Legal Question in Administrative Law in Georgia

I co-signed on a car loan for a friend. The friend and I had a verbal agreement that within 2 months she would have someone else pick up the loan or refinance and get me off the loan. 14 months later I go to get a new boat for my business and guess what. She failed to get me off the loan, missed 2 payments and dropped my credit beacon score from 738 to 603. No one ever called me to give me the opportunity to pay the payments or anything. I just got to look like like an ass when I went to pick up my boat. I guess my question is shouldn't someone from Car max have called me rather than wreck my credit. I am now losing big money with my business as a result. Do I have options or do I just suffer for being stupid in the first place


Asked on 4/28/15, 5:23 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Scott Riddle Law Office of Scott B. Riddle, LLC

For the most part, the answer to the last few words of your post is yes. No, the lender had no obligation to contact you or do anything else unless it is in the contract. They just want their money, on time. It also looks like you dropped the ball for a year by not following up on the refinance (which is an odd agreement anyway). There is a reason she needed a co-signer -- poor credit. It was an expensive lesson, and if you are still on the hook it might get worse. Never co-sign, not even for your mother.

Read more
Answered on 4/28/15, 5:34 pm
Glen Ashman Ashman Law Office also dba Glen Ashman Attorney

Your question explains why no one should ever co-sign a loan they do not plan to pay. Lenders ask for co-signers only in cases where thety are very sure the other person is unlikely to pay. Since they figured out in advance that your friend was likely a deadbeat (they were correct), you were actually warned. And what you signed said they had no duty to warn you. So what happened is what always happens - your credit is trashed for 7 years and you owe the whole thing. The only way you can minimize the damage is to payoff the balance in full, and that doesn't fix the late payments to date.

Read more
Answered on 4/28/15, 5:45 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Administrative Law questions and answers in Georgia