Ohio consumer sales practice act

[mindylee]

WV

First I'd like to say thank you to all of the posters who donate their time and knowledge here.

I live in WV and purchased a car from a dealership in OH last week. When I took it to my mechanic for the inspection there were a significant amount of repairs needed to pass inspection, along with a problem with the serpintine belt. The mechanic at the dealership said that he told someone to top of the fluids and they must have spilled some antifreeze on the belt which caused it to shred. They replaced the belt, and by the time I drove it home, about 30 miles, it was shredded again. My mechanic replaced the belt and said he couldn't find anything wrong with the pulleys.

I did purchase the vehicle "as is", but just wondering if anyone knows if the Ohio Consumer Sales Practice Act might apply in this situation.

Here's the specific section I think it may possibly fall under:

§1345.02 Unfair or deceptive consumer sales practices prohibited.

(A) No supplier shall commit an unfair or deceptive act or practice in connection with a consumer transaction. Such an unfair or deceptive act or practice by a supplier violates this section whether it occurs before, during, or after the transaction.

(B) Without limiting the scope of division (A) of this section, the act or practice of a supplier in representing any of the following is deceptive:
(1) That the subject of a consumer transaction has sponsorship, approval, performance characteristics, accessories, uses, or benefits that it does not have;
(2) That the subject of a consumer transaction is of a particular standard, quality, grade, style, prescription, or model, if it is not;
(3) That the subject of a consumer transaction is new, or unused, if it is not;
(4) That the subject of a consumer transaction is available to the consumer for a reason that does not exist;
(5) That the subject of a consumer transaction has been supplied in accordance with a previous representation, if it has not, except that the act of a supplier in furnishing similar merchandise of equal or greater value as a good faith substitute does not violate this section;
(6) That the subject of a consumer transaction will be supplied in greater quantity than the supplier intends;
(7) That replacement or repair is needed, if it is not;
(8) That a specific price advantage exists, if it does not;
(9) That the supplier has a sponsorship, approval, or affiliation that the supplier does not have;
(10) That a consumer transaction involves or does not involve a warranty, a disclaimer of warranties or other rights, remedies, or obligations if the representation is false.

[moburkes]

Mindy, I'm curious as to why you purchased a vehicle with a significant amount of repairs, and then complain that the vehicle was broken?

[mindylee]

Originally Posted by moburkes

Mindy, I'm curious as to why you purchased a vehicle with a significant amount of repairs, and then complain that the vehicle was broken?

Well, I admit that I know very little about cars or how to tell if they have any problems. I took the dealers word for it when he told me the vehicle was in great condition, and lied about the problem with the belt, which is still unresolved, it has to go back to the mechanic today.

Aside from the $$$ involved in repairing the vehicle, my mechanic told me it was unsafe to drive, among the list of things that needed replaced were; front upper and lower ball joints, brakes, hub bearings, shocks, sway bar, tires.... the dealer allowed me to put my 3 small children in a vehicle that was unsafe and drive off the lot. I really expected more from a big name dealership.

[moburkes]

Okay. So, now you're saying that you didn't have an independent mechanic inspect the vehicle before you purchased it?

[mindylee]

I'm sorry, I realize now that I wasn't clear in my first post. After I purchased the vehicle I took it to my mechanic to get a state inspection sticker, it didn't have one because Ohio, where I purchased the vehicle, does not require inspection. That was when my mechanic told me about all the problems.

[mindylee]

And I do realize that it's Caveat Emptor, but I really hate being deceived, and I have to say I'm a little shocked that this dealer would lie to me the way he did. The mechanic at the dealership said it was in great shape, and I believed him, I guess I was a prime target to get ripped off because of my ignorance when it comes to cars.

I just wish there were some recourse when a merchant outright deceives a consumer. I should have known better than to buy a vehicle "as is" I suppose.

[IWasTakenToo]

I'm in Ohio myself and in the process of a lawsuit under the Consumer Sales Practices Act, so I have some of this information concerning a situation similar to yours. You may want to contact a Lemon Law attorney in Ohio. Even though there is no lemon law for used vehicles, I have found that those lawyers usually represent clients for a violation of this law. This is from a list of case law that was listed in the Ohio Revised Code volume 13.

"Evidence was sufficient to support trial court's finding that car dealership acted knowingly for the purposes of the Consumer Sales Practices Act in making deceptive representations to car purchaser, where dealership told purchaser that car was in good condition and would not require repairs for six to eight months, but the day after purchasing car, purchaser discovered fuel gauge was broken and was told by dealer that he forgot to tell her about broken gauge, and purchaser subsequently discovered car needed numerous other repairs." Howard v. Norman's Auto Sales (Ohio App. 10 Dist., Franklin, 06-03-2003) No. 02AP-1001, 2003-Ohio-2834, 2003 WL 21267261

and

"Evidence was sufficient to support trial court's finding that car dealership made representations that car had certain performance characteristics, benefits, or qualities that it did not have in violation of Consumer Sales Practices Act, where dealerhip made representations that used car was in good condition, car would not need repairs for six to eight months, and purchaser could sell car for twice what she paid for it, but after purchaser bought car discovered it required numerous repairs." Howard v. Norman's Auto Sales (Ohio App. 10 Dist., Franklin, 06-03-2003) No. 02AP-1001, 2003-Ohio-2834, 2003 WL 21267261

