A new report says vehicle repossessions are on the rise, and financial analysts say they do not see the trend abating.

Analysts note the auto loan market has changed radically since the beginning of the pandemic, when stimulus checks were plentiful and lenders were offering all sorts of concessions for those who fell behind on payments.

Now the number of people behind on car payments is once again near prepandemic levels. For those in the lowest income brackets, the rate of defaults actually exceeds 2019, according to data from ratings agency Fitch.

Economists note that as unemployment rises and inflation continues to persist going into 2023, household savings will diminish, exacerbating the trends.

Since 2019, the average monthly payment on a new vehicle has gone up 26%, to $718 according to the report, with nearly one in six new buyers expending over $1000 per month on vehicles, as additional extraneous vehicle-related costs, such as insurance, gas and repairs have all increased as well.

Ivan Drury, director of insights at car buying website Edmunds, said, “These repossessions are occurring on people who could afford that $500 or $600 a month payment two years ago, but now everything else in their life is more expensive. That’s where we’re starting to see the repossessions happen because it’s just everything else starting to pin you down.”

Many are reporting an increasing number of repos, and say they think the trend will continue. The owner of Phoenix area companies Hoist Towing & Recovery and Gorilla Towing & Recovery, Joey Poliszczuk, says he only sees more repos in the future.

In an NBC news report, it was observed, “The rate of defaults and repossessions isn’t expected to reach 2008 and 2009 levels, when there was a spike caused by the financial crisis. The percentage of auto loans that were 30 days delinquent was at 2.2% in the third quarter compared with 2.35% delinquent over the same period in 2019, according to data from Experian. By contrast, just over 4% of auto loans went into default in 2009.”