I was scammed when buying a car – can I get compensation and my money back?

"I was scammed when buying a car" is a common statement from clients who come to our office after purchasing a new or used car. In each case, the way in which the clients were scammed varies, but they all have one thing in common - they all suffered significant financial damage, and in all cases, if the clients had known all the relevant details about the car they bought, they would not have bought it.

The statement "I was scammed when buying a car" can have many meanings, which I will try to address in this article. For each case of fraud, there may be different courses of action, and in these cases it is worth consulting with Automotive Lawyer, but the bottom line is that the person who purchased a car following Act of fraud entitled to demand Canceling the car deal, monetary compensation (for example, the difference between the amount paid for the vehicle and the actual value of the vehicle), or a combination of both remedies together.

With the assistance of attorney Eddie Blitstein, who has been handling lawsuits against car importers and car dealers for over 15 years, you can achieve results similar to these:

I was scammed when buying a new car – they gave me a different model

אחת הבעיות שנפוצות בעיקר אצל יבואני רכב ביבוא מקביל או בעסקאות לרכישת רכבי "0 קילומטר". הוא שהלקוח מקבל רכב מדגם מעט שונה מהדגם שהוא ביקש לרכוש. הסיבה לכך נובעת מהנחה שגויה של הרוכשים שאם ישנו דגם שנמכר על ידי יבואן מורשה בארץ יבואן מקביל יספק לרוכש את אותו הדגם בדיוק במחיר נמוך יותר. זהו לא תמיד המצב.

In order to save costs and increase profits, parallel import car importers sometimes order sub-models of the vehicles sold in Israel by authorized car importers, which do not include all the safety systems or do not include other accessories. Vehicles without those accessories are of course cheaper, and thus the sellers profit at the expense of the buyers. If this is the importer's policy and a large number of customers have been similarly harmed by the importer, you may consider filing a complaint. Class action lawsuit.

על מנת להימנע מחיפושים באינטרנט לאחר קבלת הרכב ולשאול מה לעשות אם רימו אותי בקניית רכב חדש, כדאי תמיד לדרוש מפרט רכב לפני ביצוע הרכישה. אם לרכב יש תת דגם עליכם לוודא מה בדיוק אתם רוכשים וכמובן שגם עליכם מוטלת החובה לעשות "שיעורי בית" ולוודא שאותו תת דגם תואם את מה שאתם רוצים לרכוש בפועל.

I was scammed when buying a car – they sold me a broken car.

This issue is also relevant for vehicles (or Trucks) New and also used vehicles (second hand). Vehicle malfunction after purchase This is a particularly annoying issue because the vehicle usually costs the buyer quite a bit of money, and the buyer naturally expects to receive a proper vehicle that will not have to spend many occasions and a long time in the garage.

Before contacting Car damage lawyer and serve Claim for sale of a damaged vehicle It is advisable to contact the seller (whether it is a new car dealer or a private seller). Immediately after discovering the fault, contact them in writing (or in a recorded conversation) and inform them of the existence of the fault and demand its repair or cancellation of the transaction (the demand may vary depending on the severity of the fault - in serious faults, it is better to demand cancellation of the transaction).

If it is not a serious fault and you manage to reach an understanding with the seller – you can keep the vehicle. If you are unable to reach an understanding, there will be no choice but to file a claim. Civil lawsuit And demand cancellation of the transaction and financial compensation.

I was scammed when buying a car – they gave me a car that had been in an accident.

המקרים המורכבים יותר שבהם נאלץ משרדנו לטפל הם אותם מקרים בהם לקוחות פונים אלינו ומספרים לנו "רימו אותי בקניית רכב ומכרו לי רכב שעבר תאונה". המקרים האלה מורכבים במיוחד משום שהסיכוי לביטול עסקה לפני הגשת Financial claim Zero.

Another issue that makes it difficult to handle cases of this type is that the actual value of the vehicle is much lower than what the customer paid (especially if it is a vehicle that has been Chassis damage Or a declared vehicle Legally lost vehicleThe true value of the vehicle usually does not allow the owner of the vehicle (the defrauded buyer) to sell the vehicle because no one is willing to pay the same price, and in cases involving a serious accident, the buyer may not find an alternative buyer at all.

