Breach of the Peace
Important information to know during the repossession of a vehicle
The alarm goes off early in the morning, it is time to get ready for work. You shower, get your coffee, and head out the door to find something is missing from your driveway.
Your car has been repossessed. They came in the middle of the night and towed it to some lot, you’ll have to make phone calls to find out where it actually is.
Repossessions happen after missed payments on an auto loan. Creditors, like Chase Auto, are able to begin the repossession process 10-days after your first missed payment, without providing any notice.
Repossessions are common, in the US there are 2.2 million vehicle repossessions every year, but where they become interesting is understanding what can and can’t be done during the actual repossession.
In August my car made up one of the 2.2 million repossessions in the US. I woke up and what was once parked in my driveway was then gone. What I didn’t know at the time was that I did some have power in what felt like a powerless situation.
Repossessions can happen at any time, day or night, as long as there is no breach of the peace.
Breach of the peace means different things in different states and can contribute to the number of repossessions that happen in the dark of the night and the ones that become hazardous during the day. Simply put, the breach of the peace is a set of rules the third-party collectors and creditors have to follow during the actual collection process.
I object
Across state lines, the peace is considered to have been breached if the repossession is objected to.
“No, you cannot repossess this vehicle. Please stop.”
Margaret Reither, Attorney with NOLO, advised that in some states the objection can be made by someone other than the debtor, like a relative.
The repossession company doesn’t have unlimited power to take your car. If you or someone else, like a relative, objects at the time the repossessor tries to take your car, so that taking the car would breach the peace, the repossessor must stop. — Margaret Reither, NOLO
Objecting to the repossession is not a crime and once you have made your objection, the collector has to stop. They can attempt to repossess the vehicle as soon as the next day or the collector can choose to return with a court order which would remove the debtor’s ability to object to the repossession.
Why many repossessions take place after dark begins to make more sense when you consider that the collector cannot complete their job if their is an objection.
Reither found that there is a recent history of violent repossessions and child abductions that have taken place during the day and objections were made.
The objection can be a dangerous decision to make dependent on the collector. Each debtor undergoing a repossession needs to evaluate their situation and make the best decision for their safety.
In my case, part of the “good faith” on my part was surrendering all of the keys to my vehicle. Had the collector arrived during the day, I would have cried, possibly objected, been ignored, and not know that wasn’t allowed. But, ultimately I would have complied and handed over the keys.
Rather, my car was taken under the shield of the darkness of night and I had to find a friend who could drive me to the collector’s lot in a short turnaround period.
Duplicate keys, broken locks, & threats
Ignoring an objection is not the only way a collector, and thereby the creditor can breach the peace.
Collectors cannot use threats or physical violence to repossess the vehicle. They also cannot hotwire the vehicle or take any other illegal actions. Collectors breach the peace when they use a duplicate key to gain access to the vehicle.
While it is a breach of the peace for a collector to break a lock, including garage locks, to repossess a vehicle, NOLO reports that in most courts removing the vehicle from an open or unlocked garage or carport is legal.
Other states, like Virginia, also consider entering the debtor’s home without permission, impersonating a member of law enforcement, or having law enforcement present to be breaches of the peace.
Though, honestly, in a way, I feel having law enforcement present during the day could be the safest and least traumatic way to do a repossession.
The American Bankruptcy Institution (ABI) advises that if the peace is breached, the debtor has the right to collect damages from the creditor.
Hide and seek
If and when the creditor sends the repossession notice, the initial instinct may be to begin parking the vehicle elsewhere — maybe at an abandoned farm, in the neighbor’s driveway, or the community parking lot up the street — is considered to be illegal in many states.
Playing hide and seek with the repo man isn’t a good idea. It’s certainly tempting to hide your vehicle from the recovery company if you know they’re coming. However, it’s not a great idea, and it’s illegal in some states to deliberately hide your car from them. — Bethany Hicky, Auto Credit Express
Collectors are also familiar with this tactic and can identify the vehicle in a remote location or next door by the vehicle identification number (VIN) and tow it away.
Many debtors, fearful of having their car repossessed, park it about three blocks from their home. This is the distance they figure is far enough away to be hard to find, but close enough to still be convenient to use. Repossessors know this trick, though, and often find a car within minutes. — M. Reither, NOLO
Stephanie Lane from NOLO said that in most states the collector is able to repossess the vehicle from any location if they do not have to cut any chains, break locks, or would damage property in the process.
A caveat to that is, if parking the vehicle in a locked garage is part of the debtor’s regular routine, they vehicle is not considered hidden and the debtor has done nothing illegal.
If you keep the car locked in a garage or behind a chained gate, the creditor can’t repossess the car because it would be breaching the peace (damaging property). — S. Lane, NOLO
This wasn’t even something that crossed my mind until after my car was gone, what if I had parked it in the community lot up the street? Would I still have had a vehicle that morning?
Probably not.
But, I do have a garage, so technically, if there actually were space in it, I could have kept my car parked in there to delay the repossession.
You do have power
When a vehicle is being repossessed the debtor may feel like they have no course of action or any power over the situation at hand, I know I did. But that isn’t true.
Understanding the breach of the peace is where debtors can find their strength.
Knowing that their strongest asset is their voice and the ability to object to the repossession.
While this does not halt the entire process, it does stop the occurrence in the moment and provides the debtor with time to re-evaluate and address their situation.
It is also important to understand what collectors can and cannot do when they do come to collect the vehicle. Understanding that the breaking of any locks or the use of a duplicate key to access the vehicle is breaching peace is important.
Knowing that the use of force, threats, and violence are all not allowed.
Debtors who know their vehicle is up for repossession or worry that it may be should also review what is considered to be a breach of the peace in their state or locality. Knowledge is power.
Had the collector of my vehicle shown up with law enforcement, I would not have known that was an illegal tactic in Virginia and most likely would have immediately surrendered the vehicle with no protest, but with a lot of tears shed.
I wouldn’t have known that there was a breach of the peace, because I didn’t do my homework until now… when I own the car.
A breach of the peace won’t stop the repossession of a vehicle, only payments made by their regular due dates can do that.
If you think your vehicle may be up for repossession or you know it is, Consumers Law has put together a guide to help you navigate the process.
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