She also complained that the repossession agent did not properly identify himself or produce documents, that the car was damaged while being repossessed, that the bank’s valuation of the car was too low, and that the bank handled storage costs and the private sale unfairly. She wanted the bank to write off the $6,000 shortfall and compensate her for the consequences of its actions.

Our investigation

We found no evidence that Sonya asked the bank to update her contact details, so the bank could rely on the information it held. We also found the bank gave Sonya adequate notice before repossessing the car. It emailed her about the arrears several times and sent a repossession warning notice to the address on file.

In examining Sonya’s claims about damage, costs, valuation and the private sale, we could find no evidence establishing the car’s condition at the time of repossession, and Sonya had described serious pre-existing problems with it. Her mechanic could not comment on the car’s condition while it was in the bank’s possession. The bank sent the post-possession notice two days late, so it waived the repossession costs as the law required.

Outcome

We did not uphold Sonya’s complaint.