Does anyone know the laws regarding misrepresentation of an automobile by a dealership? I am in a bit of a jam so if anyone could help I would really appreciate some advice.
Used Truck misrepresented by dealer
- Thread starter S04T
- Start date
depends on what exactly they misrepresented, but this is likely a civil matter between you and a dealership. unless they violated a criminal law, it will be considered a civil matter to be handled in a civil court, probably not criminal.
Post the entire story if you want accurate advice.
i agree. if by misrepresented, they claim it was never in an accident, and you find out it was wrecked, that's likely a civil matter. if they have altered the mileage, title, or changed the VIN# or something like that, it's a completely different matter.
you need to inform us what exactly was misrepresented.
you need to inform us what exactly was misrepresented.
They told me that it have never been in a accident or had any paint or body work. The truck has a clean CARFAX but you can see some sanding lines in the LF fender and the body shop they recommended told me in their opinion it has been in an accident involving the front end. I took all this info to them and they refused to take the truck back. They also told they they took the truck in on trade from a customer when in fact they bought it from another dealership.
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yeah, that's a civil matter. was it in the terms of sale it's never been in an accident? if it aint in writing, you're not getting anything from them sorry.
I believe that if the damage is not over a certain amount or percentage, it doesn't need to be revealed. I think there was a thread in roadside about this a few weeks ago.
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man that sucks
A lot of vehicles get dinged and scratched up in when they are delivered from the factory. It may have never been in an accident, but it could have had some paint work done before the dealer sold it when it was new.
As the other said, if its not in writing then you don't have an argument. Plus if you are looking at the same CLEAN carfax as them they represented the vehicle to you as they knew it.
Guess where you'll never buy another vehicle from?
good luck
Guess where you'll never buy another vehicle from?
good luck
The truck has a clean CARFAX and that is what they will rely on. Just because it was painted does not mean that the dealership did it or knew of it. You would have to prove they knew it and sold it to you knowing that. It doesnt matter how they acquired it.
You will waste your time filing a civil suit and the dealership will likely stand on the CARFAX report.
I don't know what the problem is here. If it's not on the CARFAX it wasn't severe enough to be an accident. Maybe he clipped his garage when pulling out. (My brother has done it)
And it wasn't filed with insurance because it would be a useless claim.
And it wasn't filed with insurance because it would be a useless claim.
this is not accurate. CARFAX relies on what it is told by others, so it really isn't an accurate portayal of the history of a car. it is an INDICATOR and nothing more. if an accident is not reported to the police, or an insurance company does not report accident info to them carfax will not show the accident.
Sorry, the way I wrote it sounded much better coming from you. This is what I meant. If something occurred on private property, then the police can't get involve meaning he had to work it out with the other person or fix the problem himself. Either way CARFAX would not have known about it, and because the dealership doesn't care, or doesn't look very hard. They wouldn't have known about it either
Completely NOT TRUE. My blue car has been totaled twice and neither wreck will show on the car fax because insurance claims were never filed. Car was picked up by my friend with his wrecker and taken to the shop I work at.
As far as dealer stuff; even brand new cars can have $999.99 worth of paint and body work done and still not be reported. Factor in that most big dealers own their own body shop, they can get alot more work done for under $1000 then the average person off the street. When I worked for the dealer out here there were quite a few new Toyotas that were keyed on the lot. We painted both sides, and hoods on this stuff and no one will ever know unless they know what to look for.
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Thanks for the advice guys, as it turns out the dealership was willing to work with me a bit and I traded them the truck back for one with slightly fewer miles...and no body work. After it was all said and done I paid a little extra money for a much nicer truck. :beer:
Good to hear they did the right thing, lets hope they continue to do so when they go to sell it again.
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