Enforcement case record
CarMax SCRA Settlement: 28 Vehicles Repossessed Without Court Orders
- Defendant
- CarMax, Inc.
- Year
- 2026
- Scale
- 28 vehicles
- Statute
- 50 U.S.C. § 3952
- Outcome
- Settlement (February 23, 2026): at least $420,000 to compensate servicemembers and a $79,380 civil penalty to the United States, plus revised policies, procedures, and training materials.
What happened
On February 23, 2026 CarMax, Inc. agreed to a settlement resolving allegations that it violated the SCRA by repossessing 28 vehicles owned by SCRA-protected servicemembers without obtaining court orders.
The requirement is the same one that produced the Santander, Wells Fargo, HSBC and Nissan cases in this ledger: where the loan predates military service and a payment was made before service began, a court has to approve the repossession first. Section 3952 puts the obligation on the creditor, so a servicemember who never mentioned their service still had the protection.
Military status is not hard to check. The Defense Manpower Data Center runs a free public verification service that answers the question from a name and date of birth, and every settlement in this section of the ledger describes a lender that repossessed without using it.
The law behind this: 50 U.S.C. § 3952
Protection under installment contracts for purchase or lease: read the statute.
Who was covered
Servicemembers whose vehicles CarMax repossessed without a court order in the covered period, where the loan predates military service.
What the settlement paid
- At least $420,000 to compensate servicemembers, which across 28 vehicles is an average near $15,000 each, higher per vehicle than most repossession settlements in this ledger.
- A $79,380 civil penalty to the United States, the maximum for a first SCRA violation at 2026 rates.
- Revised policies, procedures, and training materials.
Why this case matters
The penalty tracks the offence being a first one, not the number of people harmed. CarMax paid the same $79,380 maximum on 28 vehicles that ADT paid on 3,400 servicemembers two months later, which tells you the civil penalty is a statutory ceiling rather than a measure of scale. The compensation, not the penalty, is where scale shows up.
If you think you were affected
A repossession that happened without a court order does not become lawful with time, and the credit damage it caused is separately correctable.
This page is a record of a public enforcement action against CarMax. It is not a claim form, and this site cannot tell you whether you are in the covered group. These are the routes that can.
- Read the Justice Department’s own record: DOJ case page: Settlement Agreement, CarMax, Inc. . Settlement administration and any claim process are run from there, never from here.
- Start with what § 3952 requires before a repossession , which is the protection this case was brought under.
- Contact your nearest Armed Forces Legal Assistance office. It is free for servicemembers and dependents, and it is the right first call on any SCRA question about your own accounts. Our guide to SCRA legal help explains the options.
- Confirm your covered dates before you argue about them. The Defense Manpower Data Center issues a free military status certificate; our walkthrough shows how to pull one.
Other repossession cases
Every figure on this page is transcribed from the Justice Department record linked above, including its own hedges. Nothing is estimated or rounded. The ledger was last checked in full on July 11, 2026.
Heads up: SCRA Saver publishes general information, not legal or financial advice. Laws change and every situation differs. Confirm details with your installation legal assistance office (free for service members) or a licensed professional.