is the car company bluffing?

[john doe]

A friend of mine bought a car, and the first paper he signed with the salesman was for the price my friend had agreed on. But when he went to pick the car up, the final paper signed was for about $2000.00 less. My friend didn't notice the mistake until several days later when the manager called him in. Now, this mistake wasn't made on my friend's part, but they want him to pay the amount first agreed on, eventhough the final paper signed showed a lower amount. Do they have any legal pull, or can my friend decide not to pay?

 

[lawrat]

I am a law school graduate. What I offer is mere information, not to be construed as forming an attorney client relationship.


If your friend did not realize that when he signed the second paper it was for two thousand less and the car dealer signed too, it could go one of two ways:

1. YOUR SIDE: It was a unilateral (one sided) mistake on the part of the car dealer and they should have been more careful reviewing the documents. I had no reason to know of the mistake at the time I signed because I didn't review the papers.


2. THEIR SIDE: Neither one of us reviewed the paper and therefore, it was a bi lateral mistake (two sided) and the contract can be voided. In which case, the price we originally agreed to would be the actual price. Also, our lawyer says this is what the law terms a "scrivenor's error". It means it was agreed to for $X. However, when we got the final paperwork together, there was a typo and it became $X - 2000. That $X - 2000 is not what we agreed to and can be voided.

So, as I see, if your friend wants to do the honest reasonable and LEGAL thing, pay the original amount agreed to and next time read the paperwork more carefully.

 

[john doe]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face=" Arial, Verdana, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by lawrat:
I am a law school graduate. What I offer is mere information, not to be construed as forming an attorney client relationship.


If your friend did not realize that when he signed the second paper it was for two thousand less and the car dealer signed too, it could go one of two ways:

1. YOUR SIDE: It was a unilateral (one sided) mistake on the part of the car dealer and they should have been more careful reviewing the documents. I had no reason to know of the mistake at the time I signed because I didn't review the papers.


2. THEIR SIDE: Neither one of us reviewed the paper and therefore, it was a bi lateral mistake (two sided) and the contract can be voided. In which case, the price we originally agreed to would be the actual price. Also, our lawyer says this is what the law terms a "scrivenor's error". It means it was agreed to for $X. However, when we got the final paperwork together, there was a typo and it became $X - 2000. That $X - 2000 is not what we agreed to and can be voided.

So, as I see, if your friend wants to do the honest reasonable and LEGAL thing, pay the original amount agreed to and next time read the paperwork more carefully.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


I appreciate your advice. Thanks for taking the time to answer my question. But, if the bill of sale was signed at one price, and the financing contract was signed at a lower price, and the car was used by my friend for about a week before the dealership clued in to their mistake, which paper has the strongest legal pull? My friend, being the moral person he is, has decided to pay the dealership, knowing that if there had been a mistake on his part, they wouldn't have been as forgiving. However, I just would like to know if there's anything legally they can do if he says he won't pay up ie. take him to court. I would really appreciate it if you could get back to me. Thanks again, lawrat.

 

[HomeGuru]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face=" Arial, Verdana, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by john doe:
A friend of mine bought a car, and the first paper he signed with the salesman was for the price my friend had agreed on. But when he went to pick the car up, the final paper signed was for about $2000.00 less. My friend didn't notice the mistake until several days later when the manager called him in. Now, this mistake wasn't made on my friend's part, but they want him to pay the amount first agreed on, eventhough the final paper signed showed a lower amount. Do they have any legal pull, or can my friend decide not to pay?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

My initial opinion is that there is a valid contract and that he/she is not obligated to pay anything more than what the contract states. Was any part of the purchase price financed? If so, the contract would state the purchase price of the car, down payment and amount financed. Therefore there would be at least 2 contract documents that relected the lower price. Look who signed the contract. Normally it is the General Manager, Sales Manager or someone of high position with binding authority to sign contracts on behalf of the dealership. So the salesperson faulted for not reviewing and double checking the contract and the person that signed the contract made an error (and anybody else that handled the paperwork). In addition, the employees of the dealership handles purchase and finance contracts on a daily basis so they are held accountable, more so than the consumer, if they mess up.

I say that the dealership should eat it and chalk it up as a lesson in contract writing and review 101, and installation of fail safe and quality control methods 102. If your friend is feeling guilty, have this car buyer write a check to the dealer for $1000 and call it even.

 

[john doe]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face=" Arial, Verdana, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by HomeGuru:
My initial opinion is that there is a valid contract and that he/she is not obligated to pay anything more than what the contract states. Was any part of the purchase price financed? If so, the contract would state the purchase price of the car, down payment and amount financed. Therefore there would be at least 2 contract documents that relected the lower price. Look who signed the contract. Normally it is the General Manager, Sales Manager or someone of high position with binding authority to sign contracts on behalf of the dealership. So the salesperson faulted for not reviewing and double checking the contract and the person that signed the contract made an error (and anybody else that handled the paperwork). In addition, the employees of the dealership handles purchase and finance contracts on a daily basis so they are held accountable, more so than the consumer, if they mess up.

I say that the dealership should eat it and chalk it up as a lesson in contract writing and review 101, and installation of fail safe and quality control methods 102. If your friend is feeling guilty, have this car buyer write a check to the dealer for $1000 and call it even. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I completely agree with HomeGuru. But my question is, can they do anything if the difference isn't paid? Is the bill of sales more legally binding or does the financing contract have more pull?

 

[john doe]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face=" Arial, Verdana, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by HomeGuru:
My initial opinion is that there is a valid contract and that he/she is not obligated to pay anything more than what the contract states. Was any part of the purchase price financed? If so, the contract would state the purchase price of the car, down payment and amount financed. Therefore there would be at least 2 contract documents that relected the lower price. Look who signed the contract. Normally it is the General Manager, Sales Manager or someone of high position with binding authority to sign contracts on behalf of the dealership. So the salesperson faulted for not reviewing and double checking the contract and the person that signed the contract made an error (and anybody else that handled the paperwork). In addition, the employees of the dealership handles purchase and finance contracts on a daily basis so they are held accountable, more so than the consumer, if they mess up.

I say that the dealership should eat it and chalk it up as a lesson in contract writing and review 101, and installation of fail safe and quality control methods 102. If your friend is feeling guilty, have this car buyer write a check to the dealer for $1000 and call it even. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I completely agree with HomeGuru. But my question is, can they do anything if the difference isn't paid? Is the bill of sales more legally binding or does the financing contract have more pull?