The New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act is one of the most powerful in the nation. It provides for the mandatory awarding of triple damages for any ascertainable loss. As an example if you have lost one dollar you would be entitled to three dollars in damages. If the defendant has…
This site provides significant insight into what is going on in the automotive industry. There are statistics that explain where the dealers are making money: new cars, used cars and service department. It counts the dealers in each state and explains. The NADA data section is worth a quick look.
What is this? What is Augieland? It has nothing to do with auto fraud, lemon law, used car lemon law, breach of warranty or the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act. But if you like to eat out in the metropolitan area, mostly Manhattan, this site is a can’t-miss. He appears…
New Jersey has one of the strongest consumer laws in the country and it is known as the Consumer Fraud Act. It applies to both the sale and attempted sale of goods and services. It is liberally construed to effectuate the remedial purpose of the statute. It applies to the…
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…
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…
When you negotiate with a car salesman you need to remember some important statistics. There are over 21,000 new car dealerships in the country and over 550 new car dealerships in the State of New Jersey. The car you want is at another dealership, probably for less. Get up and…
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 salesmen and do it under stress. You don’t have a chance. You know it and the…
This depends on your comfort level in negotiating with experienced salesmen and your ability to have the car inspected that you are purchasing. As a general matter, in my opinion, this is not a good purchase. The term “certified” means almost nothing. In the context of a used car sale…
Many dealerships, of medium to large size, have insurance for claims of consumer fraud. One of the largest companies that writes this insurance was Universal Underwriters, which was purchased by Zurich. BUT the coverage usually only pays for the cost of a lawyer and will not pay money to the…