J
jeff l.
Guest
- Jurisdiction
- Florida
I just bought a 2000 toyota tundra 4 wheel drive pickup. I paid 3500.00 cash for it. I noticed rust on the lower fenders and asked if it was from up north. The answer was "not sure". Asked if it was used for putting a boat in The water, same answer. "Not sure". Well knowing that body rot is typical and not the end of the world i looked at the engine with with a flash light ( it was night time) and didn't see any leaks or on the ground. I did not get under and look up i looked at it from ground level only for leaks. It started ok and everything inside worked. When i pushed on the brake pedal it went to the floor. So i asked about it. (Now the person i was talking with was not the seller but the sellers employee, which had the vehicle parked at her residents, and was doing all the negotiations.) She informed me he was going to have it taken to his mechanic to have the brake line replaced. We settled on the price and i said if the repairs were over a set amount i would split the difference. She said ok and would let the seller know. The next day i was contacted to let me know the truck was at the shop being repaired. And if I was still going to purchase it. I replied yes and the day, time and location were set. Received a call that more work was needed To the breaks. I had to wait 3hrs longer for the owner to show up (which he drove the truck there) because of the repairs. Because of the time waiting he said just 3500.00 instead of splitting the cost of the repairs. I drove it around the neighborhood quickly and signed the title. But he was also not the owner on the title. I didn't pay much mind of it thinking it may be his sister or an aunt or mother. It did need some work done to tune it up and such. I was fine with that i can do those things my self. When i got home and was off loading it from the trailer i noticed the swaybar link was broken. Shined light on it and saw it was rusted out. At this point i was a little worried. But it was midnight and was tired from the day, so i figured i was going to look in the day time to see how bad it was, which if not bad i could fix it. The next day when i got under the truck i noticed the frame had large sections rusted away. At this point i felt i had been taken. The truck is not road worthy and most likely is only worth parts if parted out. I have tried to contact the person i delt with and he has not contacted me back. What are my legal options if any? I know the lemon law in florida does not apply to private used sales. But the truck was at a shop the day of purchase and they had to see how bad it was on a lift. This was never told to me and the title does not have a salvage on it. Also found out you need a dealers license if you are selling as a thrid party. Does this cause any criminal action for the seller?
