Woman loses everything after repo company

[Hum]

A West Virginia woman says that she lost everything except two pieces of furniture and a mirror because a bank provided a wrong address to a repossession company while apparently trying to foreclose on a house.

Nikki Bailey told WSAZ that she returned home from visiting a friend in the hospital earlier this month to discover that the repossession company had just finished removing everything she owned.

?Everything was gone,? she recalled. ?Living room furniture, my Marshall diploma, my high school diploma, my pictures ? my history. I was teacher of the year. All of that stuff is gone ? certificates from that. It?s all gone.?

Bailey explained to the Logan Banner that the men in the big red truck had said that she had been ?foreclosed on,? which she knew was not true because the house had been paid for since 1988.

Police determined that the repossession company had been told to remove the items from a home in Godby Heights in Logan. However, Godby Heights is in Chapmanville, and Bailey lives on Godby Street in Logan.

The repossession company agreed to release the few items that were on left the truck: a dresser, mirror and chest of drawers. But they claimed that the rest of Bailey?s possessions had been deemed ?all junk? and taken ?to the dump.?

Attorney Tim DiPiero was working to find out which bank made the mistake and have Bailey compensated for all of her belongings.

?It just seems kind of ridiculous that this actually happened when a phone call could have stopped it,? DiPiero said.

As of Tuesday, no total value had been set for Bailey?s losses.


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[neufuse Veteran]

I'd make the bank replace EVERYTHING even if it cost them a fortune to have stuff remade... the only way to stop mistakes like this is to put penalties on a mistake so high they make sure it doesn't happen

[Hum]

The repo guys should serve time for Burglary, and the banks execs get a month in jail, to 'educate' them. :crazy:

 

The woman deserves twice the value of her possessions, in compensation.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

Yes, I would ensure they were liable for the replacement of each and every single item within my property?

 

Some are irreplaceable?  Then *I* will deem their value, not you, as it's your mistake.

[Growled Member]

I agree. This needs to stop, now. Punish them severely.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

The repo guys should serve time for Burglary

 

Intriguing point, seeing as they broke and entered an address and took everything.  The bankers would be accessory to said crime.

[+Random Stranger Subscriber¹]

There was a story like this a few month ago (quite recent) 

 

I wonder how did it finish then.  The bank tried to place very little value, and at first did not want to pay at all.  The house as next door, and repo company made mistake because the owner was away and did not cut grass for a few month.  so they just assumed it is the right house without double checking the number.

[neufuse Veteran]

Intriguing point, seeing as they broke and entered an address and took everything.  The bankers would be accessory to said crime.

problem is, in a reposesion of a house, the bank owns the house, and the repo guys were under the impression it was a bank owned property and they had permission to break in.... so basically it was entrapment by the bank if the bank screwed up, which would let them off the hook, but the bank is still on the hook

[Atomic Wanderer Chicken]

Repo men/women do the most disgusting and bottom of the barrel jobs a human being could do. It makes me sick they get paid to ruin peoples lives.

[Pupik]

The repossession company agreed to release the few items that were on left the truck: a dresser, mirror and chest of drawers. But they claimed that the rest of Bailey?s possessions had been deemed ?all junk? and taken ?to the dump.?

I don't understand why take the stuff then? They're getting the money back by throwing the stuff to the garbage... how?

To me it seems like they're losing even more money out of this deal.

[Growled Member]

Repo men/women do the most disgusting and bottom of the barrel jobs a human being could do. It makes me sick they get paid to ruin peoples lives.

I've often wondered if what they do is legal. Do they actually have a legal right to come on someone's property and snatch stuff that doesn't belong to them because a big company pays them to do so? It seems to me the proper way is through the legal system. 

[articuno1au]

Repo men/women do the most disgusting and bottom of the barrel jobs a human being could do. It makes me sick they get paid to ruin peoples lives.

Yeah.. The people who failed to meet their commitments are completely innocent and didn't ###### up their own lives.

 

 

 

There's always two sides to this kind of thing >.>

[Hum]

I've often wondered if what they do is legal. Do they actually have a legal right to come on someone's property and snatch stuff that doesn't belong to them because a big company pays them to do so? It seems to me the proper way is through the legal system.

 

^ If you or I broke in a house at random and stole everything, we wouldn't get away with, OOPS !

[Slugsie]

Sue the bank and repo company for everything.

 

Another interesting question... if they deemed a load of stuff to be of no value, why not just return it to the owner? Why did it have to go to the dump? Surely it's better to return worthless stuff than to further burden landfill sites?

[ANON86364]

So sick of hearing these stories. Banks should not be allowed to toss out someone's belongings. Yes they own the house, but not everything in it. They should be able to remove the items but they don't own them. But of course our politicians would rather litigate the smallest of things before anything that could impact innocent people's lives.

 

This is not to mention the massive scale on which stories like this are occurring. All because of not enough regulation and accountability. Just makes me sick.

