The U.S. Department of Transportation is advising consumers taking advantage of the “Cash for Clunkers ” program not to sign contingency agreements promising to pay back up to $4,500 if dealers don’t receive payment from the government. No contingency agreement is required to participate, the Transportation Department, which administers the $3 billion Car Allowance Rebate…
As the Cash for Clunkers (CFC) program has taken off, so have Dealership frauds. Issue 1: Jumping the Gun… Dealers started advertising for CFC sales BEFORE the program details were set AND before they were changed! Now some cars that qualified for CFC no longer qualify! Dealers have been illegally calling people back in and…
The Consumer’s Friend has found out something of interest about the Chrysler bankruptcy: if consumers want to file lemon lawsuits against Chrysler currently, they are required to waive civil penalties, consequential damages, and other things! So Chrysler gets to use your tax dollars to insulate them from its own worst deeds!
Can a car dealership simply cancel your purchase contract whenever it wants? The answer: NO! As the old-saying goes — “A deal’s a deal.” Car dealerships can’t just cancel the deal! In California, most contracts include a limited, 10-day cancellation right for the dealership if the dealership can’t find acceptable financing terms for you. Although…
Dealerships across California now regularly use Carfax reports to convince customers that the car they are buying has a clean bill of health. However, The Consumer’s Friend has had numerous reports of good Carfax reports on cars that are anything but good cars, including cars with major accident damage, frame damage, major repaints, junkyard parts,…
We are getting numerous calls from consumers who are finding debt collection companies — and even the original creditors are employing every trick in the book (and its a REALLY big book) to hound debtors into paying! Here is a “good one:” debt collectors “spoofing” their actual numbers with ones you trust … so you…
We are receiving calls from consumers, who state that when you call Monaco you now get a recording stating that they have filed for Bankruptcy. Share your thoughts and experiences.
Toyota sales are down 40 percent, leading it to seek help for its finance arm. GM is doing worse and is thinking about an “assurance” program like Hyundai’s for buyers concerned about future job loss. Edmunds states that 27% of people who intended to buy new in February, switched to used. ncentives apparently way up,…
This October we received a report that an area Toyota dealership refused to sell a customer a car unless he paid for what was listed as the “Optional DMV Electronic Filing Fee” on the purchase contract. The customer had to refuse to sign the contract, leave the dealership after hours of negotiations, and consult with…
