Purchasing A Vehicle Online?

Found a vehicle at an amazing price online?  Wonder if it is too good to be true?  It might be, so make sure to do these four important things before purchasing it.
  

1. Print and save the online advertisement.  Many care dealers quickly delete their advertisements after the vehicle is sold, so you want to save your evidence in case something goes wrong.  This way, if you get involved in a legal battle with the dealership, you will have proof of the representations that the dealer made about the vehicle in writing.


2. Pay to have the vehicle inspected by a local dealership.  Many people want to save the money and trust what the dealer tells them about the vehicle.  However, if you are purchasing the vehicle online out of state, it is much easier for the dealer to unload a "lemon" vehicle on you, and much harder for you to get the dealer to take it back after the fact.  The logistics of an online purchase can be a nightmare if the vehicle has problems at delivery, so spend the extra money to make sure that the vehicle is reliable and as advertised.  How do you choose an auto shop to inspect?  The best bet is an authorized dealer.  They will know the vehicle better and have access to information from the manufacturer that a local shop will not.  Spend the extra money.  It is worth it in the long run on such an expensive purchase as a motor vehicle.

3. Get a CarFax Vehicle History Report. A CarFax Vehicle History Report will  list all reported repairs and accidents, and will show the title history string.  While the report will not have unreported repairs or unreported accidents listed, getting a CarFax Vehicle History Report is still much better than going into a motor vehicle purchase blind.  To get a CarFax Vehicle History Report at www.carfax.com. 


4. Get all promises in writing. Car dealers love to make promises to buyers to get them to purchase a car, but aren't very willing to put those promises in writing.  If the car dealer won't put the promises in writing on what is called a "we owe" form, then there's probably a reason.  In other words, good car shopping.

Unfortunately, none of these things are completely foolproof-- there is always a risk that the salesman is lying and you won't catch him until its too late.  However, if you are going to make an online purchase anyways, make sure to do your homework so you aren't fooled!

Beth Wells

www.BurdgeLaw.com

www.OhioLemonLaw.com

www.KentuckyLemonLaw.com

Helping Consumers Get Rid of Lemons, 12 Years Running

Buying A Used Car - STEP 2

STEP 2 - Research Vehicles and Inventory Online

Once you have settled on one or more local dealers that you can trust, go online to view their inventory.  The used vehicle inventory for most dealerships can easily be accessed online.  And, accessing the inventory online allows you time to look at the vehicles and research them without a high pressured salesman "breathing down your throat".

Once you have found one or more vehicles that you are interested in, research online vehicle reliability reports for the different models you are interested in.  Both Consumer Reports and Edmunds publish owner surveys and reviews and are good sources for finding out about troublesome vehicles.  Look online to see what others say about the year, make, and model of the vehicles that you are interested in.

You should also go online to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ("NHTSA") website to see if the vehicle(s) have any recalls or known defects.  You will need to enter the year, make, and model of the vehicle(s).  Once you have done this, you will have access to all applicable recalls, technical service bulletins, consumer complaints, and defect investigations.  Service bulletins are notices that the manufacturer sends out to their dealerships to warn them about problems that have been discovered in particular model vehicles and how to try and fix them. The only way to know if your vehicle was repaired for any recalls or service bulletins is to check with your local dealer’s service department and get a vehicle repair history from them.

Once you have narrowed down your list of vehicles through research on NHTSA and online consumer reliability reports, you should obtain a vehicle history report online for the used vehicle(s) you are most interested in.  Most dealers will list the VIN of the vehicles in their inventory online.  There are three main sources of vehicle history reports online: Carfax, AutoCheck, and NMVTIS.  You should run all 3. 

Carfax is probably the best known and most trusted of the three. You can get a Carfax vehicle history report online for $39.99. According to Carfax, their vehicle history reports check for a long list of problems, including: prior accidents, mileage rollbacks or rollovers, multiple owners, structural damage, lease, taxi, or police use, salvage, rebuilt salvage, other vehicle brands, flood damage, total loss history, airbag deployment, hail damage, recall information, service and maintenance history, warranty information, and more. Carfax claims to have the most extensive vehicle history database in North America, with over 6 billion records. And, according to Carfax, they receive data from over 34,000 different sources. Vehicle history reports can be viewed on your computer, tablet, or smart phone, and CarFax also offers a 100% money back guarantee. To request a Carfax vehicle history report, click here.

AutoCheck is a slightly less well known, but widely used, competitor. You can get an AutoCheck vehicle histort report online for $29.99. According to AutoCheck, their database is built and maintained by Experian, who has exclusive data sharing relationships with many industry sources who provide Experian with access to exclusive data to available to AutoCheck's competitors. AutoCheck also reports that industry leaders such as NADA guides, CarMax, eBay Motors, Kelly Blue Book, and Edmunds.com have chosen to provide AutoCheck vehicle history reports to their customers. AutoCheck recommends that you obtain and AutoCheck vehicle history report in conjunction with other reports to "fill in the gaps" in other vehicle history reports for issues that other providers do not cover. To request an AutoCheck vehicle history report, click here.

