If you're struggling to make your car payment, you can potentially avoid repossession and the consequences that come with it by contacting your lender ASAP.

If you're facing a car repossession, you should be aware of what your rights are, and what the recovery company can and can't do to you and your vehicle.

If you voluntarily surrender your car, you avoid some of the negative aspects of a repossession, but the repo still gets listed on your credit reports.

You could face legal action if you try to hide your car from the repo man, so the best course of action is to prevent a repossession from happening in the first place.

Just one missed car payment puts you at risk of repossession, depending on the language of your contract and the laws of the state you live in. The best way to prevent a repossession from happening is to take action before you miss any payments.

If you fail to make your car payments, repossession is nearly unavoidable. But just because your vehicle gets repossessed doesn't mean you have to give up the fight. You have options for getting your car back after a repossession in Seattle, and we can tell you what they are.

Dealing with vehicle repossession in Los Angeles is especially tough if you already have bad credit. If your car's been taken because you didn't or couldn't make your payments, the good news is that you have a number of options available to get it back. States have different repossession laws, and not all of them offer as many options as California.

How much a voluntary repossession affects your credit depends on your specific credit situation at the time. Your credit score is going to drop whether you give up your car voluntarily or it's repossessed, but you may be able to prevent having to give your vehicle up if you take action early enough.

You can still buy a car if you have a repossession on your credit reports, but you may find it more difficult to get approved for an auto loan. While a repo stays on your credit reports for up to seven years, its impact lessens over time, and there are lenders out there that work with people that have dealt with repossession.

Your cosigner on an auto loan can help you stop a repossession by making payments if you're unable to. If your car is repossessed, both of your credit scores are going to drop and the missed payment(s) and repo is going to show up on both of your credit reports.