An Ocala resident is suing a local car dealership for what she claims were “deceptive practices” that led to an increase in the final sales price of a vehicle she agreed to purchase.
The lawsuit was filed on August 20 by attorney Robert W. Murphy of Charlottesville, Virginia on behalf of his client, Felicia Slaton, in the county court for the fifth judicial circuit of Marion County.
According to Slaton’s attorney, Ocala Automotive Management, which does business as Honda of Ocala, sold Slaton a vehicle “at once price” before she was asked to “electronically sign purchase and finance documents that had a much higher price.”
During a visit to the dealership at 1800 SW College Road in November 2022, Slaton selected a 2022 Toyota Corolla with a sales price of $35,995, according to the complaint.
Murphy says that after his client selected the vehicle and told a salesman that she had a down payment of $15,000, the salesman allegedly told Slaton that she would get “a discount” of $2,500, making the new sales price $33,495.
Murphy claims the discount was “fictitious” and that it was used to manipulate his client into believing she was “getting a better deal.”
The complaint states that Slaton asked for confirmation of the final sales price multiple times, and that each time she was assured by the salesman and other staff of the agreed upon price.
Slaton says that she then spoke with an employee of the finance department and could not read documents that were presented to her. She signed those documents “electronically without the ability to read them,” because she was given a “USB thumb for her later review,” according to the complaint.
Slaton says that when she returned to her home, she opened the documents on the thumb drive and “was shocked” to find that the “dealership had inserted multiple items into the purchase and finance papers that were not disclosed or agreed to.”
According to the complaint, the items not disclosed included a charge for $564 for gap insurance, a charge for $2,828 for “Truvsc Exclusionary,” and a charge for $1,607.26 for “Tri-Bundle.”
The complaint says the “unauthorized” charges totaled $5,309.73, and goes on to state that Slaton always noticed an increase in the sales price from $33,495 to $37,050, which included a charge of $2,995 for a “free HOA Package.”
Slaton allegedly returned to the dealership on three separate occasions “over a period of several days” in order to cancel the unauthorized charges. The complaint indicates that Slaton signed a “cancellation request” form on December 12, 2022.
Murphy claims that even though his client submitted a cancellation, her money was not “rebated for three months,” which resulted in “payment of interest and the loss of the sales tax.”
The lawsuit seeks damages “in excess of $8,000, but not in excess of $50,000” on six different counts ranging from deceptive and unfair trade practices to negligent representation, among several others.
On Tuesday, Murphy filed a motion for default against the dealership, asking the court to make a judgement in lieu of no documented response from the dealership.
“As of the date hereof, Ocala Automotive has failed to file a responsive pleading to the Complaint without good cause or justification,” reads the motion.
In Florida, when the defendant in a lawsuit fails to file or serve a response to a complaint within 21 days of service of the complaint and summons, a plaintiff may petition the court to enter a default judgement against the defendant.
According to the court docket, as of Wednesday, there have been no entries filed on behalf of Ocala Automotive Management.