NMVTIS, or the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System, was developed by the federal government. A vehicle history report from NMVTIS will cost you anywhere from $0.25 to $4.95. NMVTIS is operated and managed by the US Department of Justice. According to NMVTIS, their database provides records relating to current and previous state of title data, title issue dates, latest odometer data, theft history (if any), any title brands, salvage history, and total loss history. To request a NMVTIS vehicle history report for just 25 cents, click here.

A vehicle history report can help alert you before purchasing a problem vehicle. And, when making such a major purchase like a motor vehicle, you should be armed with vehicle history reports from all 3 of the above providers. This way, each report can fill in the gaps that the other may have missed and work together to give you the most accurate view of the vehicle's history available.

Finally, if your state provides title history searches online to the public, then you should take advantage of this free service.  To access the Ohio BMV Online Title Inquiry, click here.

Beth Wells

www.BurdgeLaw.com
www.CarSalesFraud.com

Helping Consumers Get Rid of Lemons, 9 Years Running

Make Sure to Check a Used Car's Vehicle History Report Before Buying it

Are you in the market for a used car? If so, you are probably wondering whether it is worth getting a vehicle history report before making your purchase.  The answer is yes.  Getting an accurate vehicle history report online costs a few bucks initially, but it can save you money and headaches down the road.

So where do you start? There are three main sources of vehicle history reports online: Carfax, AutoCheck, and NMVTIS.

Carfax is probably the best known and most trusted of the three.  You can get a Carfax vehicle history report online for $39.99.  According to Carfax, their vehicle histort reports check for a long list of problems, including: prior accidents, mileage rollbacks or rollovers, multiple owners, structural damage, lease, taxi, or police use, salvage, rebuilt salvage, other vehicle brands, flood damage, total loss history, airbag deployment, hail damage, recall information, service and maintenance history, warranty information, and more.  Carfax claims to have the most extensive vehicle history database in North America, with over 6 billion records.  And, according to Carfax, they receive data from over 34,000 different sources.  Vehicle history reports can be viewed on your computer, tablet, or smart phone, and CarFax also offers a 100% money back guarantee.  To request a Carfax vehicle history report, click here.

AutoCheck is a slightly less well known, but widely used, competitor.  You can get an AutoCheck vehicle histort report online for $29.99.  According to AutoCheck, their database is built and maintained by Experian, who has exclusive data sharing relationships with many industry sources who provide Experian with access to exclusive data to available to AutoCheck's competitors.  AutoCheck also reports that industry leaders such as NADA guides, CarMaxx, eBay Motors, Kelly Blue Book, and Edmunds.com have chosen to provide AutoCheck vehicle history reports to their customers.  AutoCheck recommends that you obtain and AutoCheck vehicle history report in conjunction with other reports to "fill in the gaps" in other vehicle history reports for issues that other providers do not cover.  To request an AutoCheck vehicle history report, click here.  

 

NMVTIS, or the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System, was developed by the federal govenment.  A vehicle history report from NMVTIS will cost you anywhere from $0.25 to $4.95.  NMVTIS is operated and managed by the US Department of Justice.  According to NMVTIS, their database provides records relating to current and previous state of title data, title issue dates, latest odometer data, theft history (if any), any title brands, salvage history, and total loss history.  To request a NMVTIS vehicle history report for just 25 cents, click here. 

A vehicle history report can help alert you before purchasing a problem vehicle.  And, when making such a major purchase like a motor vehicle, you should be armed with vehicle history reports from all 3 of the above providers.  This way, each report can fill in the gaps that the other may have missed and work together to give you the most accurate view of the vehicle's history available. 

 

Unfortunately, while in most cases they are extremely helpful, vehicle history reports are

only as good as the information that is reported to them. So if an accident or accident repair is unreported, then it will not show up on a vehicle history report.   Likewise, if information is inaccurately reported, then that inaccurate information will likely appear on the vehicle history report. 

 

So, if you find yourself with a vehicle with a title brand or accident history that you did not know about when you purchased the vehicle, then in most states you will have legal rights against the seller for damages and maybe even be able to cancel the sale if you act quickly enough.  Click here for a free online 50 state list of consumer law attorneys.  And act quickly- because for every legal right you have there is only a limited amount of time to file a lawsuit in court before your rights expire. 

 

Good luck car hunting!

 

Beth Wells

www.BurdgeLaw.com

Helping Consumers Get Rid of Lemons, 9 Years Running