Do you truly know what the repossession agents you’ve assigned to repossess one or more of your cars for you are doing? I’m hearing more and more about a very disturbing practice in the repossession services industry that, if true, could get repossession agents (and you, by extension) in trouble with the authorities and possibly sued. I understand that some repossession agents are placing global positioning system trackers on vehicles out for repossession, without the knowledge or consent of the car’s owner.

Here’s how it typically works: A repossession agent uses license plate recognition technology to locate a vehicle out for repossession, but the tow truck is not immediately available to “pop” the car. So, the repossession agent places a GPS unit on the car so he/she can track it. Later, the tow truck drive uses the GPS tracker to locate the car and repossesses it.

Originally published in Tennessee Dealer News, May/June 2019.