OT Ebay auction - can this guy sue me?

Set the srory.

Sold a 34 ford pickup on ebay. Well described pictures taken, and I told everyone to ask all the questions and request any pics the y want and I will do it. No surprises. Black primer rat rod driver with SBC. I bought it from a bank that repoed it. Titled as a 1991 reconstruced vehicle. Band said it was a 34 and it looks like one. 32 and 34 look the same i think. It was an 80s paint color with a flatbed on it when i bought it. It was channeled and drove with little work. I put regular box on it chopped it 4" took off the fenders, sprayed it black, steel rims, white walls , headers etc. It looked bad ass and I drove it all summer. Sold AS IS.

This guy shipps it 2000 miles to a rod ship (via truck). where hes paying to have seatbelts, turn signals, and stuff installed to pass inspection. Dont have that here. Any way its gets to the rod shop and they tell him that 100 different things are wrong and it needs 10 grand worth of work. Little stuff like, its missing a brake line retainer clip, draglink hits the shock at full extension, to big stuff like the rearend isnt centered or mounted safely. They told him its a 32 truck front section welded to a 34 ford truck reas frame section. How they know that it news to me because I thought they were the same frame. Hes says the floor isnt safe. Its 1x1 tubing superstructure welded between the frame rails, with 16 ga steel tacked on top of it. Its tacked every 2" or so around the edges and from the bottom. It dosent even rattoel when you hit it.

This guy did not know what he was getting into. It was described as a rat rod with no power anything that is what it is, and is constructed with old parts, and no guarantee was implied. It ran and drove fine in my opinion, but he obviosly wanted somthing else.

Does this guy have any legal recourse that he can take? He said he filed a claim with ebay motors fraud protection yesterday. The auction ended November 8th.

He probably would have been happy as could be if this rod shop wouldnt have picked it apart and made him feel like he was ripped off. There in it for the money and could fine 10,000 dollars of work to stick in any rod.

I want to be fair and I would take the truck back and give him his money but its 2000 miles away. He had the entire length of the auction to ask questions and request pics, and would have been happy to do any of that. This is what i didnt want to happen.

What are your opinions. What legal recourse does this guy have?
Im sure hes got a shitload more money than me and I dont want to get stepped on because I cant afford a lawyer.

Thanks

1-19-05

Hes calling the cops here in green bay and reporting me for fraud. Criminal case. He requested $3000.00 back and he would go away. I told him send the truck back and id give him $12,300 refund. He dosent want to do this. I told him to pursue this all he wants im not giving him shit. Its getting ugly!!

 

I am not a lawyer so it is just my opinion but it you stated being sold as is then I can't see where he has any recourse.

 

tell him to bite your ass then put it on ebay and find a sucker......it's easy

 

If the truck runs..I'd tell him to have the owners of the rod shop drive it up his ass. Ebay...buyer beware. I don't see that the guy has any recourse if he didn't ask questions and you accurately described the item...sounds like buyers remorse.
Tim
MBL

 

Buyer beware. All states are pretty much the same.
You sold it "AS IS" and described it best of your ability. He choose not to have someone inspect it prior to taking possesion, that is his problem. You were not selling anything new and a homebuilt rod is exactly what the title says, home built, not professional built.
The rod shop that he took it to sounds crooked, I would call them and read them the riot act, that is BS!!! Most shops around here do that thinking they will get the business. They do that to me all the time when someone takes a vehicle in for inspection. It pisses me off to no end and it is ethically wrong.
If he chooses to sue you, get a lawyer, it will be worth the $$ spent to make him go away. He really has little to stand on. I always have them sign a bill of sale or purchase contract stating AS IS. I email them the form and make them fax it back if they do not pick up the vehicle in person.
Good luck, most likely it will just go away, most of these assholesjust blow smoke and really have no balls to do anything about it.

 

If you have no problem taking it back make sure he picks up the transport charge there and back, also let him know he is responsible for anything that has been changed or messed with on the truck, if you do not get it back in the exact condition it went to him make him liable. As far as the sueing part I'm not to sure on that, you did sell it as is which should have some merit considering we are talking about a 70 year old piece. Does the reconstruction title mean it has to have any saftey issues that this guy is reffering to?

