Do I need a lawyer?

[frelsang]

I trade in my 08 Windsport to a brand new 2014 Winnebago last November, The pay off of the first loan is $75000, I had paid an extra $20,000 for the upside down pay off on the first loan during the purchase, The problem is the dealership never pay off my first loan, I've been making 2 RV monthly payment for the last 3 month, I called the dealer many times, they just keep lying to me saying it's in the process to be pay off in a week or two, but 3 months had passed, I am afraid if I don't do anything it's going to get drag on for as long as they pleased, my question is do I need a lawyer? or take the dealership to small claims court? Does this happen to many people or just happen to me?

[outdoorlovers]

The last ting a dealer in CA wants to hear is you're going to contact the DMV. Give them a time limit to resolve this (7 days) and let them know you're contacting the DMV. No dealer wants the DMV poking around in their business.

[Effy]

hardtobe wrote:

Effy wrote:
I find this an odd scenario as you can't change registration or clear a title of a vhicle unless all leins against it are satisfied. The whole thing sounds shady.

Effy it is very very shady indeed. Dealer wont clear title till
its sells it or is forced to(in this situation) clearly this dealer is a scum bag

Not sure how it works in CA, but in MD, but you can't transfer ownership without a title, and you can't get that until liens are satisfied. I find it an odd scenario where a dealer that traded a unit for you would wait until it had a buyer to do the title work? Aren't there laws in place to prevent this? I can't say I'd put myself into this situation. technically you could repo the old unit since the dealer doesn't own it. You do. Repo it, sell it private, and you make out, dealer loses. Cuz you're paying for it anyway.

[CA_Traveler]

Good advice above.

Sounds like the best approach for anyone else is to first pay off the loan yourself.

[hardtobe]

Effy wrote:
I find this an odd scenario as you can't change registration or clear a title of a vhicle unless all leins against it are satisfied. The whole thing sounds shady.

Effy it is very very shady indeed. Dealer wont clear title till
its sells it or is forced to(in this situation) clearly this dealer is a scum bag

[rgatijnet1]

Effy wrote:
I find this an odd scenario as you can't change registration or clear a title of a vhicle unless all leins against it are satisfied. The whole thing sounds shady.

Liens are not a problem until the dealer sells the unit and the new owner goes to change the title. Right now, DMV does not know about what happened at the dealership as the dealer was not going to put the coach in his name and he was hoping to sell it to a new buyer and use their money to pay off the loan, MAYBE.

[hardtobe]

frelsang wrote:
I trade in my 08 Windsport to a brand new 2014 Winnebago last November, The pay off of the first loan is $75000, I had paid an extra $20,000 for the upside down pay off on the first loan during the purchase, The problem is the dealership never pay off my first loan, I've been making 2 RV monthly payment for the last 3 month, I called the dealer many times, they just keep lying to me saying it's in the process to be pay off in a week or two, but 3 months had passed, I am afraid if I don't do anything it's going to get drag on for as long as they pleased, my question is do I need a lawyer? or take the dealership to small claims court? Does this happen to many people or just happen to me?

you should have nipped this situation in the butt after the first payment was requested.your dealing with a thieve here so good luck
Lending institutions need to be a little more accountable also

[Fred_n_Jo]

How did you get a clear title to give to the dealer without the first loan being paid off?

[11B]

I'd jump on this problem as soon as you can with the State of Ca. BMV. It should only take a phone call to get the ball rolling. When dealers fail to pay off a trade its a RED flag they are in financial problems. Get to their bond they have posted with the state before they go BK.

[Supercharged]

guidry wrote:
There are steps to take before you spend more money on an attorney. Have you taken all of your paperwork, receipts, etc. and met with the general manager or/and finance manager of the dealership? Have someone go with you to take notes or ask to audio record the meeting. Show them the evidence and give them, in writing, a reasonable timeline of what you need them to do and when. If you have everything documented and reasonable requests, they should do the right thing if they don't want a lawsuit, bad publicity, and want a return customer.

As long as you are calm and professional with all documentation to support the facts, give them a chance to correct their mistake. Phone calls will not do anything; bringing issues up the chain will.

good luck

Don''t waist your time, they know they haven't pay it off. Go after the Ca. dealer license bond, the rest will follow. Good guys come in last, they will be closed and you will be at the back of the line for the bond money.

[Effy]

I find this an odd scenario as you can't change registration or clear a title of a vhicle unless all leins against it are satisfied. The whole thing sounds shady.

[danddclydes]

I just had a similar situation with a car. I had a lease through Mercedes Benz credit, 3 months prior to the lease end I traded out of the car into a purchase also with Mercedes. For the next 3 months they kept sending me bills saying that I owed 1 more payment. Finally by working with the finance company I was able to get them to collect from the dealership. Your trade paperwork should be clear that they were absorbing the payoff of your trade as part of the deal. Send this to the first bank along with the dealership phone number and email.

[M_GO_BLUE1]

Also inform the institution where your original RV loan is at...

[rgatijnet1]

They would NOT be the first dealer to pull this ILLEGAL trick. They were hoping to sell your old unit and use that money to pay off your loan, thus not taking a penny out of their own bank account. This practice is illegal and some dealers have gone bankrupt during the following months leaving the previous owner to deal with his old loan. My first call would be to the State Attorney's office.

[guidry]

There are steps to take before you spend more money on an attorney. Have you taken all of your paperwork, receipts, etc. and met with the general manager or/and finance manager of the dealership? Have someone go with you to take notes or ask to audio record the meeting. Show them the evidence and give them, in writing, a reasonable timeline of what you need them to do and when. If you have everything documented and reasonable requests, they should do the right thing if they don't want a lawsuit, bad publicity, and want a return customer.

As long as you are calm and professional with all documentation to support the facts, give them a chance to correct their mistake. Phone calls will not do anything; bringing issues up the chain will.

good luck

[Supercharged]

JALLEN4 wrote:
You don't need an attorney, yet. Call the California BMV and present your paperwork. California has some of the tightest dealer laws in the country.

If the dealer is unable to make the payoff financially, you may then need an attorney to represent your interests.

It is called a dealer bond, go for it with the state of Ca.
I will bill you at a later date.