i made this offer in the best offer/buy it now
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Your offer price: US $3,200.00
Your terms: 1500 down-and 900 first month-800 second month
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after i won, i recieved this message.of which i was not expecting…
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>I will be happy to allow you to make payments but I cannot turn the car over until its paid off. I am a private seller and the legal routes for me to collect the owed should you for any reason neglect them are unsatisfactory. I’m not suggesting that your dishonest but I do have to protect my interests. As far as protecting your end should you choose to continue this transaction I will be happy to draft a legal contract through the law office I work for that will specifically bind me to turn the car over once you fulfill your obligation. If you can aquire the remaining amoung within two months I don’t see this as an unfair condition, so get back to me let me know the 300 can be paid in person or sent through paypal, the 1,200 must be paid in person or through some for of certified bank document.
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i needed a car now and did not want to make payments first.also ,after the auction he let me in on things i didnt know w that were wrong with the car.this is what he wrote.
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>The pigtails throughout the car should be replaced I have had some trouble tracking them down simply because parts are just so hard to find and when you do they want outrageous amounts for them. Sometimes when there is alot of moisture in the air the car has trouble starting becuase the wetness is causing connectivity issues in electrical components but I will show you that when you test drive. I had a leak months ago with the transmission pan so I took it off and found it had been warped a little, I took it down to my friends machine shop and reshaped it bu a new seal wouldn’t hurt they are only like $15. The exhaust is disconneced just behind the down pipe but this is an easy fix
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so i asked around and i heard that if i could not pay that his ebay comission would be refunded and i would not have to go through with payments.but do i still have to pay a deposit without legal consequences?
here is the message he sent me reguarding my hint that we should mark the auto as unpayable
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>I have taken into consideration our recent correspondence and have come to the following conclusion. After speaking with one of the attorneys in my office he advised me the fair way to solve this is to simply charge you the deposit. This will cover the final sale value that ebay charges and also compensate me for lost time. After all bidding on an item with ebay is a contract. I do understand that this may seem unfair for your side however I have many people looking at this vehicle some of whom have wanted to view the car while we were hammering things out that I had to turn away. It was not a sure thing but you could have cost me a sale. I do understand if you choose not to pay the deposit and in that case I will have to follow through with the motions.
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do i have any options here?is there anyway i can get out of this without having to pay the deposit ,or being sued,or god knows what else?
also, he has since relisted the car and i have yet to pay a deposit.
if i did pay the deposit ,maybe it would be less of a headache if i could just buy the car anyway.so…
if i did pay the deposit now would he have to continue to sell the car to me?
7 Responses
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blamay22000 Says:
I’m kinda stumped as to why you would want the car to begin with when it has serious wiring problems! By the way, this isnt the right category in the first place
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roderick_young Says:
Walk away, I smell trouble with this deal. Lots of cars out there, try craigslist or another place.
If he did not honor the exact terms of your offer, he has no ethical or legal basis to come after you. Ignore the stuff about costing him a sale – he was the one who accepted your offer, it’s not your fault.
Retain all correspondence from him in case there’s trouble with eBay.
Also, consider whether you really, really need a car, and can’t wait a few months. If you could make such payments, then you would have $3200 three months from now, and could pay cash for a car, avoiding all this negotiating over terms. Until then, walk, bike, or take the bus.
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Brandon Says:
Don’t pay anything – contact ebay dispute resolution.
Run (don’t walk) away from any deal that changes after the seller thinks they have you captive.
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john Says:
under disclosure laws in most states,the problems were to be disclosed in the advertising.
you have also 30 days for a FULL refund due to the laws in any state.
in other words,you do NOT have to pay a dime due to his negligence -
The Phlebob Says:
I’m not a lawyer, but it seems to me that anything he revealed AFTER the agreement was reached, including the payment terms, voids the contract unless you subsequently agree to them. After all, he could keep on piling on conditions until you absolutely couldn’t agree to them, then claim breach of contract and keep your deposit.
But to be sure, I suggest you see a lawyer. Keep paper copies of all the correspondence with the seller. It can all be relevant in court.
Good luck. I think you have a good case.
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Greywolf Says:
Don’t pay him anything, he didn’t provide full disclosure of the condition of the car on ebay.
That’s the key phrase for you to use “you didn’t provide full disclosure of the condition of the car in your advertisement”.
You wouldn’t have bid on the car if you had full knowledge of its mechanical condition and it was his responsibility to provide that full knowledge in his ebay post.
Don’t get hung up on the whole “a lawyer that works in my office” thing, sounds like B.S. and the likelihood of him going after you for $300 is very small. Even if he sues you, the only thing he’ll be able to ask for is the deposit ($300).
You’re okay, even if he disputes it through ebay, because of the message he sent you describing everything wrong with the car. Keep his emails and make sure you copy the webpage he has up now describing the car.
Here’s your email (you can just cut and paste everything below here and don’t communicate with him again via email, don’t argue, don’t debate, just send this and let it go):
The contract created by bidding on an item on ebay assumes that the seller has provided all reasonable and relevant information related to the condition of the item being sold.
The following information was provided by you AFTER bidding was complete:
“The pigtails throughout the car should be replaced I have had some trouble tracking them down simply because parts are just so hard to find and when you do they want outrageous amounts for them. Sometimes when there is alot of moisture in the air the car has trouble starting because the wetness is causing connectivity issues in electrical components but I will show you that when you test drive. I had a leak months ago with the transmission pan so I took it off and found it had been warped a little, I took it down to my friends machine shop and reshaped it bu a new seal wouldn’t hurt they are only like $15. The exhaust is disconnected just behind the down pipe but this is an easy fix.”
The fact that the car has problems starting due to electrical issues, a leak in the transmission and a disconnected exhaust is inarguably reasonable and relevant information related to the condition of the object being sold and you failed to include those facts in your ebay description.
If you had provided this information in your ebay description, I would not have bid on the vehicle.
Any consequences resulting from this lack of full disclosure on your part are your responsibility.
Good luck with your sale.
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Dopey Dinosaur Says:
I agree this sounds fishy. He’s already re-listed the car. He’s not worried at all about his “lost sale” to you, in fact he’s already written you off as a potential buyer.
He can get his final value fees back from eBay, and you need not pay him anything, not even to recover his listing fees. Them’s the cost of doing business on eBay.
Ebay sellers fear SNAD claims. “Significantly Not As Described” – The faults of the item should be disclosed BEFORE the bidding decision is made, and never “oh yeah, did you know…” after the sale. Bad sellers just don’t disclose the faults at all – leaving you the hassle of getting a refund later.
I am NOT an ebay expert. Just don’t like to see people cheated.
I would do nothing further money-wise with this fellow, and as another respondent said, keep the emails you have exchanged thus far and try to let this fiasco pass.
You’ve already got the best advice too. Don’t buy a car until you can afford it. Then buy locally, where you can see it etc. A couple months of bus passes isn’t going to kill you.
I don’t like how he implies that not paying him the deposit may result in legal action. Well, a deposit is something you give in good faith, to prove that faith. Then if you backed out he could keep it. But you haven’t given it yet. Don’t do it.
Contact eBay if you feel pressured by this seller. Best of luck reaching a live agent.
