02-18-06
Dear Tony,
I had a trade-in with a lot of negative equity. I went to the car dealership on a Friday to start the process. By Sunday they said they had me approved and gave me the car.
By Wed. they were calling saying the car I am in will not work, what else would I take and they named a few choices. I said no to all and said I would return the car that evening.
I get there and they have me in Finance Office to try to make the deal work with a second approval with another bank, so they send me home and tell me to wait.
I hear nothing from them on Thursday, and today is Friday and they call and say no deal, we will undo it and give you back your car. Ok, so I get there tonight, give back the car, they cashed one of my down payment checks when they weren't supposed to, and . . . they can't find my car because they sold it!
What legal recourse do I have, if any, to make them payoff
my car they sold and walk away from them? They are trying to get my car back from the person that bought it two days ago, and I don't feel comfortable with that. It's almost like it was stolen and found and I have to have it back.
Very violating!
Thanks . . .
Michele
My Answer to Michele:
Hi Michele,
This is a typical situation that I get emails about all the
time. You got caught up in what's called a "Spot Delivery."
I've written extensively about this problem. You can get a
better understanding of this car dealer tactic by reading the
following:
The bottom line is that if there is no valid loan contract signed by you then the dealer can't get paid for the deal.
Whether or not you can just give the car back may depend on
many factors like if you gave them any money down, or if you
had a trade involved in the deal, which you did. There may also be legal aspects involved with the contracts you signed which I am not qualified to advise you on.
In your case they have your money and your trade. Just tell
them to give it all back, give them the car and stay away
from those idiots in the future. If they won't cooperate or
if you get your trade back in worse condition than when you
gave it to them you may want to consult an attorney or at
least file a complaint with your state's Attorney General's
office.
The fact that they sold your trade-in before getting your loan
approved is probably grounds for some legal action, but I'm
not a lawyer so I really can't give you any legal advice.
I hope this helps . . .
Tony Iorio
For