(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

7 –  Contract Errors

Another fraudulent trick frequently used by car dealerships is that they will prepare the paperwork on a purchase with “errors” that are actually intentional discrepancies on something like the agreed purchase price or terms of the loan or trade-in value.

To avoid signing a contract that differs from the verbal agreement you came to with the car dealership, carefully check all of the numbers and details in the contract, to make sure they match.

8 – Misleading Window Sticker

Dealers sometimes display a very confusing sticker next to a vehicle’s MSRP.  The extra sticker may appear to be official, but the purpose of having it there is to trick a buyer into paying more for the car.  These scam stickers will include details about options installed once the car arrived to the dealership.   They aren’t even options; in fact, they are usually fake charges.

An example of what you might see is “Special Value Package” on a window sticker which includes a charge labeled ADP (Additional Dealer Profit is what it stands for) or ADM (Additional Dealer Markup).  These are without actual relevance to the cost of the vehicle.

Now that you are aware of fake window stickers, be alert so that you can spot one if you encounter this scam.

Be sure to read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 of this continuing series to learn all 20 common fraudulent practices used in the buying and selling of cars.

Have you been defrauded during the process of buying a car, or has a car dealership failed to disclose prior damage to a vehicle you purchased? If you or anyone you know needs legal assistance related to car dealership fraud which occurred in Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Mesquite, Lancaster, Arlington, De Soto, or anywhere else in Texas, contact Dallas car dealer fraud lawyer Dean Malone at (214) 670-9989.

–Guest Contributor

Picture of Valdosta, Georgia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Many consumers are surprised to learn, after they have an issue with a car dealership, that they signed away their right to a trial with a judge and jury.  Instead, upon closely reviewing transaction documents, they realize that they agreed to arbitrate all claims against the dealership.  Here is a link to a story about one man’s experience with a car dealership and resulting arbitration -

http://voiceofsandiego.org/2013/05/20/justice-for-sale-part-one-arbitration-purgatory/ 

English: Saxon Drive (3) The building on the right handside of the photograph is an, Aldi supermarket, the cars on the same side of the photograph, are part of a Ford car dealership. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

4 – Trade-In Tricks

Car dealers will often offer an unfairly low price on a trade-in vehicle; they hope you will accept it without negotiation.  Part of what they are doing is determining how aware you are of the car’s true value.  Another motive is that when they inch the offer up, the consumer will feel that they’ve negotiated a good deal; in reality, the final numbers are still far below the value of the car.

Don’t rush to accept an offer on your trade-in.  Visit multiple car dealerships and go with the best deal.

5 – Raising the Cost of a Leased Vehicle

Many consumers are unaware that when you are leasing a car, you should negotiate the purchase price as diligently as if you are making a purchase.  If you fail to negotiate, the dealer will stick you with the full manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), which is a good deal for them but a rip off for you.

When you are leasing a car, the purchase price on the vehicle is referred to as the capitalized cost.  It’s important to aggressively negotiate, to avoid being scammed.

Be sure to read Part 1 and Part 2 of this continuing series to learn all 20 common fraudulent practices used in the buying and selling of cars.

Have you been defrauded during the process of buying a car, or has a car dealership failed to disclose prior damage to a vehicle you purchased? If you or anyone you know needs legal assistance related to car dealership fraud which occurred in Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Mesquite, Lancaster, Arlington, De Soto, or anywhere else in Texas, contact Dallas car dealer fraud lawyer Dean Malone at (214) 670-9989.

–Guest Contributor

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

3 – The Dangling Carrot

Car dealerships often advertise an automobile at a terrific price; but when you show up to give the car a test drive, they tell you it has been sold already. The point all along was to get you to the dealership, where they will attempt to convince you to buy a pricier vehicle.

To avoid the dangling carrot scam, call the dealership about the advertisement to ask if that specific car has been sold. Ask for an email or a fax with a signed statement that the vehicle is still available for purchase. If they try to pull the scam on you, you’ll have proof of the deception, which could potentially provide you with leverage to enjoy a similar deal to the one advertised.

