Dealer sells car for wrong price, has buyer arrested

Rain

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/10/02/chevy-dealer-sells-car-for-wrong-price-apologizes-after-having/?ncid=txtlnkwbauto00000002

Ken Light

Sounds like everyone involved is a d!ck. 2.2M? Really?

JDH

Ken Light:

Sounds like everyone involved is a d!ck. 2.2M? Really?

$2.2M does seem way out of line, but then again, I've never been forced to go to jail, and it would be even worse to go to jail for something you didn't do in the first place. Calling the cops on this guy was really stupid, and having him hauled off to jail should carry consequences. I guess in a perfect world, if the Dealer offered to give the guy the car at half price and made a very public meaculpa, that would probably be satisfactory, but greed influences everything.

Ken Light

JDH:

Ken Light:

Sounds like everyone involved is a d!ck. 2.2M? Really?

$2.2M does seem way out of line, but then again, I've never been forced to go to jail, and it would be even worse to go to jail for something you didn't do in the first place. Calling the cops on this guy was really stupid, and having him hauled off to jail should carry consequences. I guess in a perfect world, if the Dealer offered to give the guy the car at half price and made a very public meaculpa, that would probably be satisfactory, but greed influences everything.

I was going to say he should've given him the car free of charge. But suing for millions? This is (one of) the (many many) problem with the country.

jgibv

Ken Light:

JDH:

Ken Light:

Sounds like everyone involved is a d!ck. 2.2M? Really?

$2.2M does seem way out of line, but then again, I've never been forced to go to jail, and it would be even worse to go to jail for something you didn't do in the first place. Calling the cops on this guy was really stupid, and having him hauled off to jail should carry consequences. I guess in a perfect world, if the Dealer offered to give the guy the car at half price and made a very public meaculpa, that would probably be satisfactory, but greed influences everything.

I was going to say he should've given him the car free of charge. But suing for millions? This is (one of) the (many many) problem with the country.

I'm with you Ken - both parties are being a-holes about it. The dealership folks certainly screwed up by selling it for a lower price, but you'd think they would just write it off, let the buyer know he got a deal and let it go as part of "good customer service" - in hopes the customer continues to do business with them.
But calling the cops and having the guy arrested?!?!? Dumb - whoever made that call is getting fired.

And don't get me wrong, I'd probably try to get something out of the dealership too after having to go through all that BS - but suing for 2.2 mil certainly seems ludicrous. But you know there was some "ambulance chaser" lawyer who jumped on this opportunity like white on rice and told him to sue for that much.
I bet the dealership settles this out of court for a fraction of that to avoid any (further) negative PR.


Regardless of the outcome - I'd still say this guy has a better reason to sue than that lady who sued McDonald's after she spilled coffee on herself.
These sure are some crazy times we're living in.....everybody suing everybody in hopes of getting a free hand out.

jthanatos

I am torn on the 2.2 mil number. On one side, it seems like a rediculous amount of money. On the other, if you get me arrested and jailed for a crime I didn't commit, I would do everything in my power to punish such behavior. If suing for a crazy sum to get news additional news coverage and people talking of what scum would do that to a paying customer... I totally would do it. Heck, even the money is part of it. A half price car or a free car is a write-off for a dealership. This sum of money actually would get into a truly punative range.

But then again, I am a bit of a crazy vindictive SOB when I am wronged by a company.

JDH

It should be remembered that whenever a person is arrested, they automatically have an arrest record. That record is permanent, and will follow that man for the rest of his life, and he will be required to include it on any and all job applications for the rest of his life, even though he was innocent. The dealer should be punished. I don't know what a fair punishment should be, but it seems to me that the only way to get to him is to get to his wallet. Being incarcerated for any amount of time for something that you are completely innocent of should require somebody to pay, and pay dearly.

jgibv

JDH:

It should be remembered that whenever a person is arrested, they automatically have an arrest record. That record is permanent, and will follow that man for the rest of his life, and he will be required to include it on any and all job applications for the rest of his life, even though he was innocent. The dealer should be punished. I don't know what a fair punishment should be, but it seems to me that the only way to get to him is to get to his wallet. Being incarcerated for any amount of time for something that you are completely innocent of should require somebody to pay, and pay dearly.

I didn't realize that even if you were "taken into custody" - that would be part of your permanent record and could never be expunged. I was under the assumption the charges/etc. would go away since the article says:
"Sawyer was taken into custody by police, but the Commonwealth dropped the charges after finding insufficient evidence to pursue the case."

