Chicago, IL asked in Bankruptcy, Car Accidents, Civil Litigation and Consumer Law for Illinois

Q: Please help. Car totalled after bankruptcy

I have a chapter 7 that has been discharged since November 2015....I did NOT reaffirm and am currently on payments. The car was hit by a drunk driver the other day and insurance deemed it totaled. The loan is 13k but car is only worth 8k. Insurance is in the process of sending payment to Leinart holder, that happens to the rest of the balance? Do I have to pay the other 6k?

3 Lawyer Answers

A: Yes. You could have and should have purchased GAP insurance to cover this contingency.

A: You'll want to call a member of the Ill Trial Lawyers Assn about your injury case. They give free consults. Law only gives you the book value. Hopefully you got "gap" insurance. A consumer lawyer should also look over the contract but by the time you bought the car most lease companies had learned.

If it's your insurance check with them.

Save all records as it may qualify as a casualty loss on your taxes.

A: Your debt was discharged.

When you didn't reaffirm, they only had the right to get back the car which is what they are doing when they get the check.

They probably didn't do a reaffirmation because they suspected that the bankruptcy judge wasn't going to approve it because you were under water so much.

They also knew you had insurance and they would get paid if something happened to the car because they were listed as loss payee.

You could pick up a couple of extra bucks by arguing with the driver's insurance that your car was worth more than what your insurance company paid. Also, there was probably a deductible that wasn't paid.

Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.

The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.

Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.