When They Take The Car Back
ORS 79A.6090 and ORS 79A.6120 — no breach of the peace, and 15 days' notice before a consumer sale
In Oregon, after a default a secured party, such as the lender on a car loan, may take possession of the collateral. It may do it through judicial process, or without judicial process if it proceeds without breach of the peace.
No breach of the peace. Taking the collateral without a court is allowed on that one condition. The section does not define breach of the peace; what crosses the line is decided by courts on the facts.
After taking it, the secured party may sell or otherwise dispose of the collateral, and every aspect of the disposition, its method, manner, time, place and terms, has to be commercially reasonable.
15 days in a consumer transaction. A notification of disposition sent after default and 15 days or more before the earliest time of disposition it sets out is sent within a reasonable time. In a transaction other than a consumer transaction, the figure is 10 days.
The debtor, a secondary obligor or another secured party or lienholder may redeem the collateral by tendering fulfillment of every obligation it secures, plus the reasonable expenses and attorney fees of retaking and disposing of it. Redemption is possible until the secured party has collected on the collateral, disposed of it or contracted to, or accepted it in satisfaction of the debt.
A secured party that does not follow the chapter is liable for the loss it causes, and where the collateral is consumer goods the debtor may recover not less than $1,000 in an individual action. What happens to a surplus or deficiency after the sale, and the contents a notice has to have, are in other sections not reproduced here. Whether a particular repossession breached the peace is a question for a court and for a licensed Oregon attorney.
Sources for this section (5)
- ORS 79A.6090 — UCC 9-609. Secured party’s right to take possession after default
- ORS 79A.6100 — UCC 9-610. Disposition of collateral after default
- ORS 79A.6120 — UCC 9-612. Timeliness of notification before disposition of collateral
- ORS 79A.6230 — UCC 9-623. Right to redeem collateral
- ORS 79A.6250 — UCC 9-625. Remedies for secured party’s failure to comply with article
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Oregon attorney.