wwyd, car repo and items thrown away

[melissapealo]

My mother passed away a couple months ago. She did not have a will, however at the hospital she did give her car to my youngest son who is 17. My brother was working with the company trying to get the payments figured out. I thought he was taking care of it but later found out he was not. Well on a Wednesday they came to her house and took the car. I spoke with one of the owners (the wife) on Thursday to find out what was owed on the car and how to go about getting it paid off. At that time I let her know that I would be up the following day to pay the car off in full and she said that was fine that we had 10 days. Friday afternoon we did go pay the car note off and let them know we would be retrieving it later in the day. We needed to get in the car to get the title for transfer. Well in just those 2 days they had emptied the car out and thrown everything that was in it away. They also ripped the title in half and gave that to me. There were numerous personal items in the car that can't be replaced and only have value to our family. However there was also my mothers tote bag that she had taken to the hospital with her that had her ipad in it. As well as a portable speaker in the car that belonged to my son. So I'm unsure of what steps I should take to get things replaced. Should I write a letter to the company asking for the replacement of the items or should I just file a small claims action against them? I do know that legally they were not allowed to throw the items away, but am not looking to hire an attorney to handle things. Also my mother had gotten the entire door handle including the lock changed about 6 months ago and I don't know what they did but the door handle is now broken and can not be opened from the outside. So would like that repaired by them as well. The receipts for the work she had done was in the car but I can go to the shop she used and get a statement from then on what was done.
I know they had every legal right to repo the car and that is not the issue, it is what transpired after it was in their possession.
Would you try talking to the company or just file a claim with the courts?

 

[Southernmiss]

My mother passed away a couple months ago. She did not have a will, however at the hospital she did give her car to my youngest son who is 17. My brother was working with the company trying to get the payments figured out. I thought he was taking care of it but later found out he was not. Well on a Wednesday they came to her house and took the car. I spoke with one of the owners (the wife) on Thursday to find out what was owed on the car and how to go about getting it paid off. At that time I let her know that I would be up the following day to pay the car off in full and she said that was fine that we had 10 days. Friday afternoon we did go pay the car note off and let them know we would be retrieving it later in the day. We needed to get in the car to get the title for transfer. Well in just those 2 days they had emptied the car out and thrown everything that was in it away. They also ripped the title in half and gave that to me. There were numerous personal items in the car that can't be replaced and only have value to our family. However there was also my mothers tote bag that she had taken to the hospital with her that had her ipad in it. As well as a portable speaker in the car that belonged to my son. So I'm unsure of what steps I should take to get things replaced. Should I write a letter to the company asking for the replacement of the items or should I just file a small claims action against them? I do know that legally they were not allowed to throw the items away, but am not looking to hire an attorney to handle things. Also my mother had gotten the entire door handle including the lock changed about 6 months ago and I don't know what they did but the door handle is now broken and can not be opened from the outside. So would like that repaired by them as well. The receipts for the work she had done was in the car but I can go to the shop she used and get a statement from then on what was done.
I know they had every legal right to repo the car and that is not the issue, it is what transpired after it was in their possession.
Would you try talking to the company or just file a claim with the courts?

First question, why did you all not remove the items from the car already?

 

[SouloTravlr]

To anyone reading along, do not ever keep your title in your car.

 

[sam_gordon]

Second question... if they repo the car, wouldn't they be entitled to what was in the car?
Third question... why would they be on the hook for damages made doing the repo?
Fourth question... why didn't someone pay for the car months ago? I can't believe they would repo the car after the first missed payment (unless there was a history of missed payments).

Sorry, IMO, you're out of luck.

 

[DisneylandDarling]

First, I am so sorry for your mom's passing. I do think you have a claim, as personal property should not have been thrown away. There's no reason to tear the title up, either. How long was it in the repo company's possession?


Unless otherwise stated in the contract, the repo company does not have a right to personal property inside the vehicle. It makes me wonder if it was thrown away, or they really kept it to sell. Seems shady to me.

 

[cats mom]

Hopefully you have the loan agreement. If so, I'd start there to see what the specific terms are. You might have a claim against the lender, but it really depends on the terms of the contract and the laws of the state you're in. I know you said you don't want to deal with an attorney. What about contacting the Consumer Protection Agency in your state (or county or city depending on where you live) to see what they say? That could at least give you an idea of what direction you want to take.

 

[sonnyjane]

If they are legit repo people they should be bonded and insured. What do THEY say about the items that are missing?

 

[Klayfish]

Hopefully I can help, I do claims for a living. Your claim would be with the repo company. They should have what's called "On hook" coverage and/or Garagekeepers coverage. That would cover any damage caused to the vehicle while it is in their possession. You're going to have to be able to demonstrate that they damaged the car.

