Quick question on reaffirming a car

[HRoark0717]

I am planning to reaffirm my car loan and adding the lienholder info on The Statement of Intentions.
Question: Am I required to also add the car lienholder to the Mailing Matrix?

[AngelinaCatHub]

Yes. It is a debt, and whether you intend to repay, it must be listed and yes it will be on the matrix. The consensus here is to "pay through" and not reaffirm. You will need you Trustees permission to reaffirm anyway. Things could get worse and if you reaffirm and cannot pay, you are stuck with a Judgment. 'Hub

[HRoark0717]

Yes. It is a debt, and whether you intend to repay, it must be listed and yes it will be on the matrix. The consensus here is to "pay through" and not reaffirm. You will need you Trustees permission to reaffirm anyway. Things could get worse and if you reaffirm and cannot pay, you are stuck with a Judgment. 'Hub

Great! Thanks for clarifying AngelinaCatHub. Yes I have read alot of threads about reaffirming a car loan and the "pay-through" "ride-through" option seems to be the better way to go if possible. Could I throw a few other questions out there?...
Question 1: When I call the lienholder tomorrow and tell them I am filing BK Chapter 7 this week, how does this conversation usually go?
Question 2: If the lienholder tells me they require me to reaffirm the debt do I include the reaffirming debt forms "Form 240A & 27" with the BK filing papers?
Question 3: If the lienholder does not require me to reaffirm the debt would I still need to fill out the reaffirming debt forms "Form 240A & 27"?
Question 4: If needed, when is the best time to fill out Form 240A & Form 27?

Thank you in advance for any helpful input...

[gatekeeper]

The lienholder, would ask you do you have a lawyer, and if so, they need their information. If you do not have a lawyer, they would ask you about the condition of the car and how many miles on it. They would also would ask questions about how much do you make every month and approximatley how much money you have left over (just to ensure you can still make the payment) If you decided to reaffirm the debt, you would need to include the information in your filing. However, you would still need to inform the court, of your intentions of this debt, are you going to give it up, reaffirm or redeem the property. Which is noted on Form 8 (CHAPTER 7 INDIVIDUAL DEBTOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENTION).

Also, the only reason why I reaffirm my vehicle was the creditor was willing to reduce the interest rate and the payment. Also, I only have a year left of payments to make on this vehicle, by reaffirming the debt they added two additional months, because the payment amount was reduced. They also agree to report that I am making payments to all 3 credit bureaus, after the discharge has been issued.

1. See what the lienholder is willing to do for you.
2. Always ask questions, as to see if they can reduce the payment amount.
3. Also, make sure that they will report to all 3 credit bureaus if you do reaffirm the debt.


My lienholder and my lawyer, both wanted to make sure that the car was in working condition and that I was still able to make the payments. During the reaffirm proceedings the lienholder wanted to inspect my vehicle to ensure that it was working and the condition of the car was fine.

[HRoark0717]

The lienholder, would ask you do you have a lawyer, and if so, they need their information. If you do not have a lawyer, they would ask you about the condition of the car and how many miles on it. They would also would ask questions about how much do you make every month and approximatley how much money you have left over (just to ensure you can still make the payment) If you decided to reaffirm the debt, you would need to include the information in your filing. However, you would still need to inform the court, of your intentions of this debt, are you going to give it up, reaffirm or redeem the property. Which is noted on Form 8 (CHAPTER 7 INDIVIDUAL DEBTOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENTION).

Also, the only reason why I reaffirm my vehicle was the creditor was willing to reduce the interest rate and the payment. Also, I only have a year left of payments to make on this vehicle, by reaffirming the debt they added two additional months, because the payment amount was reduced. They also agree to report that I am making payments to all 3 credit bureaus, after the discharge has been issued.

1. See what the lienholder is willing to do for you.
2. Always ask questions, as to see if they can reduce the payment amount.
3. Also, make sure that they will report to all 3 credit bureaus if you do reaffirm the debt.


