craigslist problem

[45calibre]

my dad bought a truck off of craigslist in Chicago three days ago. the ad said it was a 2002 chevrolet tahoe and the seller also listed the KBB value as $6,340 and it came with rims and leather among other things. the guy wanted $7,000. my dad bought it for $7k but for some reason out of this ****ing universe he did not bother to look at the title when the guy signed it.

he paid the guy and brought it home. the day after he looked at the title and it said it was a 2000 and not 2002. he called the guy back and he said he will not refund him his money. the guy also said that that the KBB value listed on the add was for a 2000 and that the 2002 year was a typo. i looked up the kbb value and it is indeed for a 2002.

is there anything he can do? i honestly dont think there is, but i would like some advice on how to help him.

 

[rotortech]

Unfortunately, the seller knew exactly what he was doing and your Dad was exactly the buyer he was looking for. I feel bad for your Dad but I don't know that you can do anything. The seller is a liar.

 

[45calibre]

i agree

 

[tatic05]

craigslist sucks, full of scam artists. I know a few people who were robbed, stolen cars and property when they went on cragislist to buy or sell something.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Caveat Emptor

 

[Naptown]

Caveat Emptor

x 1000

Sorry for the loss...

It would go something like this, "By affixing your name at the bottom of this title, buyer assumes all statements are true."

 

[eagle5]

Just curious, what was the difference in KBB value between the 2002 and 2000?

If the vehicle is still in good condition, it may turn out to be an inexpensive lesson (or reminder).

 

[04DarkShadowGT]

Yeah this is a bad situation, its too bad people are such snakes these days.

Just a reminder to everyone, get the VIN #, run the carfax, and then when you go to look at the car verify the VIN matches. With the technology available today it makes it more difficult to scam, but obviously it still happens.

Sucks for your dad, the worst part is now he really cant enjoy the vehicle. Everytime I would see it I would get pissed off and eventually would end up trading or selling it.

 

[JetGirl]

Reinforces the notion that people suck. Yep. The longer I walk this earth, the worse and worse it gets.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Reinforces the notion that people suck. Yep. The longer I walk this earth, the worse and worse it gets.

Hmmmm....

OP--I wonder since you have proof if the lie (Craigslist ad and whatever else), would your dad not have a case? Such proof might offset any "he said-she said" arguement.

 

[sullivmt2015]

that is ridiculous but I expect nothing less from craigslist. One time I went to buy a desk off of Craigslist and had set up the appointment to see it three days in advance because I was waiting on the guy to have time. I show up at the house to see the desk and the guy doesn't answer the phone...he finally does and says he will be up in a minute. That is when he proceeds to tell me that another person showed up just a few minutes before and offered him more than his asking price. He was asking 350 and she offered 400. He said I could still get it if I wanted to offer 450. Goes without saying, I was pretty upset. Not only did he waste my time, he hustled the other person out of additional money. He seriously set up two people to see the same thing at the exact same time without telling either one of us. It is hard to believe people like this. Sorry to hear about your craigslist experience.

 

[45calibre]

Just curious, what was the difference in KBB value between the 2002 and 2000?

If the vehicle is still in good condition, it may turn out to be an inexpensive lesson (or reminder).

the difference is about $2k. i think its still a nice truck but he wanted a 2002.

 

[45calibre]

Hmmmm....

OP--I wonder since you have proof if the lie (Craigslist ad and whatever else), would your dad not have a case? Such proof might offset any "he said-she said" arguement.

the guy said the year was a typo and also this happened in illinois. i was under the impression that a private sale is "as is"

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

the guy said the year was a typo and also this happened in illinois. i was under the impression that a private sale is "as is"

Sorry. He may be screwed then. That was the only crack of hope this lay-lawyer could come up with. Your dad had an opportunity to inspect things like the title and registration. Even by checking the owners manual in the glove box could have provided a clue something wasn't right. I hate it for your dad.

 

[churchmouse]

1st...stay the hell away from Craigs list
2nd...Stay the hell away from Chicago
3rd...nothing you can do.

 

[sepe]

I've only made a few transactions on Craigslist and I must have gotten really lucky with the people I dealt with. The last one was for camping stuff and when I got there the guy ended up throwing in more than expected and everything was in better than described condition (was pictured as well but the guy had said it was well used even though it still had quite a bit of life left). Most of it looked almost brand new.

I've looked at a couple vehicles listed on Craigslist but decided against doing much else. I'd emailed a guy about his truck. He wanted to trade and I've got what he wanted but he wasn't willing to give a VIN so I could have a buddy check it out can Carfax.

 

[rnmcguire]

Don't blame Craigslist

I don't think Craigslist has anything to do with what happened here. From what I've read the seller misrepresented the vehicle year but the Title was actually for the vehicle purchased. Craigslist is nothing more that a classified ad listing service and is not responsible for how individuals market their goods. As a buyer it's your responsibility to make sure the item is as advertised and meets your expectations before you hand over the money. I'm not trying to be to critical of your dad because I know it's easy to take a persons word when dealing with them. Whenever I buy a used vehicle/boat/trailer or whatever I always check the VIN with the paperwork. As far a KBB goes, this is just a guide. The vehicle is worth whatever someone will pay for it and if your dad felt it was overpriced he should of negotiated a lower price or walked away. Just look at Armslist. There are alot of guns on Armslist that sellers are asking alot more than their book value. They can ask any price they want and if someone pays it then that's capitalism.

 

[CTC B4Z]

Anytime I do business, especially with CL people, its in a busy parking lot, Wal-mart or Cabelas. I am carrying and I always have my guy spotting from a few parking slots over... He has the 12 gauge ready to go....

 

[sgreen3]

craigslist sucks, full of scam artists. I know a few people who were robbed, stolen cars and property when they went on cragislist to buy or sell something.

^^ This ^^ Craigslist is a joke. Even for a legit person to sell on there you will get 10 scam replies to every 1 legit reply. Stay away from CL.

 

[TAT7]

this just came to mind....

Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everyone you meet.