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I had a client call me today with complaints against Craftmatic. The allegation was that he forwarded a payment on time and was not credited until there was a TREMENDOUS late fee that was activated by the late payment and an increase in the interest rate. I did some research and found a Craftmatic complaint site on the web AND it appears that there are many unhappy customers.
It appears that there was also an investigation by West Virginia and a large settlement.
If you have a Craftmatic bed and you have any complaints please contact me for a free consultation .
In New Jersey you have the right to view public records with some exceptions. The law is also know as OPRA wherein the is a presumption that all government records are open to public view. The State has done a great job in making the records available online As an example there is an investigation by the Attorney General's Office into Cherry Hill Tri Plex an auto dealership. You can request and receive the pleadings filed by the State. The Counties and the local towns do not have online access, but they do usually post the instructions on their web sites. As an example Camden has this on their website.
The Asbury Park Press is reporting that there have been indictments of Michael Kouvaras, 55, of Maplewood and Salvatore Rivello, 56, of Matawan. They were indicted for theft by deception, identity theft, deceptive business practices and defrauding secured creditors. I will be getting a copy of the indictment form the Prosecutors Office so as to comment further. The dealership was Chrysler of Eatontown according to the Press. Will follow up with details.
The national Consumer Law Center has participated in extensive litigation against some of the largest finance companies in the world alleging that the impact of the loans was to discriminate against either African American or Hispanic consumers. The lawsuits, which exposed practices operated secretly for over 75 years and had resulted in higher-interest rate car loans for minorities, have transformed car financing practices across the industry.
Here is a list of all the suits in which they have participated.
Baltimore v. Toyota Motor Credit Corp
Smith v. Daimler Chrysler Financial
FMCC (Joyce Jones, et al. v. Ford Motor Credit Company)
GMAC (Coleman v. General Motors Acceptance Corporation)
NMAC (Cason v. Nissan Motors Acceptance Corporation)
AHFC (Terry Willis, et al v. American Honda Finance Corporation)
Borlay v. Primus Automotive Financial Services, Inc. and Ford Motor Credit Company
Bank Auto Finance Discrimination Cases
The problem occurred in the selling dealerships right to mark up interest rates which is primarily unregulated by the lenders or the Federal Government. Studies revealed that the dealership conduct in marking up the interest rates on car purchases and financing for Hispanics and African Americans. There was a study performed to prove this fact.
All the settlements, if any, were done without admissions of any wrong doing and the finance companies have ALWAYS denied any wrong doing.
You have a range of choices none of which are really attractive.
Return to the dealership and confront the management. You need to be very confident and have the ability to negotiate against skilled salesman and do it under stress. You don't have a chance. You know it and the dealer knows it. STAY AWAY. Not recommended.
File a complaint with the Better Business Bureau or the Consumer Affairs Office in your county. They have no ability to force the dealership to do anything. Its all voluntary. Just a further waste of your valuable time.
Hire an attorney and file a lawsuit. This is usually you best option EXCEPT it is hard to find a lawyer that sues car dealership and even harder to find an attorney with significant experience who will not charge an arm and a leg. If you find the right attorney this is your best option.
The consumer laws in New Jersey are expansive and powerful. The Consumer Fraud Act provides for triple damages and counsel fees if you win. This is the only thing that the dealer will understand.
I have a pending class action suit in Superior Court of New Jersey alleging that Saturn of Toms River is not providing the employee discount to those who should receive the General Motors employee discount. If you have acquired a car from Saturn Toms River and think that you should have received the employee discount please call my office.
Carton and Rudnick, 262 HWY 35, Red Bank, NJ 07701 (732) 842-2070
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