Secured debt: can a finance company take my furniture?

In most provinces the practice of putting up your household goods as collateral on a loan is no longer common because each province lists a basic exemption limit for your household goods and personal effects. This limit dictates that household goods and personal effects are exempt from seizure by creditors if they are valued under the provincial limits. As the resale value of used goods is often low creditors stopped using household goods and personal effects as collateral on loans.

If this practice is still an option for creditors where you live then it technically is possible for the creditor to send a bailiff to collect your things. However, in many cases even before the exemptions were put in place on household goods the creditors would choose not to exercise their right to collect on your household goods. The reality is that the cost of removing the furniture and the effort in arranging the sale of the furniture means that the recovery for the creditor is minimal. It is not worth their time and effort to realize on their security interest.