Can a car company demand money from mebecause I’m making my payments early?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can a car company demand money from mebecause I’m making my payments early?
My car payments are $173.23 every other week. I have sent them $200 every other week while asking that the remainder of $26.77 go toward my principle. They said that because my last payment was received by them before the due date, and because I said to put remainder on principle they put the whole $200 toward my principle because I did not specify the $26.77 go toward principle. So now they say I owe them $73. Who is in the right? Do I owe, or don’t I?
Asked on September 21, 2010 under General Practice, South Carolina
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
Probably if you paid early, when a payment was not due, they are right--there's a good case that if no payment is due at that time, then the whole amount was a remainder to put against the principal. However, at the end of the day, as long as you are being credited for all the payments, you are not actually hurt by their asking for more towards the next payment--indeed, by prepaying some of the principal even earlier than usual, if anything, you shaved a tiny extra bit off what you'll owe. Given that the cost of damage to your credit rating or the cost of defending against collections efforts both exceed $73--by a wide margin--the best thing would be to (1) make sure everything is being credited and accounted for, then (2) pay the additional amount.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.