Either way - I'm all for drawing attention to the matter and calling out the dealership on their BS, but IDK 2.2 mil still seems steep.
But heck, if I was in the situation I'd be madder than he11 and probably do the same thing.

JDH

jgibv:

JDH:

It should be remembered that whenever a person is arrested, they automatically have an arrest record. That record is permanent, and will follow that man for the rest of his life, and he will be required to include it on any and all job applications for the rest of his life, even though he was innocent. The dealer should be punished. I don't know what a fair punishment should be, but it seems to me that the only way to get to him is to get to his wallet. Being incarcerated for any amount of time for something that you are completely innocent of should require somebody to pay, and pay dearly.

I didn't realize that even if you were "taken into custody" - that would be part of your permanent record and could never be expunged. I was under the assumption the charges/etc. would go away since the article says:
"Sawyer was taken into custody by police, but the Commonwealth dropped the charges after finding insufficient evidence to pursue the case."

Either way - I'm all for drawing attention to the matter and calling out the dealership on their BS, but IDK 2.2 mil still seems steep.
But heck, if I was in the situation I'd be madder than he11 and probably do the same thing.

He was arrested. There is an arrest record, which will indicate that charges were dropped, but it will still be on his record. Forever.

$2.2 Million seems steep to me too, but I'd bet this thing will be settled out of court, and somebody gets a free car or three, and no legal expenses.

jgibv

JDH:

jgibv:

JDH:

It should be remembered that whenever a person is arrested, they automatically have an arrest record. That record is permanent, and will follow that man for the rest of his life, and he will be required to include it on any and all job applications for the rest of his life, even though he was innocent. The dealer should be punished. I don't know what a fair punishment should be, but it seems to me that the only way to get to him is to get to his wallet. Being incarcerated for any amount of time for something that you are completely innocent of should require somebody to pay, and pay dearly.

I didn't realize that even if you were "taken into custody" - that would be part of your permanent record and could never be expunged. I was under the assumption the charges/etc. would go away since the article says:
"Sawyer was taken into custody by police, but the Commonwealth dropped the charges after finding insufficient evidence to pursue the case."

Either way - I'm all for drawing attention to the matter and calling out the dealership on their BS, but IDK 2.2 mil still seems steep.
But heck, if I was in the situation I'd be madder than he11 and probably do the same thing.

He was arrested. There is an arrest record, which will indicate that charges were dropped, but it will still be on his record. Forever.

$2.2 Million seems steep to me too, but I'd bet this thing will be settled out of court, and somebody gets a free car or three, and no legal expenses.

Thanks for the clarification JDH. .... I learned something today.

Like I said in my earlier post, he does have a good reason to sue - and I agree it'll be settled out of court. Hopefully the dealership learns their lesson and makes things right so this kind of BS doesn't continue.

But doesn't it just seems like anyone will sue for just about anything these days, given the chance??

JDH

"...But doesn't it just seems like anyone will sue for just about anything these days, given the chance??..."

Yep. Too many lawyers to feed, and they like to eat goooooooood.

Hey, this guy might get a free car every year for the rest of his life, who knows.

jthanatos

jgibv:

JDH:

jgibv:

JDH:

It should be remembered that whenever a person is arrested, they automatically have an arrest record. That record is permanent, and will follow that man for the rest of his life, and he will be required to include it on any and all job applications for the rest of his life, even though he was innocent. The dealer should be punished. I don't know what a fair punishment should be, but it seems to me that the only way to get to him is to get to his wallet. Being incarcerated for any amount of time for something that you are completely innocent of should require somebody to pay, and pay dearly.

I didn't realize that even if you were "taken into custody" - that would be part of your permanent record and could never be expunged. I was under the assumption the charges/etc. would go away since the article says:
"Sawyer was taken into custody by police, but the Commonwealth dropped the charges after finding insufficient evidence to pursue the case."

Either way - I'm all for drawing attention to the matter and calling out the dealership on their BS, but IDK 2.2 mil still seems steep.
But heck, if I was in the situation I'd be madder than he11 and probably do the same thing.

He was arrested. There is an arrest record, which will indicate that charges were dropped, but it will still be on his record. Forever.

$2.2 Million seems steep to me too, but I'd bet this thing will be settled out of court, and somebody gets a free car or three, and no legal expenses.

Thanks for the clarification JDH. .... I learned something today.

Like I said in my earlier post, he does have a good reason to sue - and I agree it'll be settled out of court. Hopefully the dealership learns their lesson and makes things right so this kind of BS doesn't continue.

