car dealership lied about car fax

[bnriggs]

What is the name of your state: Colorado

About 8 months ago my husband and I bought a vehicle from a car dealership. During paperwork we asked if there was a car fax and if we could see it we were told there was one and that it was clean. Yesterday we tried to trade the vehicle in and found out the truck was in an accident before we bought it now we have a vehicle we owe 20+ thousand dollars on and the vehicle is not worth even half of that. We contacted the car dealership to see what they were going to do about it and were told they would get back with us that it must have just fallen through the cracks and now they will not return our calls. Is there anything we can do

 

[Mass_Shyster]

What is the name of your state: Colorado

About 8 months ago my husband and I bought a vehicle from a car dealership. During paperwork we asked if there was a car fax and if we could see it we were told there was one and that it was clean. Yesterday we tried to trade the vehicle in and found out the truck was in an accident before we bought it now we have a vehicle we owe 20+ thousand dollars on and the vehicle is not worth even half of that. We contacted the car dealership to see what they were going to do about it and were told they would get back with us that it must have just fallen through the cracks and now they will not return our calls. Is there anything we can do

You can sue them for misrepresentation.

But unless you have in writing from the dealership that the "carfax is clean", you'll have a pretty hard time proving they said it. You can bet they will not remember saying that.

 

[JETX]

About 8 months ago my husband and I bought a vehicle from a car dealership. During paperwork we asked if there was a car fax and if we could see it we were told there was one and that it was clean.

In addition to the VERY likely fact that the dealer will have a different version, the statement 'it is clean' is pretty much worthless. If they were to agree that specific statement was made (again, very unlikely), what does 'clean' mean?? Clean could mean no accidents, clean could mean not salvaged, clean could mean that it was not stolen.
Next time when you ask about CarFax on a vehicle, get a copy and keep it.

 

[Zigner]

What is the name of your state: Colorado

About 8 months ago my husband and I bought a vehicle from a car dealership. During paperwork we asked if there was a car fax and if we could see it we were told there was one and that it was clean. Yesterday we tried to trade the vehicle in and found out the truck was in an accident before we bought it now we have a vehicle we owe 20+ thousand dollars on and the vehicle is not worth even half of that. We contacted the car dealership to see what they were going to do about it and were told they would get back with us that it must have just fallen through the cracks and now they will not return our calls. Is there anything we can do

How did you find that out?
Also, it's quite possible that, depending on the timing of the repairs and your purchase, the accident wasn't on the Carfax at the time you purchased the vehicle.

 

[Country Living]

You could have (should have) run the report yourself for about $30 and a bit of piece of mind, although it's not perfect. A few years ago I ran my own car (at the time) through CarFax and it showed squeaky clean even though it had been in two accidents a few years earlier. So I'm not sure how CarFAx gets their data. I still use CarFax whenever we get ready to buy a used vehicle just as an extra layer of information. Plus, I want to know how many people have owned it and for how long. My thoughts are if it's been turned over a lot, something must be wrong with it.

Another thing to remember if you ever buy a used car again - run the VIN through the state's flood car database if there is one. Also get a good mechanic you trust.

There's probably nothing that can be done at this point. If the dealer bought the car at auction, they wouldn't have any information on it. If it was a trade-in, the owners should have filled out a form that asks about the car's history.