A Van, A Man, A Scam And What A Victim Can Do

July 23, 1998|By Jim Mateja, Auto writer.

Beth called.

It's not her real name. No need to subject her to any more grief.

If Beth had a rope she'd string up a car dealer, a saleswoman and her sister's live-in companion, though maybe not in that order.

Beth's sister--we'll call her Ann--has cerebral palsy and limited mental capacity. Her speech is impaired, she limps, one arm has atrophied to the point she can't use it and reading is a chore.

Ann can't drive.

Yet, Ann bought a used mini-van for $15,600.

Beth says Ann was treated maliciously by the dealership. But it seems that Ann's live-in companion/driver who talked her into the purchase and the saleswoman who piled on the options are at fault.

Beth says that although Ann's companion--we'll call him Bill--is no rocket scientist, he is bright enough to have talked Ann into buying a Chevrolet Beretta and then into trading the car for a mini-van. He attempted to get her to buy a house, too, but settled for Ann paying the rent on an apartment.

Beth, however, called to complain that the saleswoman wasn't satisfied in getting $15,600 for the van. She talked Ann into extras, none of which Bill resisted, such as:

- A $1,700 two-year extended warranty with a $200 deductible, meaning whenever Ann had a problem, the first $200 expense would come out of her pocket.

- A $1,560.95 credit disability insurance policy so that if Ann, with cerebral palsy and one useful arm, were to become "disabled" and couldn't pay off the van, the policy would.

- A $1,075.82 credit life insurance policy, so that if Ann died before paying off the van, the insurance would. (As if, by then, Ann would care. But, of course, Bill would.)

Beth, by the way, called the insurance company and was told that since Ann is disabled and has cerebral palsy, it wouldn't honor any life/disability claims.

- A $500 charge for gap insurance so that if Ann totaled the van and her regular insurance didn't reimburse her the vehicle's full value, the gap policy would pay the difference, minus a $500 deductible. Gap insurance usually is reserved for leasing or buying a new vehicle.

Of course, you might ask, where does a patient with cerebral palsy and only one useful arm get auto insurance? Bill isn't disabled, so he got the coverage. So, in addition to the rent and the van, Ann pays the premiums.

- A $500 charge for membership in an unnamed motor club offering unspecified benefits.

- A $721 "public official" fee, though neither Beth, Ann nor Bill Stasek, a Wheeling Chevrolet dealer and chairman of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association, which represents 700 Chicagoland new-car dealers and who has waged a campaign for more than a decade to weed out the scam artists, has the foggiest idea what that fee is.

- A $44 documentary fee for the paperwork in processing the sale, as if the saleswoman needed $44 more after obtaining $1,700 for an extended warranty, $2,600 in useless credit life/disability insurance, $500 for motor-club membership and $721 for a "public official."

That's not all. Remember the Beretta Ann traded in? The dealer allowed her $5,510 on a vehicle for which she still owed $18,000.

Either the dealer who sold the Beretta to Ann or the lender financing it (Beth doesn't know which) found the car (on which Ann had stopped making payments after trading it in), sold it for $8,000 and billed Ann for the $10,000 she still owed.

When she called, Beth's question was simple: what to do. A number of things, we said, but first, get a lawyer. Pronto.

Stasek said if Ann had been declared mentally incompetent before the sale, by law, it would be rescinded. However, since Bill's name is also on the contract and he hasn't been ruled mentally unfit, the law may not apply.

Let the lawyer pursue it.

We also told Beth to cancel the insurance policies, the extended warranty and motor-club membership and get a refund.

Stasek pointed out that selling insurance policies to someone not eligible is illegal. Something else for the lawyer to pursue.

We also said to demand that the phantom "public official" return the $721 fee.

Then, get power of attorney over Ann to prevent this from happening again.

Call your local village to learn of transit available for the handicapped.

Finally, kick Bill's sorry butt out of the van and out of the apartment, and give Ann a big hug, which she needs more than she needs a van or Bill.