there was a repeat of the tv magazine prog 360 (degrees) on TV3 about car repossession and those guys that tow away the cars for the banks.

these guys say they are just doing their job.

hmmm … what can i say? well, i’ve been there. ie, i’ve had my car repossessed.

well, i had gone through some really DARK times that i’d never thought i’d go through. this is why this blog is called down & out … coz heck, i was REALLY down and out at various points throughout my life.

anyway, what happened was … because i was constantly resigning from some job or another, i didn’t have enough savings to pay for my installments. some people say you need to have at least 3 months savings if you want to quit. some people say 6 months. needless to say, i didn’t follow that rule. so, i was broke most of the time.

then it happened that i had not paid my car loan for 3 mths, maybe almost 4 …  i can’t remember. but the notice was out. and everytime i saw a car tow truck on the road, i get nervous.

at that time, i was sharing my car with my boyfriend, who didn’t have a car. so, that day, he’d send me to work and went to his apartment to work on his stuff. when he came out, the car was gone.

it felt so surreal. i asked him to do a police report but i can’t remember whether he did. i think i called the bank.

the thing i don’t get is … is it possible for the car repo guy to just take my car without anyone there? i thought (according to this consumer group rep) they hav to allow the driver/owner to take out stuff from the car.

anyway, i went to the bank to talk … i thought i should just give up the car (it would be auctioned if i don’t pay up) but the bank said, even if i let go of the car, i still hv to pay for the difference in balance after the car is bought (of course at a much lower rate). i didn’t decide there and then, but went to see my car at the car repo place near jalan semarak. my car looked really sad. i went there with my bf by taxi and collected my things in the car including the radio/cd set … which after that incident never really worked properly. but it made me so sad to have to leave my car stranded for two weeks in the hot sun. it’s terrible. and so surreal. the car repo place looked really seedy. i don’t know whether i would be able to work in that kind of business. it’s terrible.

but then, i’m the one who was irresponsible … letting my loan lapse like that. sigh.

like i said, those were dark days. and if i’m not careful … i might go down that path again.

then, i did something that i will always regret … i pawned my thick gold bracelet, a gift from my mum. the first time i had ever done such a thing. that was how desperate i was. sold it at Habib Jewels. i don’t know whether they gave me a good price, but it was enough to claim the car. and of course, the stupid bank made me pay for the towing/repo cost which amounted to a few hundred (rm600 i think).

so, i went to the bank, an almost hidden dept reserved for repossession cases. obviously the people waiting to talk to the officers all look glum and depressed. sigh. i don’t ever want to go there again.

the other thing which i wish i hadn’t done is taking a 9-year loan on the car. nine years is too long to pay for a car, okay? but at that time, i thought i wanted a lower monthly installment. but the truth is, there’s not much difference, really, if i were to take the 5-year plan.

see, these are things you do when you don’t think things through.

but, hey … we live and learn.

p/s: it’s easy to get AMBANK car loans, but they are VERY QUICK when it comes to repossessing your car. LOLOLOL!