HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Hillsborough County resident Sam Reeder lost his wife to a sudden illness last September.
He told ABC Action News financial stress compounded his grief.
"Couldn't afford to pay for the car without her income," Reeder said. "Oh, I needed to get rid of it as soon as possible.”
Reeder said Brandon Mitsubishi offered him $35,000 for the 2021 Toyota Rav 4, a deal he couldn't turn down.
According to the 20-plus page document he signed, the dealer would pay off the loan of around $28,000 and pay Reeder the remainder, close to $7,000.
Reeder signed over his rights to the title and required documentation for the DMV, and the vehicle sat on the lot for months.
He said that the dealer said he would cut a check several times, but in January, Reeder said, they backed out of the deal and asked him to pick up his ride.
"Went in and talked to him, and that's when he told me that it's not worth that much anymore," Reeder said.
In looking at the contract, we noticed the dealership never signed it.
Consumer Attorney Joshua Feygin read the contract. He said it's not binding without the dealer's signature. But nothing in the paperwork explains why the dealer possessed the SUV for five months.
"They pretty much provide themselves with a way out by saying, 'Hey, we didn't sign this contract.' But at the end of the day, all these other documents were signed in order to make the consumer believe that he was going through with the contract," Feygin said.
ABC Action News visited the lot and asked the general manager about the deal gone south. He told us they never executed the contract. Meanwhile, Reeder was stuck making payments on the car loan.
"I can't afford to keep paying on it, making things very difficult," Reeder said.
Days after our visit, Brandon Mitsubishi offered to finalize the agreement. They did not comment on this story. Reeder confirms both he and the vehicle loan have been paid in full.
Florida law mandates a dealer must pay off the car within 10 working days of acquiring it, provided the contract is binding.
