So... Quick disclaimer but the following story is going to be slightly ridden with foul language. Thankfully JF has a built in censor...
So on Saturday I'm sitting inside while it rains, waiting for the weather to clear up so I can begin work on my clutch swap as well as to start removing my armor for bed-lining, when I hear the doorbell ring. Funny, I wasn't expecting any visitors or UPS packages? Who could this be?
I walk towards the front door and see a heavier, older man standing outside. He has the very "Texas Sheriff" look, minus the badges, gun, and if you included a brownish suit jacket with alligator boots. So perhaps closer to the used care salesman look.
For reference.
Anyways, I continue to the door and open it only to realize my Jeep is lifted up on the back of one of these hydraulic mechanisms attached to a 3500 series Silverado. At this point I realize what's going on.... My Jeep is being REPO'd!
For a bit of background info. I paid my Jeep off November of 2010. I subsequently battled the Credit Union for the next year as they had apparently misplaced my title. It took them until October 2011 to call me and say hey, we found it! (Which explains the temp. tags in most of my pictures for the span of the last year and a half.) It then took them until the end of January to actually MAIL the damn thing to me. I LITERALLY just got the new Louisiana title in the mail this past Thursday.
Anyhow, the first thing I say to this older gentlemen is very simply, "What the ****?!"
As you can imagine, seeing someone try to REPO something you OWN in full, and have the title and paperwork to prove it, sent me into a complete rampage. He continually tried to speak and explain to me, and every time I simply cut him off saying something to the effect of "No, **** you, I don't care, put my ****ing Jeep back on the ground." After going back and forth for a few minutes, I went back inside to grab my title for proof that I owned the vehicle and that it WAS in fact in my name.
Upon returning and showing aforementioned gentleman (let's call him Joe for now...) my title, Joe decides that this could be fraudulent and that my title isn't enough proof. He goes on to tell me that people acquire their titles illegally all the time.
Apparently Joe thinks my featherweight spindley, beanstalk build of a man is capable of breaking into a credit union, taking out the guards and stealing my title back without getting caught.
We go back and forth repeatedly for a while and finally I say, let me see the paperwork. Joe obviously thought I was going to rip it to shreds so he refused to actually let me hold it (and therefore I couldn't actually turn pages on it.) but there was no DATE of the information he had, and thus there's no telling how old it was, never mind the fact that I never went behind on a payment. I could however see an amount owed cited as being roughly 6750$. The only date I can see is the date Joe printed this information out which is listed on the very top in fine print as February 23, 2012.
After arguing repeatedly, I very "politely" say to Joe "**** you, I'm calling the police, this is grand theft."
The police came and after reviewing my paperwork deemed the vehicle as being under complete ownership of one Kenneth Morse. In short, they told Joe to set the vehicle down and get ****ed, as he had absolutely no grounds to leave the property with my Jeep. Joe left, and all was well in the world again, allowing me to get to work on the Jeep....
Fast forward to today (Monday.) I call my CU and ask them "What the **** is going on?" Apparently the dip ****s, yes, the same **** tards that took 3 months to MAIL a title to me, and prior to that took 11 months just to ****ing find the thing, "forgot" to close the account when I paid it off. They informed me there should be no more issues and all should be well. The apologized up and down etc... So all is taken care of and good... But I still can't help but think....
What if Joe had come and hooked up to my Jeep, knocked on the door and WHOOPS, nobody is home! Joe leaves the paperwork and leaves with my Jeep... Joe would have called the CU this morning to have the CU say "uhh the debtor paid that account off in November 2010, the title has been released to the debtor.." and Joe would have likely **** his pants on the spot for now being in possession of a vehicle that had been reported stolen a few days prior.
Joe would no realize "Oh ****, I've literally just committed grand theft auto..." and then I have to wonder what he would have done? Would he have admitted guilt and brought it back to me and said sorry, my mistake, how can I make it right? Or would Joe have tried to wash his hands of it and dumped it in a river somewhere? I'm truly amazed that someone can **** up so badly as to damn near accidentally steal a vehicle, and frankly it's a bit scary to me...
My greatest fear is coming outside one morning only to see my Jeep has been stolen, as I've poured relentless dollars and hours into making her what she currently is (from stock mind you) and very simply, I would be absolutely devastated to see all my time, fun, and money simply disappear at the drop of a hat...
Let the questions/comments fly...
I may post this in G&D as well, just to see what sort of response I can get out of it, as this is all truly mind boggling to me. :cheers2: