If I bought a car that had problems not evident in the test drive, can Igeta refund?
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If I bought a car that had problems not evident in the test drive, can Igeta refund?
I bought a used car from a dealership and during the buying process I was promised that if there were any problems with the car I could return it within 3 days and receive my money back. Less than 12 hours later some serious problems started to occur with the car, so I took it back that evening. When I got to the dealership they said they would try and fix some of the problems but I had to keep the car. When I stated the promise they said that was never said and it was not their policy and that I was the one lying. They have the car and say that they are going to go after us if we do not pick it up. We have a case?
Asked on August 23, 2010 under General Practice, Utah
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
1) As a general matter, an agreement, even an oral agreement, is enforceable, so if they lot made the promise or representation that you say they did, it is legall enforceable. That's the law: as a practical matter, if it was an oral agreement, you may be unable to prove its existence or its terms; furthermore, if the promise was made before you signed the contract or agreement of sale, if that contract or agreement contains any language saying that it (the contract) contains all the terms of the parties' agreement and there were no other promises made to induce you to buy the car, that clause (often called a "merger clause," since it merges other/prior statements or agreements into the final one) will likely invalidate the previous oral agreement.
2) If you could show that dealer knowingly and intentially misrepresented to you to get you to buy the car--i.e. that they intentionally lied about or hid some problem(s) they were aware of--you may have a claim against them for fraud.
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