Right Or Wrong?! Dealer Sues Customer For A Car Deal They Agreed To

Right Or Wrong?! Dealer Sues Customer For A Car Deal They Agreed To
You’ve heard consumer reporters say it over and over again: “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”

And now a Chrysler dealership in Hopkins, Minn., is using that concept to sue a customer over a deal it says she should have known was an error.

In October, Tammie Townsend of Golden Valley, Minn., bought the 2007 Chrysler Pacifica that she had been leasing for two years. She signed the papers to convert the lease to a sale, agreeing to pay $11,639, or about $6,000 less than the car’s Blue Book value, James Eli Shiffer wrote in The Minneapolis Star Tribune on Saturday.


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DaHarderDaHarder - 1/21/2010 12:34:46 PM
+12 Boost
Wrong... The Deal Is Done!


veyron1001veyron1001 - 1/21/2010 12:37:54 PM
+5 Boost
If this falls through, then customers can sue dealers for paying over actual value.


theoptimisticpessimisttheoptimisticpessimist - 1/21/2010 12:42:25 PM
0 Boost
Anybody that knows anything about the car sales is that Kelly Blue Book is incredilbe skewed to the dealers. That said the Manheim auction report says the average price for the Pacifica over the block is $17,000. The dealer is a swine, just another example of the "I not responsable so lets get a lawyer" mentality, the dealer screwed up and the dealer is a swine. No wonder the public hates car dealers.


daytonavioletdaytonaviolet - 1/22/2010 12:30:47 PM
+1 Boost
I could not agree more!

"the dealership would have reimbursed Ms. Townsend if it had accidentally overcharged her."

...and of course we all believe that!


2ndbimmer2ndbimmer - 1/22/2010 12:33:08 PM
+1 Boost
not skewed at all. Most of the time the trade in value is way too high and manheim shows the vehicle usually about $3-$4k less than what KBB thinks it is.
I found this out selling my car on my own trying to sell it to various dealers and carmax. I have a manheim account and there are huge descrepencies. People just have to do their HW!!!


800over800over - 1/21/2010 12:42:43 PM
-4 Boost
The woman signed paperwork she knew was incorrect (in the article it says she knew the correct amount) and hoped no one would notice. If the bank accidently puts money in your account and you withdraw it, you'll be taken to court if you don't pay it back. Why is this any different?


topneurotopneuro - 1/21/2010 12:45:44 PM
+1 Boost
http://www.startribune.com/local/west/81820747.html?elr=KArksUUUoDEy3LGDiO7aiU


0to600to60 - 1/21/2010 12:57:04 PM
+6 Boost
If there is an agreement of terms in writing signed by both parties, they have to honer the contract as it is written.


0to600to60 - 1/21/2010 3:28:54 PM
+2 Boost
honor


100tnega100tnega - 1/21/2010 1:17:14 PM
+3 Boost
How do they manage to keep putting nails in a coffin that's already buried?

This $5K discrepancy is going to cost Chrysler $$$ in spinning and re-engineering the image of their dealers.


pennfootballpennfootball - 1/21/2010 2:34:43 PM
-2 Boost
This is something that has to be decided in court with a judge. If there was an original contract signed then that probably will take president...however the judge may be lenient to the defendant and come up with a deal in the middle that both parties will agree on or he will make her pay the 17,000.


bfghemicudabfghemicuda - 1/21/2010 3:40:28 PM
+3 Boost
this is one reason our legal system is clogged with crap lawsuits,,,,HONOR the contract.


asternmadkatzasternmadkatz - 1/21/2010 3:41:06 PM
+4 Boost
Only in America...lol.

Too funny. You have a problem...sue them...ah makes me laugh.


SHOWTIMESHOWTIME - 1/21/2010 3:53:57 PM
0 Boost
Chrysler should seriously die for these reasons alone! They mess up with the simplest stuff, let alone the cars they build. My bro in law ordered a Buick Enclave since over a month and the dealer still had no information of when it will arrive...or didn't care to track it. He had to call Buick directly to figure out what was going on. Now he's still stuck without a car and is about to cancel the order.


bfghemicudabfghemicuda - 1/21/2010 6:37:28 PM
+2 Boost
SHOWTIME: What does ordering a Buick have anything to do with Chrysler?


SHOWTIMESHOWTIME - 1/25/2010 3:56:01 PM
+1 Boost
It's American like Chrysler...and even simple stupid things like this break deals on their sales.


truckmantruckman - 1/21/2010 4:54:23 PM
+1 Boost
After leasing the van for three years $11,000. sounds almost high for a three year old Dodge van, I hope the dealer loses.


no1listensanywayno1listensanyway - 1/21/2010 5:59:19 PM
+3 Boost
Wrong! Dealers are the grimiest of the grime.


CarCrazedinCaliCarCrazedinCali - 1/21/2010 7:52:11 PM
-1 Boost
Maybe the question would be, is it right for the customer to take advantage of a business like she did? Dealer's are just normal businesses looking to provide a good and services to the public, the only reason people bash dealers is because they must have patroned poorly managed ones (rude salespeople, tactless managers, dis-organized). Besides, negotiability of products only opens a can of worms for people to never be satisfied with their purchase price- sticker's quicker and the people that pay it are the happiest I have seen.


ThierryHenry14ThierryHenry14 - 1/21/2010 11:28:11 PM
+1 Boost
I'm pretty certain this case will go into arbitration. If not, the Judge will rule in favor of "fair market value", which is neither KBB, nor the contract price, but somewhere in between.


Type707Type707 - 1/22/2010 12:05:09 AM
+2 Boost
everything was in writing idiots...fire the Saleman that sealed the deal.


LexusLexus - 1/22/2010 12:45:56 AM
0 Boost
Acutally I think the woman should sue the dealer back because they're the professional who made the mistake Not her. Plus, I can where this will come back and bite the dealer in the butt.

First of all, she can hire lawer and sue them back for emotional distress/negligent and secondly, many potential buyers will STAY FAR WAY From this dealer for sure.

If that the case, than can the dealer pass clients sue them if they ripp them off on a car buying process? ( Charging client more what the cars worth, if only if they did it) I just making up example here.


800over800over - 1/22/2010 10:33:11 AM
+2 Boost
Let me get this straight. On autospies dealers are underhanded and this wrong.....but when a customer is underhanded it's fine...good for her. Contract is a contract!!! Then I guess the people who get screwed by bad dealers deserve what they get? It's ok to screw someone if you have it in writing? Take advantage of old ladies cause they signed their name! Please.
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