My exwife didn't pay for car loan tow company got car do i have to pay as a cosigner if car is gone?

Answer 1

As a former banker, I was often asked this type of question. A cosigner is a person who is legally obligated to the lender (usually a bank or a finance company) to repay a loan that may, or may not, have benefited the cosigner. By signing the loan documents, the cosigner assumes equal and full responsibility to repay the loan. Note the term 'equal' - most financial institutions make no distinction between who signs the contract first or second, both parties are equally responsible. Where the car is or who has possession of it makes no difference. The loan contract is between the borrowers (yes, the cosigner is a borrower) and the lender. Should the loan go in to default (payments late, missed, or completely in default), no matter what personal agreements the cosigner had with the primary borrower about who should make the payments or who has possession of the car, the financial institution will make attempts to collect from both parties and report that information to the credit bureaus where it will impact equally both the primary borrower's and cosigner's credit history, credit score, and affect each party's ability to obtain credit in the future.