---
title: HB 1134. Property; repossessors of motor vehicles; revise notice requirements
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1134
cite_as: HB 1134, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1134
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1134.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1134/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72688
date: 2026-03-31
status: engrossed
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1135.md
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 895
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1134.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1134
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-03-04
last_action: Senate Tabled
sponsors:
  - Kimberly New
  - John Corbett
  - Danny Mathis
  - Alan Powell
  - Vance Smith
  - Marty Harbin
text_version: Comm Sub
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1134/2025
upstream_id: 2104361
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - vehicle repossession
  - consumer protection
  - property law
  - auto loans
---

# HB 1134. Property; repossessors of motor vehicles; revise notice requirements

## Text

The Senate Committee on Banking and Financial Institutions offered the following
substitute to HB 1134:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Part 5 of Article 8 of Chapter 14 of Title 44 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to pawnbrokers, factors, bailees, acceptors, and depositories, so as to
revise notice requirements for repossessors of motor vehicles; to provide for requirements
for determining the completion of a repossession of a motor vehicle; to provide for a
rebuttable presumption; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for
other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Part 5 of Article 8 of Chapter 14 of Title 44 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to pawnbrokers, factors, bailees, acceptors, and depositories, is amended by revising
Code Section 44-14-411.1, relating to repossessor of motor vehicle as involuntary,
gratuitous, or naked depository of personal property found therein and disposition of personal
property, as follows:
"44-14-411.1.
(a) Any person who lawfully repossesses a motor vehicle shall be an involuntary,
gratuitous, or naked depository of any personal property found in such motor vehicle and
shall have a lien on such property for any reasonable expenses incurred in storing such
property or in giving notice to such owner.
(b) Within ten days of the date of repossession, the person repossessing such motor vehicle
shall notify the owner of the motor vehicle of the intent to dispose of the personal property.
Such notice must be actual notice, but may be by personal service or by service by certified
mail or statutory overnight delivery.
<del>(c) If the personal property is not redeemed within 30 days from the date of the first notice,
a second notice shall be sent in the same manner as provided in subsection (b) of this Code
section.
(d)</del> If the personal property is not redeemed within 30 days from the date of <del>the second
</del> <ins>such</ins> notice, the personal property may be disposed of in the manner most expeditious to
the depository without further liability and the proceeds shall be disbursed as provided in
Code Section 44-14-412.
<ins>(c) For purposes of this Code section, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a lawful
repossession shall be completed when:
(1) The motor vehicle has been attached to a tow truck or loaded onto a carrier;
(2) The repossessing party or an authorized agent thereof has entered the motor vehicle;
or
(3) The motor vehicle has been moved by the repossessing party or an authorized agent
thereof."
</ins> SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.

A Georgia Senate substitute for HB 1134 would streamline how people who repossess motor vehicles must notify owners about personal belongings left inside, cutting a second-notice requirement and adding rules for when a repossession counts as complete.

### Plain-language summary

Under current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 44-14-411.1), someone who repossesses a car becomes an involuntary caretaker of any personal property left inside it. That person must notify the owner within ten days of repossession, wait 30 days, then send a second notice if the property still isn't claimed, and wait another 30 days before disposing of the property.
This bill removes the second-notice step. After the single initial notice, if the owner does not reclaim the property within 30 days, the repossessor may dispose of it. The bill also adds a new rule saying that a repossession is presumed complete, unless proven otherwise, once the vehicle is hooked to a tow truck or loaded onto a carrier, once the repossessing party enters the vehicle, or once the vehicle has been moved. This helps establish a clear starting point for the notice timeline and other legal questions tied to when repossession occurs.

### What it does

- Removes the requirement for a second notice to vehicle owners before repossessors can dispose of personal property left in a repossessed car.
- Keeps the single ten-day notice requirement but shortens the overall waiting period since the second notice step is eliminated.
- Creates a rebuttable presumption (a legal assumption that can be disproven with evidence) about when a repossession is legally complete.
- Specifies three events that trigger this presumption: the vehicle being attached to a tow truck or carrier, the repossessing party entering the vehicle, or the vehicle being moved.

### Who it affects

This bill affects people whose cars are repossessed, particularly if they leave personal belongings inside; auto lenders and repossession companies that carry out repossessions; and courts or parties in disputes over exactly when a repossession legally occurred.

### Why it matters

Car owners would get one fewer notice before their leftover belongings can be disposed of, speeding up that process for repossessors but shortening the window for owners to reclaim items. The new presumption about when a repossession is complete could also affect disputes over ownership timing, such as during a vehicle's sale or a loan default.

### Key provisions

- Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 44-14-411.1, keeping the ten-day notice requirement in subsection (b) for notifying an owner of intent to dispose of personal property.
- Section 1 deletes the former subsection (c), which required a second notice if property was not redeemed within 30 days of the first notice.
- Section 1 revises the disposal rule so property can be disposed of 30 days after the single notice, rather than 30 days after a second notice.
- Section 1 adds new subsection (c), establishing a rebuttable presumption that repossession is complete when the vehicle is attached to a tow truck or carrier, entered by the repossessing party, or moved.
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws, a standard closing provision.

## Status

- Status: Engrossed (2026-03-04)
- Last action: Senate Tabled (2026-03-31)
- Sponsors: Kimberly New, John Corbett, Danny Mathis, Alan Powell, Vance Smith, Marty Harbin
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72688

> The history, votes, and amendments (895 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1134.md?full=1