This information was listed among several other pages of examples of violations of the Consumer Sales Practices Act. If the dealer is unwilling to repair his repair, or make the repairs you are requesting you have a couple other options to review what rights you may have available. If the amount of damages is $3000 or less, you can file a claim in Ohio Small Claims Court. However, I'd recommend either contacting an attorney in Ohio by doing a search under "lemon law Ohio" and you'll find many firms listed. You may also file a complaint with the Attorney General's office. We have a newly elected one here in Ohio, and their office is pretty quick to investigate all consumer complaints to try to resolve them before they escalate to legal action. Ohio's Attorney General website is [url]www.ag.state.oh.us[/url]. From their home page, you'll find a link to file an on-line complaint or instructions on how to file by phone or mail.

Good luck!

[mindylee]

Originally Posted by IWasTakenToo

I'm in Ohio myself and in the process of a lawsuit under the Consumer Sales Practices Act, so I have some of this information concerning a situation similar to yours. You may want to contact a Lemon Law attorney in Ohio. Even though there is no lemon law for used vehicles, I have found that those lawyers usually represent clients for a violation of this law. This is from a list of case law that was listed in the Ohio Revised Code volume 13.

"Evidence was sufficient to support trial court's finding that car dealership acted knowingly for the purposes of the Consumer Sales Practices Act in making deceptive representations to car purchaser, where dealership told purchaser that car was in good condition and would not require repairs for six to eight months, but the day after purchasing car, purchaser discovered fuel gauge was broken and was told by dealer that he forgot to tell her about broken gauge, and purchaser subsequently discovered car needed numerous other repairs." Howard v. Norman's Auto Sales (Ohio App. 10 Dist., Franklin, 06-03-2003) No. 02AP-1001, 2003-Ohio-2834, 2003 WL 21267261

and

"Evidence was sufficient to support trial court's finding that car dealership made representations that car had certain performance characteristics, benefits, or qualities that it did not have in violation of Consumer Sales Practices Act, where dealerhip made representations that used car was in good condition, car would not need repairs for six to eight months, and purchaser could sell car for twice what she paid for it, but after purchaser bought car discovered it required numerous repairs." Howard v. Norman's Auto Sales (Ohio App. 10 Dist., Franklin, 06-03-2003) No. 02AP-1001, 2003-Ohio-2834, 2003 WL 21267261

This information was listed among several other pages of examples of violations of the Consumer Sales Practices Act. If the dealer is unwilling to repair his repair, or make the repairs you are requesting you have a couple other options to review what rights you may have available. If the amount of damages is $3000 or less, you can file a claim in Ohio Small Claims Court. However, I'd recommend either contacting an attorney in Ohio by doing a search under "lemon law Ohio" and you'll find many firms listed. You may also file a complaint with the Attorney General's office. We have a newly elected one here in Ohio, and their office is pretty quick to investigate all consumer complaints to try to resolve them before they escalate to legal action. Ohio's Attorney General website is [url]www.ag.state.oh.us[/url]. From their home page, you'll find a link to file an on-line complaint or instructions on how to file by phone or mail.

Good luck!

Wow, thanks for the great information! I will file a complaint with the Attorney General asap.

My mechanic looked at the vehicle today and couldn't figure out what was causing the belt to keep shredding. He had two other mechanics that work with him look at it as well, and no luck....so it looks like after all of the repairs I just paid for, the vehicle is not even driveable.

Thanks for the well wishes, and best of luck to you too, something needs to be done to stop these dealers from ripping consumers off and taking their hard earned money, knowing full well what they're doing. It makes me furious!

[eric for ohio]

Was it a new car dealer, Or a "buy here pay here" type of place?

I am in sales in PA (were the inspection is also needed) Any questionable trade ins go straight to the auction were they are always sold to people in Ohio 5 miles away. If you bought it at an actual dealership, There are ways to get it taken care of. If you went the buy here pay here, you are always asking for trouble. How much was the selling cost of the car?

[mindylee]

I bought it at an actual Dodge dealership, I paid $3000 for it. I am at a loss right now, it's still sitting at the mechanics so they can figure out what's wrong with the belt. I have a letter typed out to send to the dealership asking if they are willing to work out some kind of resolution before I make a complaint to the attorney general and seek legal counsel on the matter.

I'm not sure what kind of compensation to ask for at this point. I'd like to be reimbursed for the $700 repair bill, but I have no idea how much fixing the problem with the belt will add on to that.

If the mechanic can't even find the problem, how is it going to fixed? I'll be stuck with a $3000 dollar vehicle that I can't even drive. So do I ask to return the vehicle and be reimbured the purchase price and the repair bill, or do I just ask for the purchase price back and eat the repairs, which is a big chunk of change to have to eat.

Or am I being totally unrealistic in hoping that contacting them directly without filing a complaint will get me anywhere?