Well, I guess your recourse depends on where you live and how much you paid
for it.
First, IANAL... (I Am Not A Lawyer), so you may want to invest $75 in a
half hour with one somewhere...
1) If you're not both in the same country, then it probably gets
tricky. But I'll assume you're both in the States.
2) If you're both in the same state, or nearby, and the cost is under
$2500, you can probably take him to small claims court to recover your
money, but I doubt you're both in the same state, or nearby, otherwise I
assume you would have visited the car if it was nearby.
3) If he made a fraudulent sale (he indicated car is free of rust on bill
of sale) then you theoretically have recourse, but it depends on what you
paid as to whether it's worth it to chase it or not. Also, is it obvious
from the outside that it has rust? If you took it apart and found rust,
but if just looking at it, you can't see rust, then it could be a harder
argument to make.
4) Complain to EBay, and do Seller's Feedback, but as far as your $, I'd
say just buy a half hour of a lawyer's time and see what they say. First,
find a lawyer that does consumer or general business law - your choice
depends where you live.
5) Your state, depending on how big/small it is, might be willing to help
you; you could call the consumer protection bureau and/or Attorney General,
but it'll vary - a small non-busy state might get you a response, but if
you live in California or something, I wouldn't hold your breath.
6) If the car came from another state, there may be interstate commerce
laws that apply, but I don't know what they are.
Anyway, it's hard to suggest anything specific without knowing if this is a
$1000 car or a $10,000 car, and whether you are in the same or different
states, or how far away you are, etc....
At worse, you could consider that you not only bought a parts car, but also
bought some experience. But if you paid a couple thousand, it would be
worth it to hire a lawyer for a 1/2 hour to see what your recourse is (give
them an overview on the phone to make sure this is the sort of stuff they
do). Complain to eBay, and you can also ask eBay about recourse - I'm sure
they get this a lot.
Good luck
- Tab
At 03:38 PM 8/17/01 -0600, engl wrote:
>For those also on the E-Type list, I apologise as this is a repeat. I had
>indicated to that list about three weeks ago that I had purchased a B
>through eBay, and indicated I would report back to that group on how the
>purchase
>turned out.
>
>I guess all I would have to say to perspective buyers on eBay is don't do it
>how I
>did it. The car was advertised as rust free, but needing a little bit of
>work to one of the door skins. The Bill of sale, signed by the seller,
>reads "there is no rust on the vehicle". I think this fellow's idea of rust
>free is "yes - lots of rust - no extra charge". I should have taken Daniel
>from the E list
>up on his offer of having a mechanic in the area look at it, but it was a
>done deal by the time he offered, and I guess I basically made the mistake
>of trusting the guy I was buying from. Caveat Emptor !
>
>Has anyone on the list had this problem before? What is my recourse? (I
>have sent the fellow and e-mail, and will follow up with a phone call
>tomorrow). Any suggestions?
>
>Now I have to decide whether to sell it as a parts car, or spent the time
>and effort fixing it up.
>My biggest concern is the floor as it is all rusted, with a least one patch
>panel (screwed in place). The cross member running laterally across the
>middle of the car is rotten, as are the side sills, and the floor is soon to
>be a Flintsone-mobile. I bought the car as a project to work on with my
>sons, but this is FAR in excess of what I wanted (or indeed what I had paid
>for - according to the bill of sale anyway).
>
>I would appreciate some comforting thoughts.
>
>Thanks
>
>Very Sad Bob (who learned an expensive lesson)
>'69 E-Type 2+2
>'77 piece of rust that is badged MG
///
/// mgs@autox.team.net mailing list
/// (If they are dupes, this trailer may also catch them.)
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