Dealership non-disclosure of a previous accident.

I would not say another word to this dealership, until you have consulted with an consumer car fraud attorney from the link, below, which you can search by area of expertise and state. There are several excellent car fraud attorneys in the Bay area. If the dealership was aware or should have been aware of the prior accidents, it may be fraud to not disclose. The "as is" document for used cars means only that there is no warranty, so you are on your own for engine or transmission repairs, for example. However, the dealer still must disclose known accidents or conditions that need to be disclosed by a car dealership. Carfax reports are sometimes used by dealers to perpetrate a fraud, when the Carfax database is running behind or missed reports about a vehicle's condition. You may be able to get your money back with the help a a consumer car fraud attorney, if the facts are as you posted. Please act promptly, both because you don't want the dealership putting you into a worse situation and also since there is a statute of limitations period.

Used cars are usually sold "as is," with no warranties and with the buy needing to beware, and neither Carfax, nor dealers' knowledge, not even your information is necessarily reliable. Proving fraud sufficient to rescind a contract in CA is relatively difficult, and you'd have to prove that the dealer actually knew or should ahve known about these 2 accidents that your sources supposedly know if, and even carfax doesn't have record of them. '' Also, you bought the car knowing that it was being sold for less than other comparable cars, so the dealer would argue that everyone, you and them, knew or should have known that this car was devalued by prior accidents, and you knew as much as they did about it. A lawyer would need to review your contract, but I'm guessing that you won't do better than the dealer's offer to replace the car with another one (which you need to thoroughly investigate and have your own mechanic inspect before you agree to buy it). Disclaimer: Please note that this answer does not constitute legal advice, and should not be relied on, since each state has different laws, each situation is fact specific, and it is impossible to evaluate a legal problem without a comprehensive consultation and review of all the facts and documents at issue. This answer does not create an attorney-client relationship.

I'd suggest buying your own carfax report for this vehicle and comparing it to the one you were provided. If they're identical, then from a practical standpoint and for the same reasons cited by Pamela, the offer of a replacement car would seem quite fair, if it checks out. However, if the reports differ, then somebody was screwing around with the report and it's going to cast a negative light on this dealership. If that's the case, your bargaining equity has shot way up because I doubt the dealership would be interested in allegations of fraud backed by differing car fax reports going outside the dealership lot. My suggestion: before involving an attorney, do some of your own investigation and see if you can use that for leverage in negotiating a better position.