 

Did he leave you negative feedback yet? I think that is his only action. He is in the wrong because he should of had the rod shop build his gold chain rat rod. I hate all these people that buy their ride then bitch about it. Build it!

 

If he wants to return the truck to you IN THE SAME CONDITION IT LEFT, and you give him his money back, fine. But you should not be responsible for the shipping costs, any more than if you sold him a $5 item that cost $3.40 to ship.

If you implied in your add this was a truck that was perfect in every way and it would need nothing, then he might have a case, but $10K worth of repairs is realtive to what kind of truck HE want's it to be.

If you are worried about being sued, incorporate yourself. Can't get blood from a turnip.

 

Caveat Emptor!

Anyone buying on E-bay should know the meaning of that little phrase.

Sounds like you described it to the point any "reasonable" person would have known what to expect. That said, anyone, can sue anyone, for any reason. We live in the age of litigation.

Hope it turns out OK.

GV

 

If you want, give him his money back when he returns the pickup to you. Otherwise I would just let him bitch.

You said you listed it "Sold AS IS". He is probably just trying to work you for some cash.

Don't hold your breath waiting for positive feedback from him.

Neal

 

he does not have a claim IF you stated that it was as is and no guaranty. Did you offer to buy it back? If not make the offer and tell the guy that he will have to pay the shipping fee...

The reality is that the truck is fine and the rod shop HAS TO tell him ALL the problems that they find. if they are doing a pre inspection or have been hired to "fix" problems then it is their ass on the line if they ignore the problems. (it may also be a way for them to get some business).

If I were you I would offer to buy it back but he has to pay the shipping.

Good luck

 

sounds like the rod shop is wanting to soak him. if this guy isn't a car guy and doesn't know when a shop is blowing smoke up his ass, then he shouldn't mess with a old truck.

 

I wouldnt worry. He bought it, its his baby, not yours. I can roll a fresh hot rod onto our hoist and drum up 10K worth of "repairs" in 10 minutes. He is just stupid, your beef should be with the shop that is trying to fuck up your deal.

 

"I always wanted a "Rat Rod" dad"

 

Tell him to sue the rod shop that's trying to stick one in his ass!

 

I agree with those that said if he wants his money back he has ship it back to you. I also agree the rod shop is trying to soak him.... Tell him to ship it back at his cost and you'll refund his money.

 

Can I ask what the truck sold for? Was it over $1,000.00? If someone has a grand + to piss away on something without asking questions and then bitch about it tells me he is a moron. Maybe a lawyer himself that got the money screwing some little old lady out of her money.

 

He has little to stand on, you sold it as-is, where-is. Besides if you sold the truck in WI, the terms of the sale should be governed by WI law. It now is 2000 miles away. He first needs to find a lawyer who will take the case (maybe), then find a judge who will listen to it (tougher). If you are sued and yes it could happen, hire a local lawyer, it would be worth it to make him go away! I wouldn't sweat it too much. BTW, ebay won't do shit for him.

 

Ceteris Peribus (buyer beware). As long as you listed the car in good faith, you should be ok.

also, the guy took it to a PROFFESIONAL shop, i don't think you were listing, or portraying yourself as a proffesional or as the car being a proffesional restoration.

the guy should sue the rod shop for trying to rip him off, not you.

 

If he gives you a negative feedback rating, make sure you go onto your feedback rating page and post a reply stating that you were dealing with an asshole. I was selling a 392 hemi a couple years ago on egay, it sold, and I emailed the winning bidder....kept emailing him for two weeks. During this time, the second highest bidder contacted me and asked if it had sold. I informed him of the situation, asked him to give me another week to contact the high bidder. After another week of emailing with no response, I emailed the high bidder and told him he had lost his chance...couldn't afford to sit on my hands...and sold the mill to the second highest bidder. All of a sudden I get a bunch of hate mail from the non-contacting SOB. To make a long story even longer, the fucker ended up giving me a negative feedback...the only one I have ever recieved. Just be carefull. Some real nim-rods out there in ebay land. I try to do as much trading over the HAMB as possible...keep it in the family....Good Luck!

