Can I get money back after purchasing car from indiviual andit broke down less than a week later?
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Can I get money back after purchasing car from indiviual andit broke down less than a week later?
I purchased the car from an individual. It cost me $1600 plus cost of tag, insurance, towing and now $1400 if I get it fixed. I told seller but she has not responded. Is there anything I can do? I’m a single mom with no assistance from anyone or anywhere else.
Asked on May 5, 2011 under General Practice, Mississippi
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
The first question is, did the seller provide any sort of a warranty of guaranty? If so, you may enforce it. If not, they are probably not liable, *unless* they made some material misrepresentation (or basically, "lie") in the course of selliing the car. If the seller knew of the problem but nonetheless represented, or claimed, that car was in good working order, then you may have a cause of action based on fraud. However, if the problems existed, but she was unaware of it, she would likley not be liable, because in that case, she did nothing wrong--liability is generally based on fault, or either intentionally or negligently (unreasonably carelessly) acting badly. Or if the problem occured after the sale (unlikely, but possible), then the seller would be not be liable.
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