Car dealer fraud claims
Car Dealer Fraud Claims We Handle: Every Way a Dealership Can Cheat a Buyer
Sue Your Dealer – A Law Firm brings car dealer fraud claims for buyers in the five jurisdictions we serve: Florida, Vermont, Washington, D.C., Michigan, and Texas. This is the full list of what we sue dealers for, with a guide to each claim: the statute, what you can recover, the deadline, and what documents prove it. If your problem isn't on the list, submit it anyway; most dealer misconduct fits under a state deceptive-practices statute even when it has no name of its own.
The eight core claims
What Car Dealer Fraud Claims Does Sue Your Dealer Sue For?
Each card opens the full guide. The statutes cited are Florida's; the jurisdictions page covers the same claims under Vermont, D.C., Michigan, and Texas law.
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01
Odometer rollbacks
The Federal Odometer Act allows the greater of three times your actual damages or $10,000, plus attorney's fees, when a seller misrepresents mileage with intent to defraud.
Odometer fraud in Florida → -
02
Undisclosed branded title
Salvage, rebuilt, flood, or total-loss history the dealer didn't disclose before you signed. Section 319.14, Florida Statutes, requires that disclosure.
Branded title claims → -
03
Undisclosed prior rental
A former rental, fleet, or taxi vehicle must be disclosed in writing under section 501.976 and section 319.14, Florida Statutes. If it wasn't, you may have a claim.
Prior rental history → -
04
Wrongful repossession
Repossessed without a default, taken by breaching the peace, no notice of sale, or a deficiency you're being sued for. Chapter 679 sets the rules.
Repossession claims → -
05
GAP premium fraud
You paid for GAP coverage, the dealer never sent the premium, and now there's a deficiency balance after a total loss. We pursue the dealer and the lender.
GAP premium claims → -
06
Dealer fees and junk fees
Charges above the advertised price and undisclosed predelivery fees violate section 501.976, Florida Statutes, and are actionable under FDUTPA.
Dealer fee claims → -
07
Spot delivery / yo-yo financing
You drove home, then the dealer called to say financing "fell through" and demanded the car back or a worse contract. That tactic is regulated and often unlawful.
Spot delivery claims → -
08
Handled by Sue Your Credit Report
Late payoff of a trade-in
Section 319.24(5), Florida Statutes, gives the dealer 10 business days to pay off your trade-in. When it doesn't, late payments hit your credit.
Trade-in payoff claims →
More dealer problems
Other Dealer Fraud Claims and Guides
Spot delivery and yo-yo financing
The dealer let you drive off, then called weeks later to say the financing "fell through" and demanded the car or a worse contract.
Dealer surety bond claims
When a Florida dealer closes or won't pay, its $25,000 bond under section 320.27(10) can be a source of recovery for buyers.
Deposits the dealer kept
When a dealership may keep a deposit under Florida law and when keeping it is a deceptive practice.
Undisclosed damage to a new vehicle
Section 501.976 requires disclosure of repaired damage above a set percentage of MSRP on a new car.
Clean title but a total-loss history
How a totaled car ends up with a clean title, and what the dealer had to tell you anyway.
Vehicle stolen during transport
When a car vanishes between the dealer and your driveway through a dispatch or transport broker.
"As-is" sales
What an as-is sale does and does not waive. Fraud, odometer, and title disclosure claims survive it.
Claims involving the finance company
When the lender, not just the dealer, is part of the problem: the FTC Holder Rule, repossession duties, and the public enforcement record of the large subprime auto lenders.
Improper towing
Section 715.07 limits when a vehicle can be towed from private property and what the tow company must do.
How Do These Claims Get Started?
Every claim begins with the paper: the buyer's order, the retail installment contract, the odometer statement, the title application, the Buyers Guide, the ad, and any text messages with the salesperson. In Florida, the next step is the written pre-suit demand section 501.98 requires before a FDUTPA suit against a dealer; our guide to suing a car dealer in Florida walks through it. Texas requires 60 days' written notice under the DTPA. Vermont, D.C., and Michigan have no statutory notice requirement, but we send a demand there too, because dealers often settle at that stage.
If the dealer does not make it right, we file suit. The case evaluation is free; fee arrangements depend on the matter — some cases are handled on a contingency basis, where the firm seeks its fees from the dealer under the fee-shifting provisions of the applicable statute, and many are handled on a flat-fee or hourly basis, explained in writing before you decide whether to hire the firm. The FAQ answers the questions buyers ask most, including how the firm charges and how long a case takes.
Which Matters Go Somewhere Else?
A defect the manufacturer won't fix under warranty is a lemon-law or Magnuson-Moss claim, and it goes to our sister firm Lemonaid Firm; this guide explains the difference. An error on your credit report, including a trade-in payoff the dealer reported late, goes to Sue Your Credit Report.
Free case evaluation
Not Sure Which Claim You Have?
Describe what happened and upload what you signed. An attorney sorts out the claim.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kinds of car dealer claims does the firm review?
The firm reviews claims such as odometer rollbacks, undisclosed branded titles, undisclosed prior rental history, wrongful repossession, GAP premium problems, dealer and junk fees, spot delivery and yo-yo financing, and late payoff of a trade-in. The jurisdictions page covers how these claims are handled in each state.
Which jurisdictions does the firm cover?
The firm handles dealer claims for buyers in Florida, Vermont, Washington, D.C., Michigan, and Texas, each under that jurisdiction's own consumer-protection law.
How does the review work?
A buyer submits the free case evaluation describing what happened and uploading the documents that were signed. An attorney reviews the submission. If an attorney can assist, an intake questionnaire and retainer agreement follow.
Does submitting a case evaluation create an attorney-client relationship?
No. Submitting the evaluation does not create an attorney-client relationship and does not pause any deadline. Whether the firm can take a matter is decided after an attorney reviews it, and no outcome is promised.
This page is attorney advertising and general information, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Results depend on the facts and law of each matter; prospective clients may not obtain similar results. Statutory damages described are as set by law and are before deductions for attorney's fees and costs. Sue Your Dealer – A Law Firm, Hollywood, Florida · By appointment only · (954) 321-0507.