What to do if I was never told that the car I’m making payments on has a salvage title?
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What to do if I was never told that the car I’m making payments on has a salvage title?
Can I ask for another car or my money back?
Asked on December 20, 2012 under General Practice, Kentucky
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
You did not indicate if this was an "as is" sale or not. Either way, if the seller failed to disclose a material fact of the purchsase, you may have a legal remedy. Whether or not a car had a salvage title is material fact. If you specifically asked about such a title and was told that there was none or you were in some other way specifically led to believe that the car was not a salvage vehicle, that nondisclosure would be a material misrepresentation. Accordingly, that would give you grounds to seek "recession" (i.e. cancellation) of the contract. As a result, the seller would get the car back and you would get your money refunded (or you could also inform the seller that you would accept a substitute car and see if they found that to be an acceptable solution the situation).
Unfortunately, to rescind the contract, you would need to need to sue the seller (and offer proof that you did not know of the impaired title). Consequently, at this point, you should speak directly to an attorney who can let you know the strength of your case and the costs involved. Possibly getting a letter from your attorney might spur the seller to agree to rescind the contract without wasting money on litigation.
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