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Have been hosed by a car dealer? Did you find out that the car the salesman told you was a cream puff driven by a little old lady from Pasadena was actually a rental car or severely damaged in a wreck? Did you buy a car, only to have dealer call a couple of days later to say the financing didn’t go through and the contracts have to be redone? Was your odometer rolled back? I’ll show you how to investigate the history of a car in order to get the real truth about a car that sources like carfax.com won’t tell you. You’ll also find out what rights you have when you have been defrauded by a car dealer.
Car cases are a big part of my practice, but I am pretty selective about the kinds of car cases that I take.
The Car Cases I Generally Take
Most of the car cases I take involve some form of auto fraud. I describe these kinds of cases in more detail in my auto fraud page, but they generally involve some sort of dishonest conduct by the dealer, such as a yo-yo sale, undisclosed wreck damage, odometer fraud, or forgery.
The Car Cases I Generally Don’t Take
I rarely say never (what kind of lawyer would I be if I did), but as a general rule, I don’t take the following kinds of cases:
Lemons, Warranties and Improper Repairs
I rarely take cases involving defects or breakdowns in cars or other vehicles. The cost of proving up the causes of defects and breakdowns oftens exceeds the value of these cases and Texas law, in particular the Lemon Law, is woefully deficient in these areas. For the same reasons, I rarely take cases involving improper or unnecessary auto repairs.
Mechanical Problems or Wreck Damage that Has Not Been Inspected by a Mechanic
Generally speaking, If your case involves a mechanical problem or wreck damage, I will ask you to send me a mechanic’s evaluation or an appraisal report documenting the problem before we meet for a consultation. I have found that when I don’t do that many consultations turn out to be a waste of the client’s time and money because the problem cannot be documented or is not severe enough to justify filing a lawsuit. If you have this kind of case, give me a call so we can discuss what kind of evaluation you need.
Seller Can’t Pay a Judgment-Private Sellers and eBay
When I take a car case, one of the most important things I consider is the dealer’s ability to pay a judgment (this is true for all my cases, not just car cases). For this reason, I do not generally take cases involving fraud by private sellers or cars sold on eBay without some indication that the seller has insurance or can be forced to pay a judgment if we win. There’s nothing worse than taking a case all the way to trial only to discover that the defendant has no money.