So the family sedan that you’ve had for a number of miles is getting up there in years and you figured it’s time to get a new ride.
After checking out the available options, you find a vehicle that you are interested in. You contact the dealership and find out the vehicle is still available so you head down to the dealership ready to trade in the old family sedan.
You finally agree on a price for the new vehicle and a trade-in value for the family sedan.
The finance manager keeps you at the dealership for so long that you would sell your first born or chew your own arm off to get out of there.
It is only later when you see that your credit score has dropped or that the financing institution for your trade-in contacts you regarding late payments that you learn that there is definitely a problem.
But you can’t understand what the problem is. You contact the dealership who claims to have no idea what you’re talking about.
It is only then that you see that the financing agreement for your new vehicle doesn’t include any information about your old vehicle that you traded in.
By failing to include any information about the trade-in on the retail installment sale contract (the financing agreement for your purchase) the dealership has effectively removed their responsibility to pay off your trade-in.
You can take action against a dealership that actually accepts your trade-in and then fails to pay it off. It’s going to be significantly more difficult to prove that you actually traded in a vehicle and that the dealer is the one responsible to pay for your old sedan when the trade-in doesn’t appear in the financing agreement.