4 – The Target Payment

A common sales tactic is to get consumers to focus on a particular monthly payment. Dealers add on all sorts of costly back end products and extra charges into monthly payments that you never even realize are there. In addition, the dealer can easily give you the monthly payments you want, but then they extend the car loan for additional months of payment or give you a low-ball amount on your trade-in.

To avoid being scammed with the monthly payment approach, always separate each part of the purchase, including the trade-in and other services you buy.

Be sure to read Part 1 and this continuing series to learn all 20 common fraudulent practices used in the buying and selling of cars.

Have you been defrauded during the process of buying a car, or has a car dealership failed to disclose prior damage to a vehicle you purchased? If you or anyone you know needs legal assistance related to car dealership fraud which occurred in Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Mesquite, Lancaster, Arlington, De Soto, or anywhere else in Texas, contact Dallas car dealer fraud lawyer Dean Malone at (214) 670-9989.

–Guest Contributor

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Researchers have looked into all the ways consumers are scammed in the matter of buying or selling an automobile, and there are over 100 tricks. This is the first part of a series sharing 20 of the most common fraudulent tactics used by unscrupulous car dealerships and individuals:

1 – Mixing Costs

Car dealerships will mix the price of the down payment, the car, the trade-in value, and the monthly payment into one transaction for the purpose of confusing the consumer. This technique only works when the consumer is trying to negotiate a deal at the dealership.

The best way to avoid this scam is to negotiate through an email or over the phone and deal with each part of the purchase as separate transactions.

2 – Attractive Phone Offer

If you call a car dealer to find out what type of offer you can expect for your trade-in, the answer you get could be a false amount designed to get you to the dealership. What often happens is a consumer is given an attractive estimate but then finds that the salesperson doesn’t honor the offer, after inspecting the vehicle in person. The goal is to give you less than the car is worth.

Take your time and allow several dealers to inspect your vehicle and give you their best offer. This puts you in the driver’s seat on the deal, which is where you should be; used cars are hot items on the market today.

Be sure to read this continuing series to learn all 20 common fraudulent practices used in the buying and selling of cars.

Have you been defrauded during the process of buying a car, or has a car dealership failed to disclose prior damage to a vehicle you purchased? If you or anyone you know needs legal assistance related to car dealership fraud which occurred in Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Mesquite, Lancaster, Arlington, De Soto, or anywhere else in Texas, contact Dallas car dealer fraud lawyer Dean Malone at (214) 670-9989.

–Guest Contributor

English: Texas Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja indivisa) flower in Arlington, Texas. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Our law firm represents a consumer in a case aganst Luke Motor Company II, L.P. d/b/a Vandergriff Honda.  We are seeking information about how Vandergriff Honda discloses prior damage to certified used cars it sells (including any use of CARFAX reports).  If you have such information, please complete the form at this website or call us at (214) 670-9989.  We allege nothing in this blog post about how Vandergriff Honda does business but are instead simply seeking information to assist with representation of our client.

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There are many fraudulent practices related to the automobiles that consumers fall victim to, and illegal repossessions is one of them. A recent story in California tells about a consumer who never missed a payment on her new vehicle, but her car was repossessed. In this situation, the auto dealer claims that a loan had never been secured; but the woman believed she had signed a contract that was legally enforceable before she drove off in the new car.

Many times, unscrupulous people at car dealerships assume that consumers will go along with anything they are told. One of the best things car buyers and sellers can do to avoid being scammed is to become familiar with their rights.

In Texas, creditors have a legal right to repossess a vehicle not only for defaulting on payments but also for any default included in the agreement. For instance, a car can be repossessed if the consumer fails to maintain insurance coverage on the vehicle.

Creditors are obligated by law to advise consumers of repossessions. But a car cannot be towed with a person, including a child, sitting in the automobile. It is a violation of the law for a creditor to bang on someone’s door at unreasonable hours of the night or to break through a garage door or fence in the process of repossessing a vehicle.

If a person’s car is repossessed in Texas, he has ten days to redeem the car by paying the debt and associated costs in full. In the alternative, the consumer can insist that the car be sold and the proceeds applied to the outstanding loan; the creditor is obligated by law to return any money received over and above the debt to the consumer.

