Unfortunately this is going to land in her mother's lap. Since she is a cosigner on the lease she is just as responsible as your girlfriend for paying the return value. Both of them would have to declare bankruptcy to get the debt discharged.

If I were in her situation, and I could not get a loan for the remainder, I would work out a deal with my mother to pay off the lease and pay her back as quickly as possible. I would also get everything in writing to protect both of us - how much is owed, when the payments will be, consequences for late payments, etc. Just as if I were borrowing it from a bank.

You could try working something out with the financer, but with a cosigner that is presumable able to pay, I would be shocked if they settled for anything less than the full amount.

I know the last thing your girlfriend wants right now is a lecture, but this deal has four bad components that hopefully will be a learning experience:

• Don't lease vehicles. There are cases where leasing might make sense, but it is the most expensive way to finance a car, and is usually used to get more car that you can afford.
• Don't let your insurance lapse. The point of insurance is to protect against catastrophic losses like this.
• Don't get someone to co-sign a loan. It is a sign that you're borrowing money for something that you can't afford, and puts tremendous risk (and probably stress) on both parties
• Don't put someone else in charge of paying your bills. If your girlfriend had been in control of the insurance up front, this whole thing might have been avoided. The fact that someone else is paying the insurance is another sign that she couldn't afford the car.

Again, I feel sorry for her being in this situation, but at this point the only good advice I can give is to help her avoid the same mistakes in the future.

Unfortunately this is going to land in her mother's lap. Since she is a cosigner on the lease she is just as responsible as your girlfriend for paying the return value. Both of them would have to declare bankruptcy to get the debt discharged.

If I were in her situation, and I could not get a loan for the remainder, I would work out a deal with my mother to pay off the lease and pay her back as quickly as possible. I would also get everything in writing to protect both of us - how much is owed, when the payments will be, consequences for late payments, etc. Just as if I were borrowing it from a bank.

You could try working something out with the financer, but with a cosigner that is presumably able to pay, I would be shocked if they settled for anything less than the full amount.

I know the last thing your girlfriend wants right now is a lecture, but this deal has four bad components that hopefully will be a learning experience:

• Don't lease vehicles. There are cases where leasing might make sense, but it is the most expensive way to finance a car, and is usually used to get more car that you can afford.
• Don't let your insurance lapse. The point of insurance is to protect against catastrophic losses like this.
• Don't get someone to co-sign a loan. It is a sign that you're borrowing money for something that you can't afford, and puts tremendous risk (and probably stress) on both parties
• Don't put someone else in charge of paying your bills. If your girlfriend had been in control of the insurance up front, this whole thing might have been avoided. The fact that someone else is paying the insurance is another sign that she couldn't afford the car.

Again, I feel sorry for her being in this situation, but at this point the only good advice I can give is to help her avoid the same mistakes in the future.

Unfortunately this is going to land in her mother's lap. Since she is a cosigner on the lease she is just as responsible as your girlfriend for paying the return value. Both of them would have to declare bankruptcy to get the debt discharged.

If I were in her situation, and I could not get a loan for the remainder, I would work out a deal with my mother to pay off the lease and pay her back as quickly as possible. I would also get everything in writing to protect both of us - how much is owed, when the payments will be, consequences for late payments, etc. Just as if I were borrowing it from a bank.

I know the last thing your girlfriend wants right now is a lecture, but this deal has four bad components that hopefully will be a learning experience:

• Don't lease vehicles. There are cases where leasing might make sense, but it is the most expensive way to finance a car, and is usually used to get more car that you can afford.
• Don't let your insurance lapse. The point of insurance is to protect against catastrophic losses like this.
• Don't get someone to co-sign a loan. It is a sign that you're borrowing money for something that you can't afford, and puts tremendous risk (and probably stress) on both parties
• Don't put someone else in charge of paying your bills. If your girlfriend had been in control of the insurance up front, this whole thing might have been avoided. The fact that someone else is paying the insurance is another sign that she couldn't afford the car.

Again, I feel sorry for her being in this situation, but at this point the only good advice I can give is to help her avoid the same mistakes in the future.

Unfortunately this is going to land in her mother's lap. Since she is a cosigner on the lease she is just as responsible as your girlfriend for paying the return value. Both of them would have to declare bankruptcy to get the debt discharged.

If I were in her situation, and I could not get a loan for the remainder, I would work out a deal with my mother to pay off the lease and pay her back as quickly as possible. I would also get everything in writing to protect both of us - how much is owed, when the payments will be, consequences for late payments, etc. Just as if I were borrowing it from a bank.

You could try working something out with the financer, but with a cosigner that is presumable able to pay, I would be shocked if they settled for anything less than the full amount.

I know the last thing your girlfriend wants right now is a lecture, but this deal has four bad components that hopefully will be a learning experience:

• Don't lease vehicles. There are cases where leasing might make sense, but it is the most expensive way to finance a car, and is usually used to get more car that you can afford.
• Don't let your insurance lapse. The point of insurance is to protect against catastrophic losses like this.
• Don't get someone to co-sign a loan. It is a sign that you're borrowing money for something that you can't afford, and puts tremendous risk (and probably stress) on both parties
• Don't put someone else in charge of paying your bills. If your girlfriend had been in control of the insurance up front, this whole thing might have been avoided. The fact that someone else is paying the insurance is another sign that she couldn't afford the car.

Again, I feel sorry for her being in this situation, but at this point the only good advice I can give is to help her avoid the same mistakes in the future.