My lienholder and my lawyer, both wanted to make sure that the car was in working condition and that I was still able to make the payments. During the reaffirm proceedings the lienholder wanted to inspect my vehicle to ensure that it was working and the condition of the car was fine.

Many thanks gatekeeper. This is very interesting information. I was not aware the lienholder could take the position of wanting to work with you (I was thinking the opposite). I'll prepare myself with some questions about payment reductions, reporting to the credit reports, etc... Thanks again fro sharing

[tcreegan]

Hi HRoark,

Question 1: When I call the lienholder tomorrow and tell them I am filing BK Chapter 7 this week, how does this conversation usually go? .....the first hurdle will be finding someone who actually handles BKs instead of a customer rep reading off a script. I would ask about reaffirmation documents, do they have their own we use; can you file it w/ the court or will I have to?; can we get it all done before I file the BK so it can be filed the day after?; what will happen if the BK judge doesn't approve it?. Also, when I file BK, where do I send my payments?; will I lose online access?, will I still get a statement?

Question 2: If the lienholder tells me they require me to reaffirm the debt do I include the reaffirming debt forms "Form 240A & 27" with the BK filing papers? ....usually not filed w/ the petition. Some lenders won't deal w/ you until you actually file, if they are willing to cut a deal ahead of time, ask the court clerk whether it can go w/ the petition or after. The lender likely has reaffirmation forms that they use, they fill out their parts and send them to you. You check it over, sign it if all is OK, send it back to them, they sign and file it in the court. Pro-se filers get a reaffirmation hearing where you get to convince the BK judge the reaff won't cause "undue hardship"

Question 3: If the lienholder does not require me to reaffirm the debt would I still need to fill out the reaffirming debt forms "Form 240A & 27"? .....nope

Question 4: If needed, when is the best time to fill out Form 240A & Form 27? ....they have to be filed before discharge but you don't want to wait that long, got to give room for the reaffirmation hearing. The best time would most likely be after filing but before the 341 meeting.

gatekeeper brings up a good point, watch the terms in the reaffirmation very carefully. Negotiating better terms would be a bonus, go for it.

Making progress....

Tom in Colo

[HRoark0717]

Hi HRoark,

Question 1: When I call the lienholder tomorrow and tell them I am filing BK Chapter 7 this week, how does this conversation usually go? .....the first hurdle will be finding someone who actually handles BKs instead of a customer rep reading off a script. I would ask about reaffirmation documents, do they have their own we use; can you file it w/ the court or will I have to?; can we get it all done before I file the BK so it can be filed the day after?; what will happen if the BK judge doesn't approve it?. Also, when I file BK, where do I send my payments?; will I lose online access?, will I still get a statement?

Question 2: If the lienholder tells me they require me to reaffirm the debt do I include the reaffirming debt forms "Form 240A & 27" with the BK filing papers? ....usually not filed w/ the petition. Some lenders won't deal w/ you until you actually file, if they are willing to cut a deal ahead of time, ask the court clerk whether it can go w/ the petition or after. The lender likely has reaffirmation forms that they use, they fill out their parts and send them to you. You check it over, sign it if all is OK, send it back to them, they sign and file it in the court. Pro-se filers get a reaffirmation hearing where you get to convince the BK judge the reaff won't cause "undue hardship"

Question 3: If the lienholder does not require me to reaffirm the debt would I still need to fill out the reaffirming debt forms "Form 240A & 27"? .....nope

Question 4: If needed, when is the best time to fill out Form 240A & Form 27? ....they have to be filed before discharge but you don't want to wait that long, got to give room for the reaffirmation hearing. The best time would most likely be after filing but before the 341 meeting.

gatekeeper brings up a good point, watch the terms in the reaffirmation very carefully. Negotiating better terms would be a bonus, go for it.

Making progress....

Tom in Colo

Tom in Colo,

Wow! You are an endless flow of excellent input. Many, many thanks I was able to talk with the lienholder today and only got a few questions answered. Once I file and have a case # is when the rest of the questions can be addressed.

Tomorrow's the day I'm going to the BK court and file. I could not have gotten this far on my own without your help and the constant positive help on this forum... THX