If your car was repossessed, you might be worried about what happens next. Many people get a scary letter from a debt collector saying they owe thousands of dollars. But in Florida, the law is on your side — and Florida Consumer Lawyers is here to help.

What Is a Car Deficiency?

After your car is taken back (repossessed), the lender might sell it. If they don't get enough money from that sale to cover what you owe, they may try to charge you the rest. This leftover amount is called a deficiency.

But here's the good news...

Florida's Anti-Deficiency Law Protects You

Florida has a law that protects people from being forced to pay unfair deficiency balances after a car repossession. It's called the Florida Anti-Deficiency Statute, and it says:

• If your unpaid loan was less than $2,000, the lender can't come after you at all.

• If you owed more than $2,000, the lender can only ask you to pay the difference between your loan and the car's fair market value (what the car is really worth — not just what they sold it for at auction).

This means a lender can't just sell your car for $1,000 and make you pay the rest if your car was worth much more. They must be honest about its true value.

What Debt Collectors Don't Want You to Know

Many debt collection companies try to ignore these rules. They send letters demanding money based on a very low sale price — not the real value of your car. That's illegal in Florida. We have seen this type of collections activity in the past from debt collectors or finance companies such as Nationwide Southeast, LLC. 

Some collectors even send letters that lie about your rights. They may try to scare you into paying a debt you don't actually owe.

That's where we come in.

You Have Rights. We Fight for Them.

At Florida Consumer Lawyers, we help people just like you fight back. If a collector tries to:

✅ Make you pay an inflated deficiency
✅ Ignore the true market value of your car
✅ Skip required legal notices
✅ Break Florida's consumer protection laws

…you could be entitled to damages, and they may have to pay your attorney's fees too.

We know Florida law inside and out. Our team recently helped consumers just like you who were being wrongly chased for over $12,000 after their car was repossessed. The lender broke the law, and we held them accountable.

Call Florida Consumer Lawyers Today

Don't let a debt collector scare you into paying money you don't owe. If your car was repossessed and you received a deficiency notice, contact us right away.

📞 Call us at (813) 282-9330
💻 Visit us at www.floridaconsumerlawyers.com

We're your Florida consumer protection law firm. We're here to protect your rights, stop unlawful collections, and help you get peace of mind.