My youngest son has a delivery job that calls on him to use his own vehicle. The area in which he delivers is full of potholes, railroad tracks and dirt roads. So we went looking for a truck or SUV. His current car, a station wagon, was just not cutting it.
We chose Rick Hendricks because my ex-husband had gotten a truck from them through their 'Fresh Start Program' even though he had horrible credit. My son had no credit and mine was not all that good. As a single mom, although I work three jobs, making ends meet called on me to use my credit cards too much in the past.
We chose this particular location for no other reason than we happened to be in the area. (There are Rick Hendrick dealerships all over Charleston). We were greeted by a very nice salesman named Mark. We told him our financial situation right up front so there would be no wasting of our time or theirs. Mark took all of our info and came back with a list of trucks we could choose from that fit our situation. My son decided on a 2004 Chevy Silverado basic truck. We signed all the necessary papers, traded in the old station wagon, and gave them a downpayment of $2000.00. I also gave them a check for an additional $500 to be cashed the following month. We left that night with the truck at a finance rate of 19%.
Five days later I get a call from them stating that the deal did not pass the lenders and we needed to either find another co-signer or bring the truck back. Five days. Five days! Needless to say my son was very angry. I felt bad for him and felt betrayed. The next day we decided to just take the truck back and be done. I called Mark, the salesman, and told him of our decision and that he needed to have my station wagon ready for pick up.
When we got there we were told by 'Jerry' that Mark had misinformed us...we had been approved for a loan....at 24.99%!!! What?!! My son declined the offer as it would have added almost $100 more to his monthly payment. Not to mention the fact that we signed the papers at 19%.
My $2000 check had already been cashed. I was told that in order to get my money back 'in a timely fashion' I would have to send them a copy of the cancelled check from my bank. I did this the next day. As of today, five days later, I have yet to hear from anyone at this dealership. I have requested by phone call and fax the return of the title to my station wagon and the uncashed $500 check. Nothing. Absolutely nothing has been returned and no calls answered.
I have since phoned my attorney to see what I can do, if anything, to get my stuff back. Oh, and, by the way, we can't go buy another car for 30 days because its already on my credit that I bought the truck, and I can't trade in the wagon because I don't yet have the title back.
So, in the meantime, my son drives my little Saturn Vue and I drive the wagon. I'm out $2000 for who knows how long. And they don't seen to care one way or the other. What a rotten experience for a first-time buyer.