Used motorcycle seller being ripped off!!! What are my rights?

[stevepodgorski]

Hi everyone...my name is steve and i am in illinois..
here's the deal...
i sold my used motorcycle privately to another gentleman in illinois.. i rode the bike to him(30 miles), he test drove it... agreed to purchase it, obviously as-is with no implied or written warranty, and no return policy. We then went to his bank to get a cashiers check... his teller told him the funds wouldn't be available until the next day. The buyer showed me his balance, which was well in excess of the sum we agreed upon, and asked if i would take a check. I reluctantly agreed, as I am moving shortly and really wanted to get rid of the bike. We then went together to Western Union to retitle the bike, and he cut me a check and i left. BTW, The bike had been recently serviced and regularily riden. 5 days later (today), he calls me and says that it is stalling and having throttle problems. He then tells me that he has stopped payment on the check he wrote me. On my mothers grave, i SWEAR there was nothing wrong with the vehicle when i sold it. So now this guy has the bike titled in his name and has cancelled payment. PLEASE HELP, I have no idea what to do...what are my rights as a seller.. I'm moving out of state in 3 weeks, so filing suit will probably take longer than i have and i desperately need the money to finance my move. HELP HELP HELP..thanx steve

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally Posted by stevepodgorski

Hi everyone...my name is steve and i am in illinois..
here's the deal...
i sold my used motorcycle privately to another gentleman in illinois.. i rode the bike to him(30 miles), he test drove it... agreed to purchase it, obviously as-is with no implied or written warranty, and no return policy. We then went to his bank to get a cashiers check... his teller told him the funds wouldn't be available until the next day. The buyer showed me his balance, which was well in excess of the 3300 we agreed upon, and asked if i would take a check. I reluctantly agreed, as I am moving shortly and really wanted to get rid of the bike. We then went together to Western Union to retitle the bike, and he cut me a check and i left. BTW, The bike had been recently serviced and regularily riden. 5 days later (today), he calls me and says that it is stalling and having throttle problems. He then tells me that he has stopped payment on the check he wrote me. On my mothers grave, i SWEAR there was nothing wrong with the vehicle when i sold it. So now this guy has the bike titled in his name and has cancelled payment. PLEASE HELP, I have no idea what to do...what are my rights as a seller.. I'm moving out of state in 3 weeks, so filing suit will probably take longer than i have and i desperately need the money to finance my move. HELP HELP HELP..thanx steve

My response:

Yeah, I don't think you're going anywhere soon.


IAAL

[stevepodgorski]

why do say that? is it because i have no legal recourse, or because it will be difficult... im in dire straits here...real advice would be greatly appreciated...

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally Posted by stevepodgorski

why do say that? is it because i have no legal recourse, or because it will be difficult... im in dire straits here...real advice would be greatly appreciated...

My response:

What do you want? You're the one who said, "I'm moving out of state in 3 weeks, so filing suit will probably take longer than i have." And, you're right.

The only thing I can think of is gathering up about 10 of your friends and, with baseball bats in hand, take a road trip to this ass-hole's house!

Man, what else do you want - - a miracle?


IAAL

[stevepodgorski]

lol!! well thats pretty much the plan if all else fails!!! He has agreed in email to return the bike to me and pay for the retitle...but that is not what i want to have happen... i want the money... he agreed to the sale.. if i did have the time to go after him legally.... do i have a case?

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally Posted by stevepodgorski

lol!! well thats pretty much the plan if all else fails!!! He has agreed in email to return the bike to me and pay for the retitle...but that is not what i want to have happen... i want the money... he agreed to the sale.. if i did have the time to go after him legally.... do i have a case?

My response:

Sure you do!

That's why I said "you're not going anywhere any time soon."

But, you don't have the time, right?

IAAL

[stevepodgorski]

no.. i really don't have the time... moving from Chicago to LA, which is way too far away to effectively deal with this situation.... and im on a tight timeline to get there by august... he's taking it to the shop tomorrow to see whats wrong...he says he wants to keep it...but considers me liable for whatever may be wrong with the bike (w hich is most likely very minor) am i legally obligated to pay for damages that most likely occured under his ownership??!! i need to figure out some way to force this guy to realize that after the sale, these problems are his... not mine... any suggestions??

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally Posted by stevepodgorski

no.. i really don't have the time... moving from Chicago to LA, which is way too far away to effectively deal with this situation.... and im on a tight timeline to get there by august... he's taking it to the shop tomorrow to see whats wrong...he says he wants to keep it...but considers me liable for whatever may be wrong with the bike (w hich is most likely very minor) am i legally obligated to pay for damages that most likely occured under his ownership??!! i need to figure out some way to force this guy to realize that after the sale, these problems are his... not mine... any suggestions??

My response:

You keep asking questions that, with the time you have left, are absolutely ridiculous. You see, the controlling law is Caveat emptor: "Let the buyer beware." The idea that buyers take responsibility for the condition of the items they purchase and should examine them before purchase.

But, what good is all this when he knows he has you over a barrel? So, there's no amount of "convincing" him that you'll be able to do. He is fixed on the belief that he's entitled to the cost of repairs, despite the fact that the law puts the onus on him.

So, what are you going to tell him?

Nothing. Not a damn thing.

IAAL

[stevepodgorski]

ok..thanx..just wanted to know if the burden of the repair costs would legally (not reasonably) rest on my shoulders or his... would it be senseless to file a police report? i consider this to be theft of my bike..

[teflon_jones]

The police will not file a report on this. It's a civil issue, not a criminal issue. You need to sue this guy in court for the amount of the sale of the bike. I hope you have a signed bill of sale. You aren't responsible for any repairs at all to the bike either.