Car Dealer mistake

[abfabmum]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? ca.

Bought a used car from a dealer, traded in my old car(they gave me 7K) I then paid the difference in price along with DMV (Tax, tags and licensing) CASH> Well a week later, the dealer called me stating that they read the tripometer instead of the odemeter and now want $4K given back as the trade in wasn't worth what they gave. Am I responsible for their mistake? I thought it was a done deal, paid cash and took the car.

 

[JETX]

Am I responsible for their mistake?

Probably not.... but you have a choice to make:

Choice 1: Pay them and put this behind you, or
Choice 2: Hire a local attorney to contact them on your behalf and resolve the matter, or
Choice 3: Wait for them to come in the dark of night and repo the vehicle... then you will have to pursue the resolution from a position of weakness forcing YOU to do everything.

 

[Zigner]

Is the mileage of the trade-in listed on the contract? If not, then I think you are the one in a good position.

 

[abfabmum]

dealer mistake

yes, the mileage is on the bill of sale.

 

[Zigner]

yes, the mileage is on the bill of sale.

Is the *correct* mileage for your trade listed on the contract. ie: If the trade had 150,000 miles on it, is 150,000 written on the contract, or is it some other number?

 

[abfabmum]

reply

the dealer took the tripometer reading of 36K instead of the actual mileage of 224K. I did not furnish this info, the salesman took the keys and recorded the info himself, it wasn't until they contacted me a week later that I even knew anything about it...

 

[cyjeff]

So.... when you saw 36K, did you point it out? Or, instead, did you think "If I keep my mouth shut, I can rip these guys off"?

 

[JETX]

the dealer took the tripometer reading of 36K instead of the actual mileage of 224K. I did not furnish this info, the salesman took the keys and recorded the info himself, it wasn't until they contacted me a week later that I even knew anything about it...

Sorry, but with that 'reveal', you are in deep crap. There is no way that a court (or any reasonable person) would allow you to walk away from that large a discrepancy.

Even though it MAY have been their fault for incorrect mileage on the 'deal', the fact that the incorrect mileage is shown in the paperwork.... and that large an issue is a MATERIAL REPRESENTATION that will support cancellation of the contract.

material representation
n. a convincing statement made to induce someone to enter into a contract to which the person would not have agreed without that assertion. Thus, if the material representation proves not to be true or to be misleading, the contract can be rescinded or cancelled without liability.

 

[ecmst12]

You went 36k miles without resetting your trip meter??? Weird.

 

[JETX]

I also find it very unlikely that someone is driving the car with the tripodometer as the 'default' display... rather than the real odometer.
Far more likely that the OP made a conscious decision to show the Trip just before pulling into the lot.

 

[abfabmum]

dealer mistake

Actually, I took the payments of the trade in car from a friend, never even touched the OD reading. As for setting the tripometer as default before entering the lot, how dumb is that!!!!! if the salesman doesn't even know how to get the OD reading, he has no reason selling cars. I need an honest answer to a legitamate question - I haven't got time for studpidity.

 

[jhlwstdnt]

Absent from knowing all the details, from what I read, it doesn't sound like you intentionally misrepresented the dealership. Also, I am not clear if you knew of the mistake prior to taking the money. But it sounds like you may have changed positions and relied on this money anyway. Here is a case I found that might help. Read the underlined sentence.


A party may rescind a contract if the party's consent was given by mistake. (Civ.Code, § 1689, subd. (b)(1); Donovan v. RRL Corp. (2001) 26 Cal.4th 261, 278.) “A factual mistake by one party to a contract, or unilateral mistake, affords a ground for rescission in some circumstances. Civil Code section 1577 states in relevant part: ‘Mistake of fact is a mistake, not caused by the neglect of a legal duty on the part of the person making the mistake, and consisting in: [¶] 1. An unconscious ignorance or forgetfulness of a fact past or present, material to the contract....’ [Fn. omitted.]” ( Donovan, supra, at p. 278.) The California Supreme Court in Donovan held that an automobile dealer's unilateral mistake of fact justified rescission of a sales contract where the mistake was the dealer's ignorance that a newspaper advertisement misstated the intended sales price. ( Id. at pp. 279-282, 294.)

Here, in contrast, the mistake is Revere's ignorance of the warranty in the escrow instructions due to Fine's failure to read the escrow instructions before signing them. “ ‘ “The general rule is that when a person with the capacity of reading and understanding an instrument signs it, he is, in the absence of fraud and imposition, bound by its contents, and is estopped from saying that its provisions are contrary to his intention or understanding.” ‘ [Citation.]” ( Jefferson v. Department of Youth Authority (2002) 28 Cal.4th 299, 303.) Fine offered no excuse for his failure to read the escrow instructions apart from purportedly excusable neglect, and did not claim fraud or imposition. The evidence shows that Fine failed to read the escrow instructions completely before signing them because he assumed that they would not deviate from the sales contract. We conclude that substantial evidence supports the court's decision that Revere was not entitled to rescission in Mendoza.FN8

 

[cyjeff]

The mileage was on the bill of sale.

It was signed by both parties.

One of those parties KNEW that the number was incorrect but signed as if it was correct.