Tom Benson Nightmare (and a happy ending)

[mikenmar]

Originally Posted by ssump29

Technially I verbal contract is just as go as a written contract in the court of law. So really you don't need it in writing. Someone else must have heard you ask this and get confirmation and therefore you should fight for your deal.

There is something called the Statute of Frauds in most states. It requires that a contract for the sale of goods worth more than $X (typically $500) must be in writing and signed by the defendant.

But as I pointed out above, there may be ways to get around it.

[jdanza]

Originally Posted by mikenmar

I'm a lawyer. I'm licensed to practice law, and I'm in court all the time. I think I know how it works....

And there's no reason you can't use forum pressure at the same you file a suit in small claims court.

How many of THESE cases have you sucessfully ligated ?

[mikenmar]

Originally Posted by jdanza

How many of THESE cases have you sucessfully ligated ?

None. So what? I take (and win) cases all the time that have never been litigated before.

[nards444]

Theres ways around it. All they have to do is refund the money and theres nothing you can do. What are you going to do go to court and say they wont sell me this car, but they refunded me my money. You cant win this, the dealer will have better lawyers and insurance to cover them for stuff like this. It doesnt really matter what you think this peice of paper does or doesnt do, the fact is the guy got screwed. But legally nothing he can do. Even if you are able to legally do something, your going to really be that homo that sued to be able to buy something, come on.

[Hylton]

Originally Posted by mikenmar

I have a written agreement from my dealer, and it says nothing of the sort.

Well then you may have a winable case. Now, who has the time and money to spend on something so trivial?

[mikenmar]

Originally Posted by nards444

Theres ways around it. All they have to do is refund the money and theres nothing you can do. What are you going to do go to court and say they wont sell me this car, but they refunded me my money.

If the market value of the car was the same (or less than) the agreed-upon price, that would be true.

In this case, you still have a valid claim because the difference between the market value of the car and the agreed-upon price is worth more than the refund.

The basic premise of contract law is that you are entitled to the "benefit of the bargain". If you negotiate a good deal with the seller, you're entitled to have it enforced.

You cant win this, the dealer will have better lawyers and insurance to cover them for stuff like this.

I don't know about the poster's state, but here in California, you're not allowed to bring a lawyer into small claims court. The dealer may have a lawyer advise him in advance, but he's gonna have to pay for it. And "insurance" means that they will pay your claim.

It doesnt really matter what you think this peice of paper does or doesnt do, the fact is the guy got screwed. But legally nothing he can do. Even if you are able to legally do something, your going to really be that homo that sued to be able to buy something, come on.

I'd rather be the "homo" that won $5k from the dealer (or else pressured him to sell me the car at the agreed-upon price) than the ***** who let the dealer screw him over.

[Hylton]

Originally Posted by mikenmar

If the market value of the car was the same (or less than) the agreed-upon price, that would be true.

In this case, you still have a valid claim because the difference between the market value of the car and the agreed-upon price is worth more than the refund.

The basic premise of contract law is that you are entitled to the "benefit of the bargain". If you negotiate a good deal with the seller, you're entitled to have it enforced.

Are you saying that the dealer has no right to cancel the deal under any circumstances?

[MontyCarlo]

Originally Posted by Hylton

Well then you may have a winable case. Now, who has the time and money to spend on something so trivial?

My employer offers a legal plan I opted into - I pay a little bit out of every paycheck so that if there comes a time when I do need a lawyer, I can get one at no expense. It's pretty nice.

[mikenmar]

Originally Posted by Hylton

Well then you may have a winable case. Now, who has the time and money to spend on something so trivial?

It's small claims court. It would take a few hours to prepare (filing the forms) and then you show up on the court date they give you. The money required is a filing fee (probably $50-75). You don't need to hire a lawyer.

It's a claim worth several thousand dollars. To a lot of people, that's worth spending a few hours of time and trouble.

Also, the dealer has to spend time and trouble to respond to the claim. So that's additional pressure on them to relent and sell you the car at the agreed-upon price.

[mikenmar]

Originally Posted by Hylton

Are you saying that the dealer has no right to cancel the deal under any circumstances?

"Any circumstances" is a little too broad, but they sure can't cancel a contract just because they want to sell the car to someone else for more money.

[Hylton]

Originally Posted by mikenmar

"Any circumstances" is a little too broad, but they sure can't cancel a contract just because they want to sell the car to someone else for more money.

So there is an escape route for them right?

[RB43TD]

[nards444]

its just not worth it over all. because your going to spend 50 bucks to get into court, then take a day off of work to go in there. Im not saying you dont deserve the car at the agreed price but its just not worth taking it that car. Chances are the dealer will be able to pull out some signature or some policy that will protect them. I would just dump the order and go somewhere else.

[mikenmar]

Originally Posted by Hylton

So there is an escape route for them right?

Well, "any circumstances" would be things like "a tornado destroyed the car" or something out of the dealer's control made it impossible to deliver.

If they sold the car to someone else at a higher price, that's not an escape route.

The one thing they might try -- and this is easy to defeat -- is to argue that you can "mitigate" your damages by going somewhere else to buy the same car.

All you'd have to do to defeat that is call up a couple local dealers in advance of your court date, and ask them if they have a car just like the one you ordered. They probably don't, and if they do, offer to buy it at MSRP. If they refuse (and they probably will), that's all you need. Just tell the judge you did that.

Or, even easier, go online and search for a car just like yours at a local dealer. When the search comes back "0 cars", print it out and take it to court.