Source: justia.com

Future Ford vehicles could have a new technology that will allow both banks and vehicle agencies to seize the car if the owner defaults on several payments. Last week, Ford filed a patent application called System Methods to Repossess a Vehicle; with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

The application number of this document is US-20230055958-A1 and explains in detail through 14 pages different systems and methods to repossess the vehicle of acustomer who has defaulted on his payments.That patent was originally filed in August 2021 and covers various ways to combat late payments to vehicle agencies, although full details are unknown, reports suggest
that a "recovery computer" could be installed in all Ford vehicles to make the system work smoothly. It is also stated that no additional hardware needs to be installed for the new technology to work, and the report also mentions that the system will issue several warnings before initiating a repossession.

Although if the notifications are not heeded, the system can disable certain functions of the vehicle or even block it completely, as according to the patent description, the patent includes several circumstances in which the block could be overridden, such
as if someone had to drive to the hospital, meet an ambulance to transfer a patient, or if one intends to make payments, but cannot do it due to circumstances such as job loss or illness, the vehicle could still be used, but with restrictions.

That Ford filed the patent application does not necessarily mean that it will install the technology in its vehicles immediately. What is a fact is that vehicle repossessions are on the rise in the neighboring country to the north, as higher interest rates affect
monthly payments, and perhaps this patent is the answer to this problem.