Fraud cases send leasing companies all the way to Spain to get cars back
Autor:
Voican Razvan
21.03.2011
The leasing industry has seen a significant increase in fraud cases on the auto segment lately, with many companies discovering that many cars had "simply vanished" and starting to look for them across Europe with the help of the Police, says Antoaneta Curteanu, CEO of UniCredit Leasing, the biggest leasing company in Romania.
"There are actual gangs consisting of people who know very
well the procedures of a leasing company. For instance, they took
advantage of situations where grace periods were granted amid the
crisis, and after the grace period was over, we found that the car
had simply vanished. We have been quite affected, but we've worked
well with the Police and found cars as far away as Spain. Now we
have to go to get 23 cars back from Hungary.
"
She says this is why monitoring procedures have seen a significant tightening. On the other hand, the industry tends to be stifled by the large number of cars repossessed from clients who no longer pay. "The stocks are increasingly big, which puts pressure on prices, including on the market of new cars. The problem is that 90% of repossessed cars are sold at a loss."