NPR had a segment this morning about the use of starter interruptors on cars as a kind of virtual repo man -- if you don't keep up with your payments, they just deactivate your car by remote. Far be it from me to tell the down-and-out with piss poor credit what additional risk she can or can't take on, but I have a sneaking suspicion the legal system will end up making things pretty unpleasant for the lender who chooses to use this method of knee-breaking. Access to an automobile so vital in this country -- for getting to work, getting groceries, etc -- that taking it away over a missed payment or two just seems like overkill. I'm sure someone's arguing that it's the threat of losing your car that motivates you to pay, and that the dealership has no real motivation to actually demotivate your car unless you're way delinquent. But that doesn't make it any less predatory!
It would be interesting to know whether dealerships offering thusly equipped vehicles are charging less interest on the loans than they otherwise would, since they're lower risk.
MORE, or related at least: A generation weighed down by debt.
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