Johnson v. Santander Consumer USA, Inc. (In re Bryant)

(Bankr. W.D. Ky. Dec. 8, 2014)

The bankruptcy court grants summary judgment in favor of the secured lender in this lien avoidance action. The lender’s lien was properly notated on the original vehicle title. The debtor then applied for a duplicate title, which listed “Santander Consumer,” rather than the lender’s full name, as a second lienholder. The new title incorrectly listed a bank as a first lienholder (there was no other lienholder). The original title was surrendered and then destroyed. The trustee sought to avoid the lien based on failure to perfect the lien. The court holds that the erroneous listing of the first lienholder only means that the lender’s lien was deemed the first lien. Further, the court holds that the shortened name was not seriously misleading, as the address and other information were accurate and would have led to the correct lienholder. Opinion below.

2014-12-08 – johnson v santander consumer