You thought you bought the “right” car from the “right” people. Then, you take your car off the lot and it starts sputtering and coughing, then you may have been victimized by fraud.
It’s not every day you buy a car and when you do you don’t want to find out you were scammed. However, it turns out that Connecticut is the fourth likely state in which consumers will encounter auto-related fraud. You’ll need to know what type of frauds can exist if you don’t want to find yourself part of these statistics.
Frauds to avoid
Knowing what scams to avoid can help you in the long run when it comes to buying a new car. Here are a few frauds that you don’t want to find yourself caught in:
- Hidden lemons: The car you’re looking at may have a history of mechanical problems. That won’t stop an auto-dealer from selling it, though. They’ll often pull out all the stops just to dress up a lump of scrap for resale.
- Price gouging: You may initially be given a price for your car from the auto-dealer, only to come back later and find the price doubled from what you were told. Auto-dealers may inflate the price of a car by tagging on additional charges. Under Connecticut law, the price you see is supposed to be the price you pay.
- Bait-and-switch: You may go to purchase a car that you saw in person and even took it for a test drive only for the auto-dealer to tell you it’s no longer available. At which point they’ll pull a “bait-and-switch” and advertise another car at a higher price with the idea that you already were going for the first price, so why not push you to go a little higher?
If for any reason you feel you’ve been caught in an auto-dealership fraud, then you may need to seek experienced help to look into your legal options.