As for the personal possessions inside of it, I'm sorry if some of them had sentimental value, but they would only owe cash value. In other words, what were those items worth at the time they were lost/damaged? Not replacement cost, but actual current cash value.

I don't know what state you're in, so I can't comment on the legal liability of what they could and could not do with the car and any possessions inside of it. But I would file a claim with their carrier and start from there. If you file suit, it would be small claims and they would turn it over to their insurance anyway, so may as well start at the insurance level.

 

[RedAngie]

If there is an outstanding loan on the car, doesn't the bank or finance company maintain possession of the title until the loan is paid off? Why would it be in the car?

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

If there is an outstanding loan on the car, doesn't the bank or finance company maintain possession of the title until the loan is paid off? Why would it be in the car?

You would have a title with a lien listed.

You need the title to register the car, or at least that is what we used when we registered our car.

 

[Sixty-something]

I worked in a repo company for nearly 10 years, so I may have a little insight into the process. From what I'm understanding from the OP, the car was taken and when they went there 48 hours later, all the belongings were gone and the car damaged. I know laws vary from place to place, and some places have longer times they are required to store the belongings, but I cannot imagine that any juridiction would give someone less than 48 hours to retrieve their belongings. Some repo companies are reputable and some of them are thieves with a business license.

This should be reported to the police, both from the place it was taken from, and the police where the repo company is located. There should be a report about the missing items (bring a list with you) and the damages. The damages affect the resale value of the vehicle, and the loan company would not get the money back when they sell the car at auction if it has been damaged. Or, if you pay off the car and keep it, the cost of repairing it needs to be resolved.

Sorry you had to deal with this. They may have thrown everything out, or someone might have taken it home and kept what they wanted. There's no way to know. The business is liable for this one way or another. Fill out a report at the police station (sometimes it may take a few days before you can get a copy from them) and save that. Report it to the loan company also. You probably will have to go to small claims court for satisfaction. If you have a paper saying you are in charge of the estate, sooner or later someone will ask you for it. Good luck.

(edit to add - also report to Better Business Bureau)

 

[easyas123]

If there is an outstanding loan on the car, doesn't the bank or finance company maintain possession of the title until the loan is paid off? Why would it be in the car?

Here in MD we get the title even if there is a loan on the vehicle. No idea why/how it works that way.

 

[nkereina]

Second question... if they repo the car, wouldn't they be entitled to what was in the car?

the repo company does not have a right to personal property inside the vehicle.

They need to hold onto possessions for a "reasonable" amount of time. After that time has passed, they can discard them as abandoned property. I don't know if there's any actual number on reasonable time, but I know in most states, the bank needs the repo company to hold the car for 10 days to give the customer a chance to redeem it before they send it to auction. If those 10 days had past, the repo company could have tossed the items preparing it for transfer to the auction house. I wouldn't consider it a reasonable amount of time myself, but the repo company might. Or it may have been their honest mistake.

OP, I would get the bank involved. The bank has a contract with this repo agency to do this work on their behalf, and there may be verbiage in their contract that covers this. The bank is also privy to the repo agent's insurance policy. The repo agent may also be more responsive if you are complaining about them to the bank, since the bank will not want to work with a third party that is causing customer complaints. Lastly, you could threaten to file a CFPB complaint which will really get the bank moving. Good luck!

 

[Klayfish]

OP, I would get the bank involved. The bank has a contract with this repo agency to do this work on their behalf, and there may be verbiage in their contract that covers this. The bank is also privy to the repo agent's insurance policy. The repo agent may also be more responsive if you are complaining about them to the bank, since the bank will not want to work with a third party that is causing customer complaints.

The contract between the bank and repo company will be the other way around, actually. The repo company will usually sign some kind of "hold harmless" agreement where they (the repo company) assumes legal liability for damages that occur during the repo process. For that reason, the bank really won't care about a third party that gets complaints raised (unless there are serious issues).

 

[mousefanmichelle]

I had a car repo'd once and someone went through my CD's and took what they wanted. Can't prove they were ever there, but I knew they were and when we got the car back - poof they were gone. He said/she said as far as I am concerned.

 

[SharonZ]

Are you positive that the items were still in the vehicle when in was repossessed? Is it possible that your brother could have removed them before the car was taken - have you asked him about them?

 

[tvguy]

Here in MD we get the title even if there is a loan on the vehicle. No idea why/how it works that way.

Must vary from state to state. In California the title goes to the owner of the car, which if there is a loan is the lender. You don't get the title until the loan is paid off. The registration will list who the lienholder is.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Here in MD we get the title even if there is a loan on the vehicle. No idea why/how it works that way.

True here in Missouri as well - was not always the case.

 

[starry_solo]

What state are you in OP?

 

[tvguy]

True here in Missouri as well - was not always the case.

Does the title indicate there is a lien on the car? Otherwise, with the title, you could sell the car without paying off the loan, and the lender would have lost their collateral on the loan.