What do I do with this car? The bank doesn't want it and neither do I

[pinkpeanut01]

Husband and I both filed and were discharged in Ch. 7 bk. Included in our bk was a vehicle with a $1200 balance. Prior to filing bk, we stopped paying on it and told them (a credit union actually) that we didn't want the vehicle because it doesn't run, which is the truth. It doesn't. We thought it just needed a new battery at first, but even with a new battery it is DEAD. No life to it at all, so who knows what is wrong with it. Anyway, the credit union told us they don't want it. On our credit, it shows as charged off (not included in BK even though we listed it). They won't come and get it, and we want to get it out of the driveway. (It's actually not even in our driveway, it's in my father's.) What do I do with this car? It has no plates -- we turned those in. It has no insurance -- we cancelled it. Nobody wants it. How do we get rid of it with no title? The credit union won't give it to us without paying off a 10K credit card balance (discharged in our Ch 7). Anybody have any insight?

[justbroke]

Unfortunately, you may need to go back to your attorney and have her/him communicate with the credit union. There's an famous bankruptcy case where GMAC did the same thing. The case was In Re Pratt. This is where the debt was discharged, the creditor did not want the vehicle back, refused to release the lien on the title, and told the debtor that they'd have to pay the balance in order to receive a release of lien. The court found that to be an attempt to collect a debt and a violation of the permanent discharge injunction.

I particular like In Re Groth 269 B.R. 766, 767-68 (Bankr. S.D. Ohio 2001)

“[A] debtor in a chapter 7 case, as part of his fresh economic start, should be permitted to surrender [worthless] collateral he does not intend to keep. If the secured creditor determines that its collateral is worth less than the cost of taking it into its possession, the creditor must waive the effect of its lien so that the debtor is able to dispose of the collateral.”

Good luck! Let us know what happens!

[bcohen]

Sometimes I see ads on Craigslist for people or companies who claim to buy junk cars and construction equipment, even without a title, so maybe you can find someone who will haul it away for scrap, title or not. Otherwise, you're going to have to get your attorney involved, and go after the credit union for a lien release.

[ksgirl38]

Sometimes I see ads on Craigslist for people or companies who claim to buy junk cars and construction equipment, even without a title, so maybe you can find someone who will haul it away for scrap, title or not. Otherwise, you're going to have to get your attorney involved, and go after the credit union for a lien release.

That's a good idea - craigslist. Or there are always those junk yards that will take cars. You could try contacting one to see if they'll come pick it up. The only other option I can think of is that if you can get it moved out of your father's driveway, maybe to the street in front or so then you could report it as an abandoned car and try to get the city to send someone to haul it away.

[159515951]

It might be worth it to spend $100 or so and find out what's wrong with the car. If it's not the battery and you're not getting so much as a "click" when you try to start it, you could have something as simple as a $5 fuse that needs to be replaced. If the car is worth more than the cost to repair it, this should be a no brainer.

[pinkpeanut01]

It might be worth it to spend $100 or so and find out what's wrong with the car. If it's not the battery and you're not getting so much as a "click" when you try to start it, you could have something as simple as a $5 fuse that needs to be replaced. If the car is worth more than the cost to repair it, this should be a no brainer.

That is a good suggestion. Thank you. It looks like the old battery had leaked all over everything in there, so I don't know if it could be worse than a fuse, but we didn't try that, so perhaps we will. (I know nothing about cars.)

Unfortunately, you may need to go back to your attorney and have her/him communicate with the credit union. There's an famous bankruptcy case where GMAC did the same thing. The case was In Re Pratt. This is where the debt was discharged, the creditor did not want the vehicle back, refused to release the lien on the title, and told the debtor that they'd have to pay the balance in order to receive a release of lien. The court found that to be an attempt to collect a debt and a violation of the permanent discharge injunction.

I particular like In Re Groth 269 B.R. 766, 767-68 (Bankr. S.D. Ohio 2001)


Good luck! Let us know what happens!

This really lifted my spirits. Thank you! It is nice to know there is recourse. DH and I both used different attorneys, so I think we will contact both of them if it comes to that. Glad there is a precedent.

And also thank you for the junk car collector suggestions. We did think of that and called a bunch of junk yards and places that claim to take cars from you, and the only one we could find who would take it without a title is a few hours away, but they did say they would come and get it AND give us $500, so it's nice to know we have a recourse. I would just love to have the title and try to sell the car for parts or something. And my dad wants it gone too. I appreciate all the suggestions, and I will update the thread when we have a clear course. We contacted the credit union again a couple of days ago and are waiting to hear back from their legal department. (They have actually been a good creditor to work with.)

[pinkpeanut01]

UPDATE: Looks like I worried for nothing! After having this car sit in a driveway for over a year, the credit union just called to say they are releasing the lien and the title is in the mail!! Yay! Hopefully we can get the car running again for cheap and sell it for a few bucks. If not, we'll sell it not running for fewer bucks, but it feels so good to know this is one more sign of our past being permanently buried.

[keepsmiling]

Excellent! On to that fresh start!

[AngelinaCat]

If you can't get it running reliably and cheaply, you can always turn it into the junk yard. Depending on the type of vehicle and weight, you could get as much as $700.00. Our God-daughter did that with 1993 Ford Explorer that blew a rod. You can't do this though without the title, so it is good the the CU is releasing it.

[pinkpeanut01]

Thank you both.

If you can't get it running reliably and cheaply, you can always turn it into the junk yard. Depending on the type of vehicle and weight, you could get as much as $700.00. Our God-daughter did that with 1993 Ford Explorer that blew a rod. You can't do this though without the title, so it is good the the CU is releasing it.

Good to know we have a recourse. We were thinking of putting it on one of the online car sites and listing it as-is, not running, to see if we could get a bit more, but it is nice to know that even a clunker junker can get several hundred. I can't express how relieved I am they are releasing the title. They have been so great through this whole process. Yes, they wanted their money, but they have been fair, polite, just class acts.

[justbroke]

UPDATE: Looks like I worried for nothing! After having this car sit in a driveway for over a year, the credit union just called to say they are releasing the lien and the title is in the mail!! Yay! Hopefully we can get the car running again for cheap and sell it for a few bucks. If not, we'll sell it not running for fewer bucks, but it feels so good to know this is one more sign of our past being permanently buried.

See, that was not so bad. I am glad that they saw the light!

[grisandole]

So nice to know that there are reasonable companies out there!

[justbroke]

So nice to know that there are reasonable companies out there!

It's not about being reasonable! If they were reasonable, they would not have gone this far. What happens is that they are being sensitive to the affects of bankruptcy and that they could be penalized, financially, for violating the discharge injunction.

[pinkpeanut01]

Providing an update to this situation. The lienholder ended up not being reasonable at all. They told my husband on the phone that the legal department agreed to release the title and we should receive it within a week. After three weeks, it never showed up, so we called again. We are only "permitted" to speak to their bankruptcy department, which refuses to take or return our phone calls. The regular old customer service representatives claim ignorance when we mention what was previously told to us and add that we can have the title if we pay off the loan. I am researching what to do, but does anyone have any suggestions? Do I sue for the title? Do I see for disregarding the stay of bankruptcy? I REALLY just want this car gone, I am just not sure how to proceed.

[justbroke]

The only way is to re-open your case and file a stay violation based on the Groth and/or Pratt cases.