ever have your car taken?

[pawlee]

perhaps a better title is "ever have your heart fall out and go SPLAT on the pavement?"

this morning when i got off of work, i walked out to the parking lot to find that my truck was GONE. at first i was like "did i park somewhere else?" but quickly realized someone took my truck. immediately i feared the worst and called the police to report my stolen vehicle. turns out according to the police that my truck was repossessed to which i said "WHAT!?!?! NO WAY!!! THAT CAN'T BE! NOW WHAT DO I DO?" they advised me to get ahold of the dealer i bought it from which i did. upon arriving to the dealer, who was SUPPOSEDLY unaware of the incident, came to find out that according to him, i missed a payment and that's why they took it. i told the dealer "what are you talking about? i haven't missed a single payment!" to make a long story short after running home and returning with my records, i made a payment in late December 2002 thinking (along with the dealer) that it was an advance payment for the month of January when it should have been for December. i didn't make another payment till February so a payment was unknowingly and mistakenly missed for January. the dealer said this was all on the bank and it just finally caught up to me. i said "well then why didn't the bank call me?" and as it turns out, the phone number they had on file was our old one. anyways, so for 6 months i have been unaware of a missed payment which should have been and easy fix that became a big deal to the bank. i paid the missed payment and got my truck back but the kicker is it cost me $100 to retrieve it from the impound lot. the dealer in my opinion should have paid the $100 but "technically" it all rested on me so i basically got screwed by a technical foul. at least due to the nature of the circumstance, this will not mar my credit or driving record... lesson learned, stay on top of those payment dates because they don't mess around regardless of good credit or circumstance. p

[David]

Sorry about that Pawlee, but glad you got your truck back.

[coriolis]

When I saw your topic I thought you were talking about having your vehicle stolen. We got our last 5 vehicles by paying cash. So they won't get repossessed. Come to think of it, they probably won't get stolen either, if you know what I mean.

[azskyman]

Well, Paul, that would be a very ugly feeling down in the pit of your stomach...with the vehicle missing. I always figured they should at least try to notify someone when they do that.

I have had two cars that I WISHED someone would take. Even thought about leaving the keys in the ignition!

Where's a good tow truck when you need one.

Glad your lesson learned won't affect your record.

[pawlee]

When I saw your topic I thought you were talking about having your vehicle stolen. We got our last 5 vehicles by paying cash. So they won't get repossessed. Come to think of it, they probably won't get stolen either, if you know what I mean.

in experiencing the sick feeling i had yesterday AM before knowing exactly what happened, i'd love to hear anyone's comment on having a vehicle stolen because emotionally it's all the same... wouldn't wish it on anyone. p

[JetMaxx]

Neither has happened to me...but my oldest sister had her Camaro repo'd when she was 18 (sis was in the middle of her marriage breakup...Kev thought Becky paid the payment, she thought he did, and bye-bye car (they couldn't resolve it with the dealership because of the their young age, poor credit, and impending divorce

As for car thefts, many years ago my mom's Chevy was stolen...I was only 5 at the time, but remember even though it was recovered and repaired, the car never ran worth a hoot again (the punks that stole it blew up the engine, then stripped it of all the tires, radio, etc). Dad sold it before we moved to Douglasville (from Atlanta)...when I was 6.

A couple of folks in my neighborhood have also had vehicles stolen in recent years (one from work in Cobb county; but the other from their own driveway only a few hundred feet from mine).

Both owners were totally devastated (so was my mom in 1967 when her car was stolen)...in fact, one of them died shortly afterwords (from a heart attack)...he was in his 60's, and I believe
the theft of his pickup truck contributed to his death

[hunter84]

pawlee, I just found out last night my brother's Jeep Charokee was stolen last Friday. I couldn't get a hold of him though. He must be sick though, his wallet and checkbook were both in there.

[Miss Mary]

Pawlee - that's quite a story! Incredible. At first I thought too it you were going to say it was stolen.

The bank we have our car loan at is very persnickety (sp?) about payments being on time, even though on the booklet it states you have a week later to pay the amount, before the late fee is imposed. If you are ONE day late, letters are sent out, reminding you to pay on time. I made "that mistake" only once, hated getting those reminder letters. All other banks we've had loans at (mortgage, which seems to change annually, one bank sells the loan to another, etc.) are never like this. And this is a local bank. Before we went on vacation, the monthly car loan was almost due. So I transferred money from savings and paid early. Didn't want those nasty letters waiting for me when we got back! I did wonder, what do people do when you're gone for weeks at a time? Do you have relatives mail payments for you, predated? Do they deposit your paychecks for you too? I mean, we only go on vacation for 7 days at most every year.

