Car Lease/Licensing Laws

[hcgilliam]

In September, my husband and I traded in a 2000 Hyundai Elantra for a lease on a 1998 Blazer. We put down a total of $5000 on the blazer. In October, my husband got a ticket for driving with expired temporary tags and was ordered to pay a fine. Since the dealership was supposed to be sending the plates, he went back to them and asked if he could maybe get a second temporary tag until the plates arrived. The dealership told him that it was their fault the plates hadn't arrived yet and they would take care of the fine, but they couldn't give him another temporary tag. The plates arrived a few days later, and we assumed the dealership had taken care of the ticket and fine because we hadn't heard anything else about it. In January, my husband was driving in Northern Kentucky and pulled over. When they ran the plates, it turned out that the fine was never paid, and as a result, my husband spent a night in jail and the truck was impounded for more than a week. The same week, my husband received a letter from the Ohio BMV telling him the fine was never paid and as of November 1, his license was suspended. Because he had no license and the plates were confiscated from the Blazer, he wasn't able to work for a few weeks, which resulted in a loss of money and a missed payment on the lease. The Blazer was then repossessed, and he could no longer work without the transportation. His court date was set for January 18--our child's due date. He tried to get the date moved, and someone at the police station told him he could get it moved, but the court clerk told him it was impossible. Of course, I went into labor that morning and my husband missed the birth of our son because he was in court for something that was supposed to have been taken care of months before. We were told that because the dealer didn't issue the plates within the 24 days mandated by Ohio law, we could get back all of the money we put into the Blazer because the contract would have been voided after the 24 days. We would like to get our money back, plus punitive damages, because of the missed work and loss of vehicle and my husband missing our son's birth. Is there any way we could write a letter to the dealership or someone else? We would like to resolve this outside of court, because we can't really afford it. But, we'll find a way to pay for it if we have to. Does anyone have any suggestions? (This was leased in Ohio.)
Thank you!