillance, private investigators, and mail forwarding records.
However, there are legal limitations to what methods he can use and how aggressively he can pursue you. But he’s not allowed to use illegal or deceptive means to obtain your information, such as pretexting or impersonation.
How Can the Repo Man Find My New Address?
Here’s how a repo man can find your new address:
1. By Skip Tracing
A repo man can use a process called skip tracing to locate individuals whose contact information is not readily available.
The term “skip” refers to a person who has “skipped town” or moved without leaving a forwarding address, making it challenging to find him. The repo man will employ this method to get your new address and hopefully repossess the car.
However, to use this method, the repo man has to start by gathering your information such as your full name, date of birth, social security number, address history, phone numbers, email addresses, and any other identifying details.
Once this information is made available to the skip tracers, they will use a specialized database and software to search through vast amounts of public records, such as utility bills, property records, voter registration databases, credit reports, and driver’s license databases, etc., to provide valuable clues about your current whereabouts or recent activities.
They may conduct extensive online research to scour social media profiles, public records websites, forums, and other online platforms for any mentions or updates about the person they’re trying to locate.
If it is not enough to get hold of your new address, they may decide to reach out to your friends, family members, neighbors, employers, or other associates of yours. They may ask probing questions or employ persuasive techniques to gather information about your current location.
In some cases, they may conduct field investigations, such as visiting addresses you’ve visited in the past, conducting surveillance, or making inquiries in your neighborhood or community by knocking on their doors, talking to your neighbors, or leaving behind contact information in case they hear anything about your whereabouts.
In extreme cases where finding your location has become a hard nut to crack, skip tracers may collaborate with other professionals, such as law enforcement agencies, private investigators, and collection agencies, to share information and resources with the hope of yielding valuable leads or insights to your new address.
2. Through Social Media and Online Presence
The repo man can find your new address through social media and other online presence where you may have knowingly or unknowingly shared your location.
He might resort to using social media profiles, forums, and websites for any hints or updates about your whereabouts. You can never tell, small posts or check-ins can provide valuable leads.
You can post a photo or video on your social media handle without tagging your location and the repo man with the help of skip tracers can use those videos and photos to find clues about your current location, lifestyle, activities, and associations.
If you mistakenly log in to your social media platforms that allow its users to check in at specific locations or tag their posts with geotags, indicating where they were when they made the post, the repo man can use this information to track your movements or identify places you frequent. He can come and wait for you there to repossess the car without needing your address.
Moreover, many Social media platforms usually display people’s list of friends, followers, and connections. The repo man may analyze these networks to identify your mutual acquaintances, family members, or associates who may have information about your whereabouts or your new address.
3. Through Contacts and Networking
Repo companies and their agents usually have a network of contacts in related industries, such as towing companies, vehicle registration offices, or law enforcement agencies. He may reach out to these contacts for information or assistance in locating your new address.
If the repo man engages the services of skip tracers to help find your new address, it makes the work easier because skip tracers usually build relationships with professionals in related industries like private investigation, collections, and legal services.
These contacts may have access to specialized databases, resources, or insider knowledge that can aid in locating your new address and whereabouts.
They can even go to the extent of engaging with community organizations, neighborhood groups, or local businesses to gather information about your activities or your connections in the area because they believe that building rapport with your community members can lead to valuable tips or insights.
4. Through Surveillance
In some cases, repo agents may resort to surveillance tactics to monitor your movements or gather information about your current residence, either by staking out known addresses, following vehicles, or conducting discreet inquiries in the neighborhood.
If the repo man wishes to use surveillance to get your new address, he will start by surveilling your locations such as your previous residence, workplace, or places they frequent.
Through this, he may gather information about your movements or interactions with others that could lead to their new address.
If the car that is up for repossession has a GPS tracker on it, the repo man may use GPS tracking devices or other tracking technology to monitor your movements. This can help him identify your current location and track him to your new address.
He can even go the extra mile of using covert surveillance to discreetly observe your movements and activities without you knowing by staking-outs, hidden cameras, or tracking your movements from a distance to gather information about your new address.
5. Mail Forwarding Services and Records
If you’ve filed a change of address with the postal service, a repo man may be able to obtain your new address through mail forwarding records by monitoring the change of address requests you made through postal services like the United States Postal Service (USPS). However, this method may not always be reliable, especially if you’ve opted for confidential mail forwarding.
The repo man with help from the repo company, your loan company, and court order, may request access to mail forwarding records from postal services or other relevant authorities that contain information about individuals who have submitted change of address requests, including their previous and new addresses.
He can confidently get your new address once he gets hold of these records. He may use address verification services or databases to cross-reference information and confirm your current addresses.
These services may compile data from various sources, including change of address requests, utility bills, credit reports, and public records.
Does the Repo Man Follow You Around?
Yes, a repo man can follow you around to get more information about your whereabouts and when the car is always parked for easy repossession.
The essence of following your about could be to watch you park the vehicle so he can tow it or, monitor where you always go and when the car is always parked to come for the repossession.
However, if the car facing repossession is equipped with a GPS tracking device, the repo man may not need to physically follow you around, he can simply monitor the location of the vehicle remotely and move in to repossess it when it’s parked or otherwise accessible.
Conclusion
Indeed, a repo man can find your new address through skip tracing, social media, online presence, contacts and networking with related industries, surveillance to monitor your movement, and mail forwarding services and records to get your new address.
Once he finds your new address, he can proceed with the repossession proper. He might take more time to monitor your movement in the new address to know when the car is always parked and readily available for easy repossession. Then, he will come and repossess the car.