Have you been defrauded during the process of buying a car, or has a car dealership failed to disclose prior damage to a vehicle you purchased? If you or anyone you know needs legal assistance related to car dealership fraud which occurred in Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Mesquite, Lancaster, Grapevine, Grand Prairie, or anywhere else in Texas, contact Dallas car dealer fraud lawyer Dean Malone at (214) 670-9989.

–Guest Contributor

90² – Used Car Lot (Photo credit: bulliver)

Our Dallas law firm currently represents a consumer with alleged claims against Q Motorcars on Pioneer Parkway in Irving, Texas.  We would like to talk with people who can provide information about how Q Motorcars discloses any prior physical damage to vehicles and/or what Q Motorcars tells consumers about the condition of vehicles that it sells.  We allege nothing in this blog post about how Q Motorcars does business but are instead simply seeking information to assist in representing our client.  If you have information, please complete the form at this website or call our consumer protection law firm at (214) 670-9989.

Mercedes Benz Lineup (Photo credit: Axion23)

Auto fraud is rampant in Texas and the entire nation, but it also happens frequently in other countries.  A survey recently conducted in Canada provides insights into online auto scams which car buyers and sellers should be aware of, to avoid being duped.  The survey concluded that about 20% of all people who buy or sell used cars online in Canada encounter fraud.

Fraudulent buyers commit the most common online auto scams.  The way it usually works is that the scammer uses a phony check, overpaying for the car and asking the buyer to refund the difference.  Of the approximately 1,000 people who responded to the survey, about 13% of them encountered this type of scam.

Twelve percent of those surveyed found listings which were posted by people suspected of being full-time scam artists who pose as private sellers and attempt to offload vehicles which have hidden damage.

An elaborate scheme out of Oklahoma has recently been uncovered, and it seems to target Canadian buyers.  Several people from Canada were robbed of more than $225,000 in a single scam.  What they did was wire money in payment for automobiles but the auto dealer they sent the money to was nonexistent and they never got their vehicles.

In spite of the very real possibility of being scammed online, 71% of the people surveyed expressed a lack of concern about online fraud; and 64% admitted that they did little to no research into various types of auto fraud before setting out to shop for a car online.

Have you been defrauded during the process of buying a car, or has a car dealership failed to disclose prior damage to a vehicle you purchased? If you or anyone you know needs legal assistance related to car dealership fraud which occurred in Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Mesquite, De Soto, Arlington, or anywhere else in Texas, contact Dallas car dealer fraud lawyer Dean Malone at (214) 670-9989.

–Guest Contributor

Mercedes-Benz W164 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

U.S. soldiers are the target of an elaborate auto fraud scam, and the reason they are targeted is because certain military insurance earns deep discounts on the purchase of luxury cars.  Online advertisements offer soldiers big money for simply driving a vehicle from one place to another.  But one soldier from Clear Lake, Texas, responded to such an ad and found out that a bit more was wanted.

In this “straw buyers” scheme which the soldier from Clear Lake wisely chose not participate in, the soldiers with USAA insurance policies are given money to purchase luxury vehicles in their own name.  The soldiers then hand the keys over and have no idea what happens to the vehicles.  As if the entire premise of the scam isn’t bad enough, the soldiers are now possibly going to be held liable for such things as taxes related to the cars and, worse, for the alleged illegal exportation of the vehicles to places like China, where luxury SUVs from the U.S. are worth upwards of $300,000.

Roger Morris of the National Insurance Crime Bureau said that these types of schemes usually have a professional crime ring behind them, and they are happening across the country.

When cars are exported, they are much more likely to clear screening at ports if they are personally owned.  And since the cars are not reported stolen, there’s little warning that a car was purchased through a straw buyer.  A straw buyer’s name is listed not only on the paperwork for the vehicles he or she signed for but also as the exporter of the vehicles, the vast majority of the time.

This disturbing car fraud scheme is currently under investigation.

Have you been defrauded during the process of buying a car, or has a car dealership failed to disclose prior damage to a vehicle you purchased? If you or anyone you know needs legal assistance related to car dealership fraud which occurred in Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Rockwall, Lewisville, or anywhere else in Texas, contact Dallas car dealer fraud lawyer Dean Malone at (214) 670-9989.

–Guest Contributor