‘Didn’t Want to Give Me My Money Back:’ Florida Woman Buys Chevy Tahoe for $9,800. Then 2 Mechanics Deem it ‘Undrivable’
"A dealership scammed me."
A Florida woman says the 2008 Chevy Tahoe she purchased from a dealership for $9,800 turned into a nightmare less than an hour later. She felt like she was being scammed at the dealership, so she hired a lawyer. Now she thinks the lawyer is trying to double down on her bad luck.
TikTok user Marie (@therealmarieg) posted a video about her situation on August. 1. In the video, she recounts how she purchased the vehicle and drove it off the lot—only to have buyer's remorse less than an hour later.
“A dealership scammed me and now the lawyer that I hired is trying to scam me,” she says to start the video. “Let’s talk about it.”
What Marie Says Happened
Marie explains that she purchased the Tahoe in November. After just 30 minutes of driving, a series of warning lights went on. She went back to the dealership to get her money back, but the dealership refused.
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“Fast forward, I paid $5,000 to an attorney, because the dealership didn’t want to give me my money back or take the car back,” she says. “And it was deemed undrivable by two mechanics. Now, the lawyer is asking me for $2,500, when I gave them $5,000 in December and all they’ve done is send two letters.”
In the caption, she writes, “First the dealership scammed me. Now the lawyer playing, too? At this point, I’m just collecting red flags like Pokémon cards.”
Viewers React to the ‘Scam’ Story
In the comments, users discussed scam culture in automobile sales. Others questioned the wisdom of paying more than half of what she paid on the car itself in lawyer fees.
“You paid $5k to a lawyer on a car worth $9k?” asked one user.
“I’m so sorry, but ‘as is’ means exactly that,” wrote a second person. “The dealer could have helped you out, though they are not obligated to. The lawyer is the scammer. He should have looked at your paperwork and told you ‘as is.’ Talk to the dealer and see if they are willing to work something out like put you in another car.”
A third person explained further. “So the first problem is that, in Florida, ‘as is’ is how almost all used cars are sold,” they wrote. “And it means exactly what it says. They have no responsibility to refund, repair, or give you anything back, unfortunately. Now, you have a compound problem because you are now out $14,800. Sorry that happened to you.”
What Is Florida’s ‘As Is’ Law?
According to a local news investigation, the commenter is correct about Florida law. A significant proportion of used cars sold in Florida are labeled “as is,” meaning that the dealer is not responsible for refunding or repairing cars it sells that break down—even if they break down a short period of time after the sale.
A consumer attorney told News Channel 8 that there is often “no recourse” for car buyers in this unfortunate situation. In some cases, hiring an attorney can backfire even worse than it did in Marie’s situation. Others have been saddled with tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees after losing in court to the dealership.
Motor1 reached out to Marie via TikTok comment and direct message for comment. We'll update this if she responds.
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