[Charisma Veteran]

So sick of hearing these stories. Banks should not be allowed to toss out someone's belongings. Yes they own the house, but not everything in it. They should be able to remove the items but they don't own them. But of course our politicians would rather litigate the smallest of things before anything that could impact innocent people's lives.

 

This is not to mention the massive scale on which stories like this are occurring. All because of not enough regulation and accountability. Just makes me sick.

This. Even if it were a legitimate foreclosure, it's only repossessing the house, not the things inside. How are they allowed to throw away people's possessions? That's the stupidest part here. If the things had just been taken someplace and stored, this would be a lot easier to sort out. She'd still be due some compensation, but not nearly as much, it wouldn't be as bad. I don't see how taking someone's things is legal in any capacity.

[HawkMan]

Repo men/women do the most disgusting and bottom of the barrel jobs a human being could do. It makes me sick they get paid to ruin peoples lives.

Actually they don't ruin people's lives, people ruin their own lives b taking to much credit and not paying.

Of course in this case it's different.

Over here, the police have to be involved in any repossession anyway though, and it's not really done b private companies but by a special police/customs department. Ad it's not so easy that the bank can just say "go repossess at this address" it takes a lot of time and paperwork before the police are sent on a repossession job here.

[Lord Method Man]

Repo men/women do the most disgusting and bottom of the barrel jobs a human being could do. It makes me sick they get paid to ruin peoples lives.

 

I don't have a problem with that they do as long as they have the right address (the bank is at fault in this case).

 

People who finance cars, boats, TVs, etc. and stop paying for them are the real scumbags. At that point the repo men are just recovering stolen property.

[exotoxic]

I've often wondered if what they do is legal. Do they actually have a legal right to come on someone's property and snatch stuff that doesn't belong to them because a big company pays them to do so? It seems to me the proper way is through the legal system. 

 

Yes because it is the banks property until all money is paid so if the bank gives someone permission they can do what they like. As for the stuff inside, you sign an agreement which lets them take whatever they like so they can get the money they are owed. Of course if they go to the wrong house they should be held accountable.

[adrynalyne]

I don't have a problem with that they do as long as they have the right address (the bank is at fault in this case).

 

People who finance cars, boats, TVs, etc. and stop paying for them are the real scumbags. At that point the repo men are just recovering stolen property.

Don't write everyone off as scumbags.

 

I was grossing 6 figures a year a while back.  Then the real estate market went bust.  I dropped down to 19k a year.  We lost our house, our cars, and a lot of other things.

 

Does that make me a scumbag, or an unfortunate casualty of a bad economy?

[Lord Method Man]

Its an unfortunate circumstance and it doesn't make you a bad person, but you still can't keep things you haven't paid for.

[adrynalyne]

Its an unfortunate circumstance and it doesn't make you a bad person, but you still can't keep things you haven't paid for.

Oh I agree.  I am just saying, there are different circumstances for everyone.  I stopped paying because I didn't have a choice. 

 

It was food in my daughter's belly or pay creditors.

[Growled Member]

Yes because it is the banks property until all money is paid so if the bank gives someone permission they can do what they like. As for the stuff inside, you sign an agreement which lets them take whatever they like so they can get the money they are owed. Of course if they go to the wrong house they should be held accountable.

If I rent an apartment, it is not mine but I do have certain rights. The same should apply here.I don't think people would have near the issue with this (at least I wouldn't) if they would at least go before a judge and get him to sign a court order giving the banks the right to kick the current users out.

[exotoxic]

If I rent an apartment, it is not mine but I do have certain rights. The same should apply here.I don't think people would have near the issue with this (at least I wouldn't) if they would at least go before a judge and get him to sign a court order giving the banks the right to kick the current users out.

 

Why do you need a court order?? That is just adding more paperwork and time. A contract serves the same purpose, you sign it knowing exactly what will happen if you do not keep up to payments.

 

I really don't see any problem in kicking people out when they know exactly what will happen. :/

[ILikeTobacco]

First off, the bank should be fully liable for all the lost items and then some since some hold no monetary value but are still valuable, such as a high school diploma. The repo company is in no way responsible for the actions leading to the house reposition or what they did afterwards in that regards.

 

My question is, is the law different there? Here, if your home is reprocessed, you loss all access to it and any belongs inside, however not permanently. Either the repo company hires a movie company or it does it themselves, but they are required to move everything out of the house and into a storage unit. If the owners want their stuff back, they have to pay the storage unit costs and moving costs. This is because you usually have an idea your home is getting repo'd when the bank gives the notice a few days/weeks in advance which amounts to "you lost your home get your ###### out or we will do it and you pay the bill." Why was the repo company selling items? They aren't there items to sell. They get paid to do the repo and nothing more. Repo companies make their money from the company needing the repo, in this case the bank, and deals with moving companies and storage units for finding them work. Unless a contract for a home loan says that it is backed by the house AND everything in as collateral, nobody except the owner of the items have any right to those items.