Fairfield Motors, Fairfield, OH
Complaint 254429 Details

My car was recently totaled when I was rear-ended by another motorist. After receiving the insurance payment, I began a search for another car. I found on-line a 1999 VW Beetle at Fairfield Motors (hereafter known as “FM”). My sister drove me to FM to see the car on Wednesday, 06/05/13. Although the car had some issues, I felt that they were repairable and I made a verbal agreement that day with the sales rep Tarek that I would buy the car and pay his asking price “only IF he had the issues with the car repaired in a reasonable amount of time”. Tarek said that he would have the repairs done, and that the car would be ready for pick-up on Saturday, June 8. He went on to say that he could not begin making the repairs, though, “without a security deposit of $300 to $500”. I agreed to give him $300, and wrote on the check “refundable security deposit on 1999 VW Beetle”. Tarek was told that this notation was being made and did not take issue with it. Tarek noted on the receipt, “Deposit upon agreement”. In addition, because Tarek would not provide me with anything in writing, other than the receipt, I asked him if he would mind if I recorded our agreement and he said that “would be fine”. I have an audio recording of almost my entire meeting that day with Tarek, and most importantly, I have a recording of him agreeing to refund my money should he not hold up his end of the agreement.

My sister and I made the 15 mile one-way trip to FM on Saturday, June 8, to pick up the VW, only to find that the car was locked in a service bay, Tarek was purportedly “out of the country”, and the sales rep, Derek, did not have a key to the garage. Derek told my sister and me to return on Monday, June 10 after 3pm, and that the car would be ready then. Derek was not happy that he was having to “clean up Tarek’s mess”, but we very much felt like it was a good sales rep/bad sales rep act that has been “performed” many times over before we walked in the door of their dirty showroom. My sister picked me up on Monday afternoon; we again began the drive to Fairfield, when remembering what had happened on Saturday, I decided to call FM to verify that the car was ready. I talked with Derek who told me that the car was still not ready, but that “it would definitely be ready the following day, Tuesday, June 11, again after 3pm”. My sister and I made our third trip to FM on June 11 to find the car out of the service garage, but appearing to be in worse condition than it was when we originally viewed it on June 5. The repairs had obviously not been made, the car was filthy, and there was bright yellow tape criss-crossed on one of the headlights. The car would not even turn over/start without a ten-minute battery charge. At this time, I told the sales rep Derek that we were now six days into what should have been a three day endeavor and that per our agreement, I wanted my $300 security deposit back. I asked him, “Who buys a car that won’t even start?” Derek said that he could not refund my money and that the owner “never refunds money”.

My sister then asked Drerk for the owner’s name and phone number, which he willingly, yet cautiously provided. The owner of FM, Mr. Dia Alasoud, after several unreturned phone calls and text messages were made to him on Tuesday and Wednesday (June 10 and 11, 2013), finally answered a call from my sister on Friday, June 14 (day 10 of our ordeal) and said that he “does not refund deposits”. He was nasty and threatening, called her names, and made no excuses for his sales reps behavior or false promises.

I feel that FM is obligated to refund my deposit because (1) they have not held up their end of the agreement (which I have on an audio recording); (2) they endorsed and cashed my check being fully aware of the memo notation; (3) the sales rep was not honest with me about the deposit being refundable; and (4) because the car is in obvious worse condition than it was when my sister and I first saw it on June 5. I would like for Fairfield Motors to promptly refund my $300 deposit, as I am no longer interested in their car or doing business with Fairfield Motors. I have since purchased another car from a private owner.

I have requested assistance from the Cincinnati BBB and The Ohio Attorney General's Office with getting my $300 deposit refunded from Fairfield Motors. My next step is Fairfield's Small Claims Court.