If I bought a used car as is, but it is unsafe to drive and it cost almost as much to fix it as it’s worth. Is there anything I can do to have them buy it back or to pay for most or all of the repairs since I’m basically paying for things that should have
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If I bought a used car as is, but it is unsafe to drive and it cost almost as much to fix it as it’s worth. Is there anything I can do to have them buy it back or to pay for most or all of the repairs since I’m basically paying for things that should have
If I bought a used car as is, but it is
unsafe to drive and it cost almost as
much to fix it as it’s worth. Is there
anything I can do to have them buy it
back or to pay for most or all of the
repairs since I’m basically paying for
things that should have been fixed from
the beginning before they sold me this
death trap?
Asked on December 12, 2016 under Business Law, Florida
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
When you buy a car "as is," you can only void the sale for fraud, and/or force the seller to pay you compensation (such as repair costs) IF you could prove by a "preponderance of the evidence" (that is, that it is more likely than not) that 1) there were hidden (sometimes called "latent") defects or problems--that is, ones which you could not become aware of by visual inspection or test drive; 2) the seller knew of those problems; and 3) even though the seller knew of those problems, he hid them from you (failed to disclose them). That is, you have to be able to prove that the seller knowingly lied about something important, something you could not have found out or detected yourself. If you can show that, you can likely prove fraud, and fraud would let you undo the sale or get compensation. (You'd have to sue, of course, if the seller does not voluntarily take the car back or compensate you.)
But if the only problems were ones you were or should have been aware of (even if you did not quite appreciate how bad they were or how expensive it would be to fix), or even if you could not have known of them, the seller also did not know of them, then you are stuck with the sale "as is."
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