When a vehicle is repossessed, the normal odometer disclosure process is disrupted because the owner is typically not cooperating with the transfer. The person whose vehicle was repossessed is generally not going to come in and sign an odometer disclosure statement. Federal regulations account for this situation.
When a vehicle is repossessed, the creditor or repossession agent records the odometer reading at the time of repossession. This reading is documented in the repossession records. When the creditor subsequently sells the vehicle — whether at auction or through a dealer — the creditor provides the odometer disclosure based on the reading at the time of repossession, with a notation that the vehicle was repossessed and the mileage reading is the reading at the time of repossession, not at the time of sale.
If you acquire a repossessed vehicle for your inventory, pay attention to the odometer disclosure from the creditor. Note any discrepancies between the repossession reading and the current reading, and make sure your own odometer disclosure to the buyer is accurate based on the current reading at the time of your sale.