Have you fallen on hard times financially to the point that you missed a few car payments in order to keep the lights on and put food on the table? You are not alone. Many of our clients come in with cars on the verge of being repossessed or with vehicles that have already been repossessed. The good news is that a bankruptcy filing will halt a repossession of your vehicle. Even better, a bankruptcy filing can even halt your car from being sold at auction after it already has been repossessed.
Stop the Repo Man
When you file for bankruptcy, a shield comes up between you and your creditors called the automatic stay. The automatic stay is the part of the bankruptcy law that prevents creditors from collecting after a bankruptcy case is filed. This is true even with vehicle loans. So, if you are three months behind on your car payments and you know the repo man is looking for your car, a bankruptcy case filing will immediately halt the repossession. Even if they are in your driveway hooking the vehicle up to the tow truck when the case is filed! That’s how powerful the automatic stay in bankruptcy is!
Many people worry about losing their vehicles when they file for bankruptcy. In fact, the exact opposite is usually true. People file for bankruptcy to save their cars. When you file for bankruptcy, your vehicle has never been safer from the bank. This is because of the automatic stay protecting you from all creditors.
So, if you believe that your car is in danger of being repossessed due to non-payment, you may want to consider bankruptcy as an option to halt an eventual repossession. As always, feel free to contact an attorney at Steidl and Steinberg for a full evaluation and to see if that is the right option for you.