What to do about this boat?

[ariane8129]

Hey guys..Im new here and desperately need some help..One of our customers asked if we wanted to buy his boat, we've been in the market for one but not in a real hurry. His reason for selling was he needed a bigger boat to accommodate his new blended family of 8. He said he loved his old boat and if he had the space he would keep it. He told us he couldn't get 1 of the motors to start, but assured us it was loose wiring and a cheap fix. We said we would think it over and let him know Fast forward a week later and my boyfriend comes home with the boat explaining he only gave him 2,000 of the 7,000 and he would pay him the rest after he had the boat checked out. The next day my bf calls one of his buddies who is a licensed boat mechanic, he owned a few marinas around town, all the local tournament guys take their boats to him, this guy is the best of the best, well as my boyfriend's talking to him and explaining the issue with the boat and where he got it from the guy tells my boyfriend that he knows of the boat and that the seller contacted him a couple months back telling him he hasn't been able to get it to run for a while and there was something wrong with the engine, he had it rebuilt at one point but that didn't fix the problem ect.. He comes a week later checks the boat out and determines that the engine is shot and rebuilding it isn't even an option, it's that bad. The other motor is on its last leg and he shouldn't buy it unless he wanted to shell out money for 2 new motors. The next day my bf gets in touch with the guy he got the boat from and the guy acts like he didn't know anything about the motor being shot and that my bf pretty much bought it as is..At this point we just want our 2000 back. I'm definitely not giving him the 5,000 owed on the boat, but he still has the title. Do I threaten him with court since I can prove he knew the problem was alot more serious than loose wiring? Any advice will be greatly appreciated. I'm in Florida btw.

 

[alldodge]

Court is the only way I see getting out of it so long as there was no written bill of sale or other paper. Being 2K I would go with small claims court because its all he said, he said stuff

Good luck

 

[crazy charlie]

Common sense tells you if the seller tells you "its a cheap fix ,loose wiring" then if that were actually the case he would have fixed it.Bottom line is you are the new owner of this boat for $2000. Caveat Emptor,let the buyer beware.Your boyfriend did not "Beware" Full disclosure on the sellers part clears him.He told you one motor didnt run.Laws vary in each state ,best of luck to you and your boyfriend.Sounds like a mess...Sorry to hear.Charlie

 

[southkogs]

Fortunately, if he has the title then you didn't buy a boat. He has no grounds for the additional $5k. Unfortunately, unless you have a piece of paper signed by both parties stating the $2k is a deposit, you do have a legal fight unless the dude just gives in, and gives it back. I'd agree with AD, you're into small claims.

Either way, I'd get a plan to get the boat back in his possession and keep records of everything you've done and do going forward.

Tough lesson. Sorry y'all have to go through it.

 

[Sprig]

I hope your BF learned a lesson. Sorry but what he did was dumber than dumb. I think your best recourse is to take him to small claims court. Inform the guy you will be taking him to small claims court to recover the $2000, plus storage fee of $10 a day, plus lost wages for a day in court, plus a substantial fee to be paid to your boat mechanic friend for his time and , his survey of the boat, plus other incidentals. Tell him it will cost him $4000 to $5000 when all is said and done. Or he can give you back the $2000 in cash and that’s the end of it. Tell him also you are going to talk to an attorney about suing him for fraud. Tell him he can avoid all this by simply giving back the money.
Small claims rules vary by state but generally neither party can use a an attorney. It’s you two and the other guy and you will win this.
Oh yes and from this point on document everything and put everything in writing. Keep copies of everything. Talk to him and then mail him a letter of your conversation .

 

[Krazeehorse]

Do you have an attorney friend that might send the seller a letter informing them you are aware of XYZ marina looking at the boat prior to them lying about the loose wiring? Perhaps hint that the cheap way for the seller to avoid court is to just refund the $2000.

 

[kvkon]

I have a guy who handles these kind of problems for me. He's very convincing.

 

[isaacs]

Perhaps, after you threaten him with court, you can get him to sign the boat over to you for the $2000 you've already paid. You were willing to pay $7000--the other $5000 will go a long way toward replacing your engines and you'll have a really dependable boat when you're done. This, of course, assumes he didn't lie about something else and the rest of the boat is in good shape. (Outdrives?)

 

[JimS123]

Bad situation all the way around. Small claims court is nice....sometimes. Only if the defendant is honest. If he doesn't give you the money back, you really have no recourse to make him.

Your best bet is to hire a lawyer who knows what's what in your state. Of course, in the end it might eat up your $2000 anyway.

I would be hesitant to give the boat back. If its in your possession I would think you would be in the driver's seat, so to speak. But again, that's for your lawyer to decide.