It looks as if there’s nearly by no means a time when a automobile dealership doesn’t do one thing unsuitable. From promoting a automobile that a customer brought in for repair to taking a customer’s money after which making them undergo hell to get it again, even merely doing what they’re in enterprise to do can flip into fraud. San Antonio’s KENS 5 experiences how one dealership misplaced a buyer’s automobile to fraud after which anticipated his insurance coverage to cowl it.
Again in 2022, Felipe Villarreal bought an orange 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 from a Las Vegas dealership for $90,000. He says it was his dream automobile. Not lengthy after buying it, Villarreal discovered himself in monetary bother and needing cash. That’s when he determined to do a consignment sale on the GT500, as he described to KENS 5.
Sadly after the file inflation in 2022 and several other medical payments, Villarreal simply couldn’t justify the mortgage he nonetheless owed on the automobile. In October of 2023, Villarreal signed a cope with Hovey Motorcars in Boerne to do a consignment sale. Villarreal mentioned the dealership had been round for a few years and specialised in coping with “high-end” automobiles. “Based mostly on their historical past, and dealing on these costly automobiles, I figured it was match,” Villarreal mentioned. “The automobile was parked within the showroom ground as we agreed. There have been no check drives.”
Practically a month later, Hovey Motorcars referred to as Villarreal, saying that that they had “excellent news and unhealthy information.” It was all unhealthy information, although. Hovey mentioned they misplaced the automobile in a rip-off deal and had no cash to indicate for it, saying a “fraudulent purchaser” had taken the GT500. In an announcement to KENS 5, Hovey Motorcars proprietor Rick Hovey Jr. described what occurred, weirdly calling his dealership a sufferer on this as effectively.
On 10-20-2023, a suspect made a $10,000 down cost on the automobile, obtained auto insurance coverage, and was subsequently authorized for a mortgage to finance the steadiness. 5 days after the down cost was made, and at some point after the mortgage transaction was accomplished, Hovey Motorcars obtained a letter informing us that the down cost was made utilizing a stolen bank card. We instantly reported this to the Boerne Police Division. Regardless of our diligent efforts and our twenty-six years of enterprise expertise, we grew to become victims of theft and fraud on this occasion.
Villarreal says he went to the dealership anticipating both his insurance coverage or the seller’s would cowl the automobile’s loss. That’s when Hovey instructed Villarreal he’d must file a declare together with his insurance coverage, and it’s all due to a contract Villarreal signed.
The contract states that Villarreal declared “to have in have an effect on full protection insurance coverage and acknowledge that I’m completely chargeable for all damages, repairs, and/or theft that may happen to mentioned auto.
It appears as if Villarreal is screwed on either side. Hovey Motorcars says their insurance coverage doesn’t cowl the lack of the automobile as a result of they didn’t personal it. And Villarreal’s insurance coverage has a clause saying it doesn’t cowl consignment gross sales. Insurance coverage Council of Texas Communications Director Wealthy Johnson confirmed to KENS 5 that almost all non-public auto insurance coverage doesn’t cowl consignment gross sales. A shopper safety lawyer instructed KENS 5 that Villarreal may sue Hovey Motorcars, however he’d should show that the seller was negligent. A police report may assist, nevertheless it nonetheless hasn’t been launched by native police.
Villarreal is now caught paying the remaining $60,000 mortgage on a automobile he doesn’t have anymore, hoping that issues work out in his favor. “It appears like somebody hit you actually laborious within the intestine,” he instructed KENS 5.