In most of these cases, the buyer will be forced to go to court and demand the cancellation of the transaction. Unfortunately for the buyer, this is a lengthy process that will require the vehicle buyer to invest quite a bit of money (fees, attorney fees, wasted work days, etc.).

I was scammed when buying a car – the mileage on the car was falsified.

One of the simpler methods to increase the value of a vehicle is to falsify the mileage and reduce it. A vehicle with lower mileage is a vehicle that the seller will be able to sell for a higher price. Reducing the mileage usually does not require significant financial resources, which is why many people do it.

There are several actions that can be taken before purchasing a vehicle to minimize the possibility that you will discover in the future that the mileage has been falsified and reduced.

ראשית – אפשר לבדוק את רישיון הרכב העדכני. מספר הקילומטרים שהרכב עבר בעת ביצוע הטסט האחרון יופיע בו. השוו את הנתונים. אם ישנה חריגה של יותר מ-15,000 – 20,000 ק"מ כדאי לעשות בדיקות נוספות. אם מספר הקילומטרים שהרכב מציג בפועל נמוך ממספר הקילומטרים שמופיעים ברישיון הרכב, כנראה שבוצעה פעלות זיוף והפחתת קילומטראז'.

In order to prevent claims such as "I was cheated when buying a car," you can also ask the seller for the vehicle's service history. There, too, you can find a record of the number of kilometers the vehicle traveled before each service. If the number of kilometers that appears in the service history is higher than the number of kilometers the vehicle displays at the time of purchase, they probably committed fraud and reduced the number of kilometers.

I was scammed when buying a car – the used car dealer did not provide me with a proper disclosure form

When making a transaction with a used car dealer, the dealer must provide the buyer before making the transaction (before signing the Car sales contract) A form called Disclosure FormWithin the framework of this form, the car dealer must provide the buyer with essential information about the vehicle (accidents, mileage, whether the previous owner was private or rented or leased, etc.).

A car dealer who fails to fulfill his duty and carries out the transaction without submitting a proper disclosure form, and in retrospect it turns out that the vehicle has some defects, allows the customer to submit Lawsuit against a car dealerThe courts attach great importance to this form and in many cases accept lawsuits against car dealers who did not provide customers with a proper disclosure form.

I was scammed when buying a car – is the only way to go to court?

Unfortunately, in the vast majority of cases, a person who was defrauded when purchasing a new or used vehicle will be forced to file a lawsuit in court because he will not receive cooperation from the seller (at this point, the seller has already received all the money and will not agree to return it).

When drafting Claim הרוכש יצטרף לפרט ולכתוב בצורה מפורשת "רימו אותי בקניית רכב ואם הייתי יודע מה מצבו האמיתי של הרכב לא הייתי רוכש אותו, גם לא במחיר נמוך יותר". מטרתו של משפט זה היא להבהיר לשופט שדן בתיק שאתם לא מחפשים לקבל החזר כספי חלקי אלא להחזיר את הרכב למוכר ולקבל בחזרה את כל כספכם.

In conclusion

כאשר אדם פונה למשרדנו ומספר לנו "רימו אותי בקניית רכב" ברוב המקרים נאלץ להמליץ לו להגיש תביעה. זה לא משנה אם מדובר במוכר פרטי או בסוחר רכבים חדשים או משומשים, ברגע שהמוכר קיבל את התשלום בעבור הרכב הוא לא יסכים להחזירו לרוכש.

In these cases, before filing a claim, it is a good idea to gather data indicating that the defect in the vehicle existed before purchase. For example: If the vehicle was in an accident, you can obtain the vehicle's insurance history using Insurance companies' clearing centerThis site will tell you when the vehicle was in an accident and whether it was declared a legal loss.

In these cases, a lot of patience is needed, but don't worry, justice is usually served and the court rules in favor of the buyer, ordering the seller to take back the vehicle and return the buyer's money, plus financial compensation for Mental anguish and legal expenses.

Frequently Asked Questions About What to Do If I Was Scammed When Buying a Car