Bad Check Restitution Program.

[ShaunaC]

Hello there. I currently live in Arizona but am having an issue pop up from when I lived in Colorado. I had purchased a car from a large dealership. I traded in a car and put down $1000 cash. While we were doing the paper work I had mentioned that I only had my job for less than a month. I found out later on they had put down I had worked for 3 months and the bank I was financed through would no longer finance me when they found out I had only worked for a month. So in order to be financed elsewhere I would have to put down another $1000 cash. I didn't have that kind of cash so I went to talk to the dealership to see what we could work out. They basically said I either pay the $1000 to keep the car or they would take the car back and charge me the difference between my trade in and the amount I had on that loan. I had my mother call and speak with them because I kept trying to explain that I didn't have $1000 to pay so obviously I wasn't going to have $2000 on hand either. I tried to work out them returning my trade in and I'll take back out the loan for it, but they had already sold my trade in. After much discussion and not getting much leniency from them I left giving them the keys. So in summary they got my trade in, they got the car I was trying to purchase, $1000 cash and my first months payment towards my car loan and I got to own the newer car for one month then left with no car.

It's been a year and half without any communication from the dealership and I have moved to Arizona. Today, I got a letter in the mail from the "Fourth Judicial District Attorney – Bad Check Restitution Program." Saying I either need to pay this dealership the $2000 or go to jail.

I was wondering what my options are. Or information on an attorney that I could speak to about this. I don't feel like I should pay because the dealership changed my employment information to get a sell, which ended up back firing all over me and they still got both cars.

 

[army judge]

Hello there. I currently live in Arizona but am having an issue pop up from when I lived in Colorado. I had purchased a car from a large dealership. I traded in a car and put down $1000 cash. While we were doing the paper work I had mentioned that I only had my job for less than a month. I found out later on they had put down I had worked for 3 months and the bank I was financed through would no longer finance me when they found out I had only worked for a month. So in order to be financed elsewhere I would have to put down another $1000 cash. I didn't have that kind of cash so I went to talk to the dealership to see what we could work out. They basically said I either pay the $1000 to keep the car or they would take the car back and charge me the difference between my trade in and the amount I had on that loan. I had my mother call and speak with them because I kept trying to explain that I didn't have $1000 to pay so obviously I wasn't going to have $2000 on hand either. I tried to work out them returning my trade in and I'll take back out the loan for it, but they had already sold my trade in. After much discussion and not getting much leniency from them I left giving them the keys. So in summary they got my trade in, they got the car I was trying to purchase, $1000 cash and my first months payment towards my car loan and I got to own the newer car for one month then left with no car.

It's been a year and half without any communication from the dealership and I have moved to Arizona. Today, I got a letter in the mail from the "Fourth Judicial District Attorney – Bad Check Restitution Program." Saying I either need to pay this dealership the $2000 or go to jail.

I was wondering what my options are. Or information on an attorney that I could speak to about this. I don't feel like I should pay because the dealership changed my employment information to get a sell, which ended up back firing all over me and they still got both cars.

You can accede to the demands of the distric attorney/collector's office.

You can ignore their demands for tribute.

You live in AZ.

I don't think CO is going to extradite you on a $1,000 alleged bad check.

The operative word is "think".

You never know these days, do you?

One thing I do "know", if you don't accede the demands for tribute from the CO district attorney/collector's office, you shouldn't ever go back to CO.

They'll probably issue a warrant for your arrest and nab you if you ever get stopped for anything.

So, let's recap:
1) You can cough up the Grand demanded by the district attorney/collector's office,
2) You can ignore them, and PROBABLY have little to fear, as long as you stay out of CO,
3) You can go back to Co and defend the charge (this is a waste, because they'll hold you liable)

Whatever you do, choose wisely!

If it were me, I'd pay them or see if they would allow me to make periodic payments until the debt is paid!​

 

[tpajet]

Aside from that, I would contact that state attorney general's office in CO. What they did here is a classic used car dealer scam. Normally it goes like this: We take your trade and I'm sure we can get your these particular financing terms. So you trade in your car and drive off with the new one. But they call you back a week or so later and tell you that they you didn't qualify for the financing terms. Most people can't cough up the money and have to return the car, but the dealer has already sold their old car, so they are out completely.

They screwed up the deal (I say on purpose). The sate AG needs to know what happened, and explain to them what's going on now.

Also, you need to call the court that this letter came from and verify it is in fact from them. It may be a scam. What tips me off to this is the threat of jail time. You only wrote one check to them, and from the sounds of it, that cleared. So what bad check was there? And that leaves the supposed $1,000 debt. You cannot be thrown in jail for a debt. And if this is in fact from the court, then you need to talk to the prosecutor and explain what happened, and stress the fact that the dealer got the new car back AND your old car.

They are certainly not out any money on the deal, and in fact have made money.