- Jurisdiction
- West Virginia
About a year ago I bought a 2000 Toyota Echo from a "private seller" although he owns an auto repair shop. He said that he had just put new front wheel bearings on the car and that it was in good shape. The day after I got the car home I jacked up the rear to inspect a muffler hanger that seemed to be loose. As I was inspecting the hanger I noticed a fair sized hole rusted through the frame above the passenger side wheel.
I immediately called the seller and complained that he had sold be an unsafe car. He said that if I bring it back he would repair the frame. I agreed and after a few days of the car being in his shop he called me to say it was fixed. When I arrived the car was on the rack and he showed me that the frame had been repaired. He had even undercoated the entire underneath of the car making it look like new.
This brings me to a few day ago when I hit a small pothole in a parking lot and heard and felt a loud crunch coming from the rear of the car. I got out to find that the frame in front of the rear wheel of the driver's side had broken loose from the body and was on the ground. The spring had popped out and the rear axle had pivoted and jammed the tire into the body of the car.
Not being able to jack the car up there, and needing to get it out of the parking lot, I had the car towed to my home. The next day I jacked up the rear of the car and found that most of the rear driver's side frame had rusted away. It was way more more rusted than could occur in a single year. I also found body putty covered with undercoating sticking to some of the remaining rust. There is even a thin layer of undercoated body putty on a solid looking part of the frame under the trunk. It is obvious to me that the seller tried to conceal the rust damage to the frame.
My questions are, is it possible for me to collect damages since I bought the car a year ago, and if yes, what would be the best way to go about it? At present the seller is not replying to my calls.
Thanks
I immediately called the seller and complained that he had sold be an unsafe car. He said that if I bring it back he would repair the frame. I agreed and after a few days of the car being in his shop he called me to say it was fixed. When I arrived the car was on the rack and he showed me that the frame had been repaired. He had even undercoated the entire underneath of the car making it look like new.
This brings me to a few day ago when I hit a small pothole in a parking lot and heard and felt a loud crunch coming from the rear of the car. I got out to find that the frame in front of the rear wheel of the driver's side had broken loose from the body and was on the ground. The spring had popped out and the rear axle had pivoted and jammed the tire into the body of the car.
Not being able to jack the car up there, and needing to get it out of the parking lot, I had the car towed to my home. The next day I jacked up the rear of the car and found that most of the rear driver's side frame had rusted away. It was way more more rusted than could occur in a single year. I also found body putty covered with undercoating sticking to some of the remaining rust. There is even a thin layer of undercoated body putty on a solid looking part of the frame under the trunk. It is obvious to me that the seller tried to conceal the rust damage to the frame.
My questions are, is it possible for me to collect damages since I bought the car a year ago, and if yes, what would be the best way to go about it? At present the seller is not replying to my calls.
Thanks