 

Tricky bit can be "if the item delivered differs appreciably from the description offered with the auction."

If the buyer has the resources, it could cost both of you a lot of money to have lawyers, and a court, define "appreciably".

Do the best you can to smooth him over, keep good records of your comunications with him but DO NOT admit any responsibility in writing.

Best of luck to you-you sound like an honest guy who thought you were selling to a fellow rodder, not some ass-bag.

 

I think you are in the clear, but it will probably cost you a negative feedback and that is just a fact. You can leave a rebuttal, to the feedback but it will be there just the same. It may be a good think for people to add to their conditions of sale that any legal action must be in your state. That is why contracts have fine print boiler plate.

The guy has no basis for suit, but can be irritating if he wants to pursue. Another good case for accuratly describing things for sale on Ebay and always add the as-is in the description. Which you did.

 

Obviously he is a guy that just doesn't "get it". The rod shop probably turns out some very nice show quality cars and (A) No one likes fixing someone else's screw ups, (B) They had to nit-pick everything to cover themselves from liability, (C) The rod shop figured out pretty quickly the guy didn't know what he was doing and was going to be a real PITA so they named a steep price to fix it all hoping he'd leave or at least it would be worth their wild to do the work.

He needs to just shut his trap and relist it on ebay.

Oh, he probably has a book like this somewhere and figured he knows it all now.

 

10 years ago a friend of mine sold a '67 Camaro SS/RS to a guy "as is " It was a completely restored car. The guy who bought it was a Beamer owner wanna be and the Camaro didn't have power anything on it but he bought it,drove it for a YEAR !!!! Then wanted the guy to take it back and give him his money
( $9800 ) back. After a 5 year battle, a court judge made my friend give the guy $6000 and take the car back. By this time the car had sat in a damp garage for 3 years and was a mess. My buddy sold it for $3000 ,paid his lawyer $1200 and never touched another car. The only guys who won were the lawyers.
Bottom line : if the guy has money and wants to go to a lawyer,anything can happen.

 

What shop was it? Boyd Coddington?

 

He can sue you and may well do that, but his chances of winning are slim. If he takes you to small claims court you have a better chance as you can represent your self, no attornys allowed.

 

Yup. Been there too. Sad but true but people like this do exist.

 

How about offering to help him sell it on Ebay?

Obviously he's not happy with it, and shipping it back will only make it worse, etc.

He needs to price a rod built by the shop he went to -- that might change his tune!

Ebay has a "dispute resolution" system -- look into it. They might have a way to settle this.


Where did he ship it to? that might make some difference.

Might any hambers want the truck where it is?

 

That's why I use escrow services for large Internet transactions now. It protects both the seller and buyer. They insure the funds, so the seller doesn't have to worry about bad checks, scams, etc. and the buyer can refuse the item if it's not what they thought it was. If they don't like it, they ship it back at their expense and the deal is off. They get thier money back, and you get your stuff back, and everybody is happy. (Well, maybe not happy, but "square" anyway.) It adds a week or so to the transaction, and they do charge a fee, but to avoid headaches like this, I think it's worth it!

Here's one I've used in the past: (this is thier faq page that answers most questions about how escrow services work) http://www.escrow.com/support/faq/index.asp?sid=2

I think you're fine, he probably didn't know what he was getting into, but it doesn't sound like you intentionally misrepresented the vehicle.

 

I wouldn't worry. Sounds like the guy feels like the fool that he is and is trying to scare you. You definitely have the legal advantage here anyways. This guy will just dig himself a deeper financial hole by hiring an attorney. All in all, by the time he'd be done he could have had Boyd Coddington build him a "real rat rod with boxed rails".

Don't sweat it, he should have checked the car out first.

As far as the rod shop's concerned, They're obviously milking the guy as he has "SUCKER" written all over him. Also, I'm sure they want zero liability in any hot rod project they're unvolved in. The shop guys went through the car with a fine toothed comb to find any potential safety problems in order to prevent this same buyer from coming back later and filing a suit against the shop!