Pay on time or device disables your car

Knight Ridder Newspapers ^ | September 21, 2003 | LENA WARMACK

[sarcasm]

ARLINGTON, Texas — Randy Rapp, owner of a family-owned used-car business, was frustrated with customers falling behind on their car payments or high-tailing it.

"I'd get people sometimes that would run off in one of my cars because they can't pay me and they get desperate and I'd lose two to three cars a year; it's a serious problem for me," said Rapp, owner of Don Rapp Motor Co.

That was four years ago. Today, Rapp, 47, said he has solved the problem with a small electronic gadget called On Time.

The unobtrusive device is installed under vehicle dashboards. The device reminds a car owner when a payment is due by beeping and flashing a red light. If the bill isn't paid on the due date, the car cannot start without a six-digit code from the dealer or finance company.

"It's become the collection tool for the finance company," said Mike Simon, chief executive officer and president for Payment Protection Systems in Temecula, Calif., which manufactures On Time.

Since launching the device in 1999, Simon said the privately owned company has experienced 40 percent growth annually. To date, about 90,000 systems have been sold. More than 400 used-car dealerships in the United States and Canada use the technology.

Dealerships, leasing businesses and finance companies buy them for $220 to $260 each, based on quantity.

[SLB]

Buyer beware! Get sucked into one of these deals and suffer the consequences.

[JOHANNES801]

Yes,but can you blame the dealers.A buyer doesnt own the car till its paid for and if the dealer tells them up front about the device it will keep them on time.

[Conservative Me]

Buyer Beware??

A local mechanic where I live used to finance cars in house. THat is, up until about a month ago. Out of 10 cars financed, 5 were in the process of being re-poed for being months behind in payment and one other which would have had to been re-poed, but was returned to the mechanic with a destroyed front end.

Finally, something to help ensure that people actually adhere to their commitment/contract...

[MetalHeadConservative35]

Lol and i bet you i could remove that device some way or another..

i fully understand that paying your bill is important..but come on..this is pushing the borders a bit

[White Eagle]

I worked with some used-car operations in the past. If the dealer is writing their own loans instead of selling them to local banks, that's probably because the customer's credit is not too good. It always seemed like the paper financed by the dealer ended up with people who looked like a Jerry Springer audience.

Combine that with, "I can't start this car because it's disabled because I didn't make a payment on time and I had to take a cab to get here" and we might see some interesting followups on this story. Stay tuned.

[SLB]

Hold the buyer to be responsible for paying his just debts. Let him know up front what the consequences are for failing to do so.

[expat_panama]

I want to put one of those gadgets on my money so if the car stops working it automatically makes my money no good too.

Two can play that game.

[DB]

Just wait until someone dies in some sort of emergancy because the car wouldn't start...

The lawyers will have a field day...

[robertpaulsen]

Right now, home mortgage lenders are reading this story and saying, "Wait a minute ..."

[waterstraat]

A global economy that sends so many of our jobs to asia, needs devices like this, not only on cars, but major appliances, etc. By the time an unemployed displaced worker gets out of bankrupcy court, it is too late to get back any significant part of his remaining assets.

[Conservative Me]

Which is exactly what this does, imo. This also protects the seller.