Help! Car was impounded and now the lender has it

missile

Mza123 wrote: »

It was a friend of a friend, stranger to me
The keys were left at my friends place, I didn!!!8217;t realise this till the next morning.
After checking my friends place the next morning and seeing my car missing I rang the police. I got a call within the hour telling me where my car was. Went to the station the same day to get the release documents

Thanks for the info. :A

The action by your finance company seems rather harsh.

missile

spadoosh wrote: »

.... Sorry OP, no knowledge to help you. Im guessing missile can solve your problem now they have those answers though?

I hope your next one is a hedgehog

AndyMc.....

Herzlos wrote: »

Not knowing him would make it even more likely I'd want to see someone prosecuted for stealing my car at a party. I'd be furious.

It seems the finance companies concern is that you left your car and keys at a friends house, which resulted in someone else driving it.

You may have a separate issue with the insurance, where you may or may not be a home owner. Unfortunately that delay allowed the finance company to get the car and find out about the usage.

Have you filed a report for the theft and got a crime number? That may be the only thing that'll allow the finance company to give you the car back. Otherwise your options are as they describe: buy the car off them (pay the settlement + recovery fees), or let them auction it and pay the different (settlement + recovery fees - auction fees).

He won’t get a crime number for theft.

Mercdriver

AndyMc..... wrote: »

He won!!!8217;t get a crime number for theft.

???hmmmm???

Mza123 wrote: »

This was not the case and the finance company is aware of this because of the crime reference number and police report, but unfortunately with the car being !!!8216;out of my possession!!!8217; the circumstance doesn!!!8217;t matter to them

Mza123

Herzlos wrote: »

Not knowing him would make it even more likely I'd want to see someone prosecuted for stealing my car at a party. I'd be furious.

It seems the finance companies concern is that you left your car and keys at a friends house, which resulted in someone else driving it.

You may have a separate issue with the insurance, where you may or may not be a home owner. Unfortunately that delay allowed the finance company to get the car and find out about the usage.

Have you filed a report for the theft and got a crime number? That may be the only thing that'll allow the finance company to give you the car back. Otherwise your options are as they describe: buy the car off them (pay the settlement + recovery fees), or let them auction it and pay the different (settlement + recovery fees - auction fees).

sorry what I meant was if it were a friend I would care about him being prosecuted as I care about their well being but because it was a stranger I couldn’t care less what happens to him because he’d have bought it upon himself

They didn’t really care how the car ended up in the impounded, just that during that day it was in the pound it wasn’t in my possession.

I want to reiterate that there isn’t an issue with the insurance company, they just wanted to see proof of home owenership before they gave permission for the car to be released, but obviously after doing this I’d gone back to see it was gone

Yes I’ve tried that but I’m still given the same ultimatum

dacouch

Do you have the keys now?

Mza123

No the finance company has they keys and the car.

Also Andy, if you google what happens if your car is stolen the first gov link literally says you get given a crime reference number

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

It is not an unusual circumstance for personal reasons (job, relationship etc.) for someone to buy a flat and then decide the best course of action is to move back to parents and rent it out. In fact I can think of friends in London with far more convoluted circumstances.

Other posters are right that finance and insurers may be suspicious and the appropriate response is to accept that they have a duty of care to their businesses but to firmly and politely explain the circumstances and stand by your guns. If the finance house don't play ball, then a rapid formal complaint is required because I would agree that it is unreasonable for them to treat someone else's criminal action as reflecting on you. I would expect the ombudsman would consider the finance house were acting unreasonably.

Mza123

Thank you, it didn!!!8217;t even cross my mind to attempt to contact the financial ombudsman

AndyMc.....

Mza123 wrote: »

No the finance company has they keys and the car.

Also Andy, if you google what happens if your car is stolen the first gov link literally says you get given a crime reference number

I’ve no need to google anything, but I know the West Midlands Police haven’t given you a crime number for theft.