Well, I'm off track here a bit now! So glad you got your truck back Pawlee!!! That's the main thing. Maybe you should check into your credit rating record too. Try to fix that, while it's fresh in your mind. And those involved at the bank know the details too. You'd be glad years from now you corrected it.

[JCT777]

Pawlee - that's a terrible thing that happened to you. It is good, though, that you now have your truck back.

My wife's car was stolen when she was in college. She had parked it on the street at the main campus of Temple University in Philadelphia at about 9 AM on a Monday morning. When she returned to where she had parked the car a little over an hour later, it was gone. Two teenagers had broken into the car in broad daylight on a college campus and stolen the car! Luckily, a police officer saw the car about 1/2 mile away and was suspicious when he noticed the back window smashed. He chased and finally got them to pull over. They could not produce the registration or insurance for the car (my wife keeps those in her purse), so the officer knew they had stolen the car. They were actually apprehended BEFORE my wife even reported the car stolen.

A good lesson from this is to keep your registration/insurance papers somewhere other than in the car (i.e. wallet, purse, etc.). It definitely helped my wife!

[pawlee]

My wife's car was stolen when she was in college. She had parked it on the street at the main campus of Temple University in Philadelphia at about 9 AM on a Monday morning.

UGH! that sucks, those thugs down that way have no discretion for time of day. ever notice how in center city Philly, the curb edges are lined with car glass? several years ago i was down near LOVE park with some friends and our car got broken into. of the things they stole, some change in the console and a set of keys i had in a bag under the seat. the worst part was having the keys taken because i didn't drive and my car was at home in Harrisburg. it was memorial day weekend so i had to pay a locksmith double to get into my car when we got home. that was an event that sucked but yeah, in Philly, might as well leave your doors unlocked to spare the broken window. p

(any other tales of "Philly Blues"?)

[pawlee]

Maybe you should check into your credit rating record too. Try to fix that, while it's fresh in your mind. And those involved at the bank know the details too. You'd be glad years from now you corrected it.

i don't think my credit will be affected for this but i do have crappy credit despite being debt free. what ticks me off about credit is that folks who declared bankruptcy can somehow get loans yet me who paid my stuff in full despite numerous late payments can't even get a damn cell phone. the thing about this truck incident is that ever since i became debt free last spring, i stay on top of my finances every day and haven't missed a single bill payment on anything. lol! yes i have issues... p

(anyone else get their finances back on track only to be kicked in the face repeatedly?)

[pawlee]

pawlee, I just found out last night my brother's Jeep Charokee was stolen last Friday. I couldn't get a hold of him though. He must be sick though, his wallet and checkbook were both in there.

aw damn that sux. i've heard those Jeep Cherokees rank high on the theft list. please keep informing of what is happening. what year is it? is it paid off? will the insurance cover his loss?

[pawlee]

Both owners were totally devastated (so was my mom in 1967 when her car was stolen)...in fact, one of them died shortly afterwords (from a heart attack)...he was in his 60's, and I believe
the theft of his pickup truck contributed to his death

holy cow! that's like... WOW! i mean losing a vehicle is devastating yes, but to consume onesself to where they pass on as though they had lost a lifelong mate? that blows my mind... p

[pawlee]

I have had two cars that I WISHED someone would take. Even thought about leaving the keys in the ignition!

in my old Dodge Shadow convertible, i constantly prayed for large hail so i could collect insurance and buy a new top for it. towards the end i prayed for lightning or a fallen tree so i could collect and get rid of it once and for all! p

[GulfBreezer]

OOOHH YUCK...........that sucks Pawlee!!

I have never had one repo'd but I have had my car stolen TWICE IN TWO WEEKS!! The first time I walked outside to take my son to school and there was no car in the driveway. They found it later that day on the beach. Twin boys, age 14, had stolen it and gone for a joy ride. These boys were my neighbors and had had apparently stolen a spare set of keys that I had. Well, about a week and a half later, the VERY SAME THING happened!! They were waiting on a trial date for the first offense and decided to steal it again!! This time they found my car in Slidell Louisianna! They had made copies of my keys and went to Slidell to see a girl! We had to go to La. to get my car and press charges, they are now both serving time in a juvenile facility. It is a rather unnerving experience to have your car stolen, but to have it stolen twice in 2 weeks?? Well, needless to say, it was one of the worst experiences!