I bought a car on 10/7/07 in CA , checked out its Carfax.com report after the fact (I know, I know, should have done this beforehand) and discovered it was in an accident in NY. Title is clean. Dealer never disclosed accident but did offer me a "cooling off" contract for 48 hours for $800 ($300 policy + $500 restocking fee). He also characterized it as a waste of money ("expensive car rental" were the exact words). Do I have a right to return it since they did not disclose information about its history that was public?
2007-10-09 08:17:10 · 14 answers · asked by vinep 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Buying & Selling
Update: There is a law in CA requiring dealers to offer this "cooling off' insurance. Also, the CA DMV said dealer is not responsible unless the car is unsafe. I am checking with NY DMV tomorrow to get police report.
2007-10-09 11:49:44 · update #1
After checking with NY DMV, the accident was basically a parking lot encounter at low speed that required one door to be replaced -- nothing that affected the safety. However, FWIW, my lawyer said that if they had "misrepresented" the vehicle (in other words, said that car had NOT been in accident) then there was a good case for it. If you are in CA and are offered the cooling off policy, take it. It is cheap insurance.
2007-10-11 14:12:00 · update #2
What you really need to ask yourself is how does it run/drive? Just because a car has been in an accident doesn't mean it was irreparably damaged. When a car is damaged that severly, it MUST be put on a salvage title.
2007-10-09 08:40:29 · answer #1 · answered by k_loper2002 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The dealer has no obligation to research the history of a vehicle! The only time a dealer would be required to disclose previous damage is if they had made the repair, or the vehicle had a salvage title!
Many dealers do not run history reports on the cars they sell. If a car looks good, drives well and checks out mechanically, I am not going to go looking for problems!!
The dealer offered you a chance to buy a cooling off period, where you could have paid $300 extra and if you were unhappy with the car, return it and only pay the restocking fee and the $300. You decided not to buy that option! You also decided to buy without doing a vehicle history check! You said yourself that you " should have done this beforehand".
The fact that the car was in an accident does not mean that there is a problem. If the damage was repaired correctly, you have nothing to worry about. Another thing to consider is that not all damage will show up on a vehicle history report!
If the repairs are not paid for by an insurance claim, then there is no history reported. Body shops do not report to vehicle history companies! The fact that the report is clear does not mean that the vehicle was never damaged!
Enjoy your car!!
2007-10-09 16:09:33 · answer #2 · answered by fire4511 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
California has a new law that gives just about everyone the right to return their new used car (under $40,000) within 2 days/250 miles for any reason what so ever. But the dealer is allowed to charge a fee based on price of car.
2007-10-09 15:24:07 · answer #3 · answered by gnomes31 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, that information should have been researched before the purchase of the vehicle. I don't know about CA, but OR it is the job of the purchaser to do the research on the vehicles. OR dealers are only required to state if the vehicle has been totaled.
2007-10-09 15:32:01 · answer #4 · answered by Z car guy 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
There is no cooling of period in CA buying a used car unless the deal was consummated outside the dealership , and then you have 72 hours.
however your question I found very interesting,,, offering you a cooling of contract for 48 hours " $300 " policy,,, whom on earth would buy something if they thought of a return for a fee within 48 hours...
The Salesman characterized it a waste of money , well I will say he made one honest statement, however having being in the business over 30 years, I would sure love to get my hands on that policy for inspection to add to my website about buyers beware , if your able please provide me with some more details about this issue or a copy through my website address http://www.usedcartips.org/ thanks
2007-10-09 17:15:47 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
No. A used car dealer has no obligation to disclose the car's history.
Since it was public knowledge, a smart buyer would have checked it out before signing the papers.
2007-10-09 16:54:36 · answer #6 · answered by mccoyblues 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I'm assuming that the car you bought was a used (previously owned) vehicle. Caveat Emptor - Let the buyer beware! You had the responsibility of researching the vehicle's prior history before you bought.
2007-10-09 15:22:21 · answer #7 · answered by kja63 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Depending on what state you are in there might be a three day law. This would specific that by law you have three days to return a car from the date of purchase. If one was to return the car now, you would get resale value for it and car prices go down tremendously after having been driven off the lot. It will probably be better if he can find a private seller for it.
However in most states you do not even have one day,
unless you are doing the 24-hour test.
CONTACT YOUR LOCAL DMV OFFICE, THEY WILL BE ABLE TO ANSWER ANY AND ALL OF YOUR QUESTIONS AND AT THE SAME TIME YOU WILL BE GETTING THE CORRECT ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION.
2007-10-09 15:26:35 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 4⤋
I would contact your DMV and ask if it is required to disclose such information. As for the 48 hour cooling off contract...tell them to shove it. If they suspected you may change your mind, I suspect they knew you would find out about the accident.
2007-10-09 15:23:42 · answer #9 · answered by Otto 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Good Luck With That..
2007-10-09 15:22:02 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