But doesn't it just seems like anyone will sue for just about anything these days, given the chance??

I don't think we are much more litigious than we ever have been, however it makes good news, so we hear a lot more about it. It just seems that way because we are hardwired to remember the negatives much more than the positives.

jgibv

JDH:

"...But doesn't it just seems like anyone will sue for just about anything these days, given the chance??..."

Yep. Too many lawyers to feed, and they like to eat goooooooood.

Hey, this guy might get a free car every year for the rest of his life, who knows.

That wouldn't be a bad deal .... free, new cars for life - might make it worth it for him ... assuming he really loves Chevy.

jthanatos:

I don't think we are much more litigious than we ever have been, however it makes good news, so we hear a lot more about it. It just seems that way because we are hardwired to remember the negatives much more than the positives.

Good point, James. Especially with easier/more access to news & information via the internet - those "good news," but negative stories always seem to "go viral" and are much easier to find.

Ken Light

JDH:

jgibv:

JDH:

It should be remembered that whenever a person is arrested, they automatically have an arrest record. That record is permanent, and will follow that man for the rest of his life, and he will be required to include it on any and all job applications for the rest of his life, even though he was innocent. The dealer should be punished. I don't know what a fair punishment should be, but it seems to me that the only way to get to him is to get to his wallet. Being incarcerated for any amount of time for something that you are completely innocent of should require somebody to pay, and pay dearly.

I didn't realize that even if you were "taken into custody" - that would be part of your permanent record and could never be expunged. I was under the assumption the charges/etc. would go away since the article says:
"Sawyer was taken into custody by police, but the Commonwealth dropped the charges after finding insufficient evidence to pursue the case."

Either way - I'm all for drawing attention to the matter and calling out the dealership on their BS, but IDK 2.2 mil still seems steep.
But heck, if I was in the situation I'd be madder than he11 and probably do the same thing.

He was arrested. There is an arrest record, which will indicate that charges were dropped, but it will still be on his record. Forever.

$2.2 Million seems steep to me too, but I'd bet this thing will be settled out of court, and somebody gets a free car or three, and no legal expenses.

Can't the record be expunged with the dealership left to foot the bill to do it?

JDH

Ken Light:

JDH:

jgibv:

JDH:

It should be remembered that whenever a person is arrested, they automatically have an arrest record. That record is permanent, and will follow that man for the rest of his life, and he will be required to include it on any and all job applications for the rest of his life, even though he was innocent. The dealer should be punished. I don't know what a fair punishment should be, but it seems to me that the only way to get to him is to get to his wallet. Being incarcerated for any amount of time for something that you are completely innocent of should require somebody to pay, and pay dearly.

I didn't realize that even if you were "taken into custody" - that would be part of your permanent record and could never be expunged. I was under the assumption the charges/etc. would go away since the article says:
"Sawyer was taken into custody by police, but the Commonwealth dropped the charges after finding insufficient evidence to pursue the case."

Either way - I'm all for drawing attention to the matter and calling out the dealership on their BS, but IDK 2.2 mil still seems steep.
But heck, if I was in the situation I'd be madder than he11 and probably do the same thing.

He was arrested. There is an arrest record, which will indicate that charges were dropped, but it will still be on his record. Forever.

$2.2 Million seems steep to me too, but I'd bet this thing will be settled out of court, and somebody gets a free car or three, and no legal expenses.

Can't the record be expunged with the dealership left to foot the bill to do it?

That depends on the State laws. Some States allow records to be expunged, others don't.

Marker

Virgina will expunge the record. No history of that arrest will ever show up after he files for expungment which is free.

http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+19.2-392.2

JDH

Marker:

Virgina will expunge the record. No history of that arrest will ever show up after he files for expungment which is free.

http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+19.2-392.2

That's a very good thing. Glad to hear it.

Lee.mcglynn

JDH:

Marker:

Virgina will expunge the record. No history of that arrest will ever show up after he files for expungment which is free.

http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+19.2-392.2

That's a very good thing. Glad to hear it.

I know in pa depending on the charges you have to be over 90 years old or dead for 3 years to get it expunged...so pretty much it will never happen lol

phobicsquirrel

I'd be POd to get arrested over this. What a crappy thing to do to the buyer. Stupid cops for arresting him too, should have got the crap figured out before arresting him. But the guy could get some nice walking money over it, doubt it will be 2.2 mil but maybe something.