Elizabeth Warren/Banking Committee Launches Probe Into Auto Repossessions

The car repo business is booming as Americans fall behind on increasingly expensive car payments.

Cars are being repossessed at the highest rate since the Great Recession of 2008 and 2009. The repo tactics have drawn the attention of Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who launched a probe into the auto lending industry on Wednesday, a Senate Banking Committee spokesperson told CNN.

The investigation is focused on illegal and mistaken repossessions, when cars are seized even if borrowers are current on their bills or have reached agreements with lenders.

Warren, a Democrat, sent letters to a dozen major industry players including Chase Auto, GM Financial, Toyota Financial Services and Ally Financial on Wednesday as part of the probe. She sought information on repo activity, error rates and practices.

“Car repossession is a devastating disruption to someone’s life – and it is inexcusable when that repossession is in error,” Warren wrote in the letters, which request responses by February 16. Because Democrats are in the minority, Warren has no subpoena power and responses will be voluntary.

Historically, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has served as a watchdog against illegal repossessions. The agency fined Wells Fargo $1.7 billion in 2022 for, among other things, allegedly illegally repossessing vehicles.

However, the Trump administration gutted the consumer watchdog and sought to shut the agency altogether this past year.

“The Trump administration has kneecapped the agency’s ability to protect consumers from auto repossession errors,” Warren wrote in her letters to the auto lending companies.

The CFPB did not respond to a request for comment. CNN reached out to the major auto lenders and trade associations addressed in Warren’s letters, including the American Recovery Association, National Independent Auto Dealers Association and American Financial Services Association. Chase declined to comment.

‘Devastating and deeply disruptive’

Car repossessions have been rising in recent years amid broader affordability concerns. Typically, borrowers prioritize making their car payments over almost all other payments because they need their cars to get to work.

“Having a car repossessed is a devastating and deeply disruptive experience,” Warren wrote to the auto companies. “Losing access to a car often means losing a paycheck.”

In 2024, 1.73 million vehicles were repossessed – the most since 2009, during the Great Recession, according to data from Cox Automotive and Experian.

Repossession data for 2025 is not available, but an executive from an industry trade group previously told CNN that repo volumes are close to Great Recession levels.