JOHN P. SWINDEL, JR., PETITIONER,
v.
GENERAL FINANCE CORPORATION OF FLORIDA, RESPONDENT
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This case addresses whether a creditor who repossesses and sells a motor vehicle upon default can obtain a deficiency judgment against the debtor. The court held that under the Uniform Commercial Code and the security agreement terms, the doctrine of election of remedies does not bar deficiency judgments, allowing creditors to pursue such judgments when proceeds from sale are insufficient.
The court held that a secured creditor is entitled to a deficiency judgment against a defaulting purchaser. The Uniform Commercial Code (F.S. Section 679.504(2)) and the specific security agreement terms authorize deficiency judgments and abrogate the common law doctrine of election of remedies in this context.
[1] A secured creditor who repossesses and sells collateral upon a buyer's default is lawfully entitled to a deficiency judgment against the defaulting purchaser, absent an a…
[2] Statutory provisions authorizing deficiency judgments in cases of default on secured retail installment contracts abrogate the common law doctrine of election of remedies…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“unless otherwise agreed, the debtor is liable for any deficiency”
Establishes the core principle of UCC Section 679.504(2) allowing deficiency judgments
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligencePetitioner Swindel purchased a motor vehicle under a retail installment conditional sales contract that included a security agreement. Upon default in…
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Petitioner seeks review by certiorari of a decision rendered by the Circuit Court of Santa Rosa County, sitting in its appellate capacity, which affirmed a judgment against petitioner rendered by the small claims court of that county.
The only question presented for decision is whether a secured creditor, after repossessing and selling a motor vehicle upon default in payment of the sum due under a retail installment contract, is in proper cases lawfully entitled to a deficiency judgment against the defaulting purchaser. The small claims court held in the affirmative, which judgment was affirmed by the circuit court on appeal.
It is the position of the petitioner herein that a creditor who repossesses a motor vehicle because of default in the payment of an installment under a conditional sales contract is barred by the common law doctrine of election of remedies from seeking a judgment against the default purchaser for any deficiency which may result from the sale of the motor vehicle by the creditor. Petitioner relies on the decision rendered by the Second District Court of Appeal in the case of Smith v. Cox1 to support the position he takes on this review. In that case the court was interpreting the provisions of Section 520.11, F.S., which statute has since been repealed, and merely held that the statutory requirements necessary to authorize the rendition of a deficiency judgment against the defaulting debtor had not been met. In the absence of full compliance with the statutory requirements, the court held that the doctrine of the election of remedies precluded the rendition of the deficiency judgment against the defaulting debtor in that case.
Section 520.11, F.S., which was involved in the case of Smith, supra, has now been superseded by F.S. Section 679.504(2), F. S.A. of the Uniform Commercial Code. This statute provides that a secured party after default may sell the collateral pledged in payment of the debt and “. . . unless otherwise agreed, the debtor is liable for any deficiency”. The security agreement under which the automobile was purchased by petitioner in the case sub judice specifically provides that in the event of default in payment of the sums due under the contract, the seller shall have the right, upon reasonable notice, to sell the security and apply the proceeds of the sale to the expense of repossession and sale and in satisfaction of the indebtedness. The contract further provides that the buyer will pay any deficiency which results in the premises.
In a case factually similar in all material respects to the case sub judice, this court held that a statute which authorized the entry of a deficiency judgment against a *395defaulting debtor under a conditional sales contract, where the proceeds derived from a sale of the repossessed security were insufficient to pay the expenses and the indebtedness due, abrogated the common law doctrine of the election of remedies and authorized the rendition of a judgment in favor of the creditor for such deficiency as may result from the sale.2
A similar conclusion was reached in construing the provisions of a conditional sales contract by a Federal District Court in Oklahoma.3
We hold that the circuit court’s decision of affirmance in the case sub judice was correct and free from error. Certiorari is accordingly denied and the petition dismissed.
SPECTOR, C. J., and JOHNSON, J., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
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Maserati Automobiles Inc. & Alfieri Maserati v. Caplan, 522 So. 2d 993 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988)…available to him.... The remedy under this section is instead referred to simply as 'revocation of acceptance’ of goods tendered under a contract for sale and involves no suggestion of 'elections’ of any sort.” Cf. Swindel v. General Finance Corp., 265 So. 2d 393 (Fla. 1st DCA 1972). See generally Encore v. Olivetti Corp., 326 So. 2d 161, 165 n. 2 (Fla.1976); D. Dobbs, Remedies § 12.17, at 879 (1973) ("the buyer need not ‘elect’ between getting his money back and getting damages for breach of warran [*996] t…
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Encore, Inc. v. Olivetti Corp. OF Am., 326 So. 2d 161 (Fla. 1976)…operty and sell it, then apply the proceeds to the satisfaction of the purchase price and, if there was a deficiency, sue for the balance. General Motors Acceptance Corp. v. Hurst, 212 So. 2d 335 (Fla.App.1st 1968); Swindel v. General Finance Corp., 265 So. 2d 393 (Fla.App.1st 1972); contra, Nat’l City Truck Rental Co. v. Southern Mill Creek Products Co., 213 So. 2d 261 (Fla.App.2d 1968) (the Court noted, however, that the case was governed by the law in effect prior to the adoption of the Code, hence Voges,…
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Williams v. Kloeppel, 537 So. 2d 1033 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988)…cial Code remedies available to a secured creditor in the event of debtor default are cumulative and should be pursued seriatim. See Land v. Cessna Aircraft Co., 466 So. 2d 1265, 1268 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985); Swindel v. General Finance Corp. of Florida, 265 So. 2d 393, 394-395 (Fla. 1st DCA 1972). The secured creditor may take possession of the collateral, may dispose of the collateral by public or private sale in a commercially reasonable manner, and may obtain a judgment for any deficiency after the sale. §§ 67…
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Bill Smith, Inc. v. COX, 166 So. 2d 497 (Fla. 2d DCA 1964)
- Gen. Motors Acceptance Corp. v. Blanche S. Hurst, 212 So. 2d 335 (Fla. 1st DCA 1968)
- Straight v. James Talcott, Inc., 329 F.2d 1 (10th Cir. 1964)