Car repossession is a sad event that occurs when a car borrower fails to pay his car loan. The lender sends a professional towing company to take possession of the vehicle.
Once the car is repossessed, your personal belongings inside the vehicle are usually not the primary concern of the towing company or the lender.
However, they are required by law to keep them safe and secure. Therefore, what happens to your personal belongings when your car is repossessed?
When your car is repossessed, the repossession agent and the loan company are mandated by law to keep your personal belongings secure. They will however contact you to come pick them up.
What Happens to Your Personal Belongings When Your Car is Repossessed?
Here are what happens to your personal belongings when your car is repossessed:
1. An inventory of the Personal Belongings will be Conducted
Once your car is successfully repossessed, the lender or the repossession company will conduct a detailed inventory of the vehicle’s contents.
This inventory includes an itemized list of personal belongings, providing a record of what was found in the car at the time of repossession to create transparency and establish accountability for the handling of the borrower’s possessions.
2. Your Personal Belongings Will be Stored in a Secured Place
When your car is repossessed with your personal belongings inside, the items will be collected by the repo man who towed your car and kept in a secured place. The repossession company is mandated by law to keep your personal belongings safe after repossession.
For example, if you were coming from a hospital with your medications and decided to stop by a grocery store to purchase something before heading home.
If the repo agent repossesses your car while it is parked in a grocery store parking lot with your medications inside the car. He is expected to securely keep and store them as well as other personal items inside the car.
However, it’s already obvious that during a repossession process, the primary objective is the retrieval of the car itself. The repo agent, acting on behalf of the lender, is usually focused on efficiently and safely securing the vehicle for repossession.
During this process, the personal items left in the car become secondary, if not entirely overlooked, in the immediate retrieval operation.
This is when the law comes into play because the treatment of personal belongings in a repossessed vehicle is subject to legal frameworks that differ from one jurisdiction to another.
Therefore, repossession companies and car lenders are required to keep all the items that belong to the defaulter safe without any issues. They don’t have to tell you they lost your medications because they repossessed your car while you were inside a grocery store.
3. You Will be Notified to Come to Collect Your Items
After the items are collected and stored in a secure place, the next action would be to contact you to come pick up your items. They will contact you to schedule how and where to pick up your personal items.
However, if they fail to contact you, you can contact them yourself. If you don’t know the repossession company that towed your vehicle, you can contact your loan company. But on a normal ground, they should contact you to come pick up the items.
These are what happens to your personal belongings when your car is repossessed. However, it is important to note that some items termed ‘personal belongings’ may not be given to you.
For example, if you installed an aftermarket radio in the car before repossession and wish to collect the radio back after repossession. It’s left to the lender to give the radio back. If they fail to give the radio back to you, you can contact a lawyer for legal advice.
Meanwhile, for borrowers facing the upheaval of car repossession, swift action is important. Contacting the lender or towing company immediately after repossession provides the best chance of reclaiming personal items. It is advisable to inquire about the procedures, any necessary documentation, and the timeline for retrieving your belongings.
However, if the borrower fails to retrieve their personal items within the specified timeframe, the lender may proceed with disposal. The methods of disposal can vary and might include auctioning off the belongings, donating them to charity, or adhering to other lawful means of disposal as outlined by local regulations. Hence, why you should endeavor to get them as soon as possible to avoid losing them.
Can a Repo Company Charge Me to Get My Personal Items?
No, a repossession company cannot charge you to get your personal items found inside your repossessed car except when you fail to collect the items as soon as possible and wait for weeks to collect them. They may decide to charge you a storage fee.
Also, if valuable items such as gold, diamond, etc., are found in your car after repossession, the repo company or your lender may decide to store them in a secured safe house, you may be the one to pay for the storage fees.
In other words, the repossession company and your lender cannot charge you to get your personal belongings found in your car. But if they have to do so, they will tell you the reason why it is done that way.
What Are My Rights When My Car is Repossessed?
When your car is repossessed, you have rights designed to protect you and ensure fair treatment throughout the process. These rights are:
- Pre-Repo Notice: Before the repossession occurs, lenders often must provide notice, allowing you a chance to catch up on payments or negotiate alternative arrangements.
- No Breach of the Peace: Repo agents are generally not allowed to breach the peace during the repossession. This means they cannot use force, threaten violence, or break into a locked garage to retrieve the vehicle.
- Private Property: Repo agents usually cannot enter private property without permission. However, they may repossess the car from a public place or your driveway.
- Inventory of Belongings: Repo agents or lenders are often required to inventory and store any personal items found in the repossessed vehicle. You have the right to retrieve these belongings.
- Notice After Repo: After repossession, you should receive a notice detailing your rights, the location of your car, and instructions on how to reclaim it (if possible).
- Redemption Rights: In some jurisdictions, you may have the right to redeem the vehicle by paying the outstanding balance, plus repossession and storage fees, before the lender sells it.
- Right to Cure: Some jurisdictions grant you a “right to cure” period, allowing you to catch up on missed payments and reclaim the vehicle before it is sold.
- No Post-Repossession Retaliation: You are protected from retaliation by the lender after repossession. For example, they cannot harass you or force you to pay the remaining balance immediately.
Conclusion
When your car is repossessed, your personal belongings will be stored in a secured place, you will be notified about the process and with instructions on how to reclaim your possessions.
It is left for you to go get them as soon as possible to avoid losing them. If you however fail to retrieve them within the designated period, the lender may proceed with disposal in accordance with local regulations.
