[priscilla0821]

My husband recently got a notice of Garnishment for our bank account for a repossession of a car. If he was to file Chap 7 alone, could we lose our current car? I was also on the re-possed car as co-owner but I am not on this one. I am also on disability, so they can not garnish my disability check. We do not even own this car, we are still making payments. We have no other assets, we rent, no jewelry, furs anything. We live hand to mouth. Also if they "freeze" our bank account as I have read they will do, will his pay check still go in automatically or will it be returned?

[Fr_Chuck]

OK, I am lost, you asked if you can lose your car, then you state you no longer have the car?

If you owe money on your car, they will have to reposess the car before they can do anything else. After they repo the car it is no longer your car, they will sell the car and apply the money they get to the amount of the loan, interest, and fees. Normally you will still owe a good bit.

After they sell your auto, they will try to make arrangements with you to pay the balance still owed. If you don't pay that, they will go and get a judgement against you. ( most likely it will be against both of you)

Then they will "attach" any and all bank accounts. If you are on disability, they will freeze your bank accounts, and you will have to prove basically if any of the money there is from your checks, if so how much and so on. Don't expect them to agree that most of it is from your check. But the money will stay froze till they agree or it goes to court and a judge decides how much of the money in the bank they can keep.

And yes he will have to stop his pay check going in, or it will just keep going in and being froze.

Next of course they will get a garnishment also, that will be for his pay check, they can get anywhere from 25 to 50 percent of his pay depending on where you live.

[priscilla0821]

Let me clarify. We have a new car now. They have garnished our bank account for the old car that was re-possed 3 years ago. They got the judgement against my husband because I don't work and have no real income. If my husband files chap 7, will they be able to take the new car as an asset and sell it to pay the old debt, thus leaving us with no car, and no way for my husband to get to work. Our current car would be considered our only asset as we have nothing else.

[Fr_Chuck]

there are many exemptions ( at least under the old bankruptcy law) it all changed a lot since I was doing any of them a few years ago.

But basically you are allowed certain personal property and the such, if you have a new car and there is a loan on it, it will have to re-certify the loan, since a chapter 7 bankruptcy would involve all debts,

I got to take a class in the new bankruptcy, but my understanding is that you have to try debt counseling prior to being allowed to do a bankruptcy.

And if your new car has a loan on it, it is has no real assest value, since only the difference between its true value and the loan is its value.

But if you are considering bankruptcy, go talk to a bankrutpcy attorney, double check, but most allow the first visit free and will answer most of your questions at that point.

[RAW]

If a vehicle is repossessed by the dealer that sold it to you and resale's the vehicle for more then you owed on the loan, who would be entitled to the extra money?