finance company looking for carback

Hello all just looking for some advice here, story goes like this: About 5 years ago i borrowed from aib finance and leasing to buy a car for 19000 (off the top of my head i dont know how much it cost me in total the car cost 19000 so obviously i was paying back more than this), all was going well with repayments of 400 per month.

Recently though i lost my job as did the wife and fell behind with payments. I am working again in a new job with a 50% pay cut. Some time last week i had a voice mail left for me from someone in aib regarding the arrears. I rang him straight away and he told me that there was still 3900 left to pay.

He was a nice guy nothing threatening or demanding just asked how could i repay the money, so i said i would try to pay 50 to 100 per week and he seemed happy with this and sent out a lodgement book to me.

That was last week and since then i have paid 150 off the loan and was managing ok. Now today i get a termination notice from aib saying that i have broken the terms of the agreement and should immediately return the car to them.

So wondering what to do next? Is this just an automated letter? Will they leave me alone so long as i keep up with repayments?

I am confident i will have this loan cleared within the year if they let me.

I know i should ring again but I'm wondering what to expect when i call, will they just demand the car back?

I'm sure there are people worse off than me and 3900 is not the end of the world but im afraid someone will just turn up some day and take the car which i really need (for work and also have a young baby)

Anyway sorry for the long post but i am worried about this.

Hi Op, It's best you write to them rather than ring. You need to make them a monthly repayment offer in writing and explain to them you are willing to clear the debt within a year.

I had a similar problem but I found them very accomadating. They wrote back to me accepting my new reschedueled payment.

michaelp said:

Hello all just looking for some advice here, story goes like this: About 5 years ago i borrowed from aib finance and leasing to buy a car for 19000 (off the top of my head i dont know how much it cost me in total the car cost 19000 so obviously i was paying back more than this), all was going well with repayments of 400 per month.

Recently though i lost my job as did the wife and fell behind with payments. I am working again in a new job with a 50% pay cut. Some time last week i had a voice mail left for me from someone in aib regarding the arrears. I rang him straight away and he told me that there was still 3900 left to pay.

Click to expand...

Are you sure about your balance, and you aren't confusing arrears with the total amount owed. Something to consider is the value of the vehicle as well, before you terminate under the half rule, if that is what you are considering.

If the vehicle is not worth much now through depreciation etc, you can argue your case this way also - if they seek repossession, you can simply hand the car back and they will get less back from the cost of sale and collection from you, than you actually owe them, and if they show a little patience, the balance will be repaid in full - but they cannot simply turn up to lift it without a court order based upon you having repaid more than a third.

Depending on what's owed, you might also consider borrowing a portion of the money from a family member, and offer them a settlement amount and retain ownership. I've done this for a few clients, and based on the resale value and associated costs, the finance companies do accept settlements allowing you to keep the car - it may be easier to repay a family member over time than the finance company!

w w w . f r o s t . i e