Q: Bought a truck they never told me it was in an accident. Can I do anything about it?
A:
Yes, you have a few options to attempt to resolve this issue if the company knew that the vehicle was in an accident but concealed that information from you and you were not able to determine that the vehicle was previously involved in an accident through the carmax or a similar report.
You can either hire an attorney or attempt to handle the issue on your own. Generally, businesses are more responsive to an attorney than an individual because an attorney will mention in the letter that he or she will file a lawsuit if they do not respond to the demand by a certain date, and your attorney will be able to explain the law and the ways that they will be held liable in a lawsuit. Depending on the facts of your case, the company may be held liable under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act, as well as for any misrepresentations, intentional or negligent, and fraud that they may have committed.
If you choose to attempt to handle the issue on your own, you should first send a letter to the company then, if unsuccessful, file a complaint with the Tennessee Attorney General. A sample/outline of the letter that you should write, along with the process for filing a complaint can be found here: https://www.tn.gov/attorneygeneral/working-for-tennessee/consumer/file-a-complaint.html. You can also file a complaint against the company with the Better Business Bureau.
It is important to note that a violation of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act could cause the business to be responsible for 3X the amount of damages that you actually suffered through something known as "treble damages." Or, if you go to trial, you could also seek punitive damages to punish the business for their actions and stop them and others from engaging in similar conduct.
I hope that you are able to work this out! Best of luck!
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