What can I do if I bought a car that I tried to trade in and it was listed as a total loss vehicle but the company is saying it’s not?

You might try to see if you can get a "Car Fax" document on your vehicle. There might be a nominal fee for it, but it might be worth it. Did you sign a contract when you bought the vehicle? You also might try your local police or DMV to see if they can run a trace on the vehicle although the DMV might not allow you to re-register it if they find out it is a total loss vehicle. This could be a case of fraud against the seller.

Take your facts, and hire a lawyer. If a car was sold to you with a salvage title that should have been disclosed.

Your certificate of title should indicate whether the car was ever totaled. If a lien holder has the title, contact the lien holder to see if it was ever a salvaged title. The applicable laws are set out below. There is a procedure whereby an owner of a vehicle with a salvaged title can obtain a regular title, but it the regular title must indicate it was formerly salvaged. I do not know whether a dealer must disclose this when selling the vehicle. One way to find out is to call a competitor (another dealer) and ask them. These laws can be found in the SC Code. You can find the SC Code online by googling ?SC Code of laws?. There may be something in there regarding a duty to disclose, but I couldn?t find it. If you are looking, ignore anything referring to ?lemon laws?. Lemon Laws apply only to the sale of new cars. SECTION 56-19-480. Transfer and surrender of certificates, license plates, registration cards and manufacturers' serial plates of vehicles sold as salvage, abandoned, scrapped or destroyed. (A) An owner who scraps, dismantles, destroys, or in any manner disposes to another as wreckage or salvage, a motor vehicle otherwise required to be titled in this State immediately shall mail or deliver to the Department of Motor Vehicles the vehicle's certificate of title notifying the department to whom the vehicle is delivered together with a report indicating the type and severity of any damage to the vehicle. (B) If a vehicle is acquired by an insurance company in settlement of a claim to the vehicle by fire, flood, collision, or other causes, or is left with the claimant after being declared a total loss by the insurance company, the company or its agent immediately shall deliver to the department the certificate of title together with a report indicating the type and severity of damage to the vehicle. At such time as the insurance company may thereafter transfer the damaged vehicle, the company or its agent shall notify the department to whom the transfer was made on a form prescribed by the department. Notwithstanding another provision of law, when an insurance company obtains title to a vehicle from settling a total loss claim, the insurance company may obtain a title to the vehicle designated as "salvage". The insurance company must pay the title fee contained in Section 56-19-420. (C) All insurance companies which make payments on liability, collision, fire, theft, or comprehensive policies for damaged motor vehicles in this State shall allow department officials to examine all records of the company which pertain to payments made pursuant to the policies during normal working hours. (D) Vehicles acquired by insurance companies as outlined above are exempt from ad valorem property taxes and inventory taxes, and the transfers of the vehicles to and from insurance companies exempt from sales taxes. (E) If a salvage vehicle is rebuilt, a regular certificate of title may not again be issued except upon submission of an application stating that the vehicle has been rebuilt and containing the information ordinarily required by the department for the issuance of a certificate of title as well as any information the department may require about the identity of the vehicle, the source and cost of any parts used in, and the extent of any repairs or other work done to the vehicle. In addition, the department may require the vehicle to undergo an inspection by the Highway Patrol or someone authorized by the department to check the identity or the safety of the vehicle, or both. Any regular certificate of title issued by the department for a previously salvaged vehicle must be annotated to show that the vehicle was "salvaged-rebuilt" and the reason why the vehicle was salvaged. (F) The manufacturer's serial plate or vehicle identification number (VIN) plate must remain with the vehicle at all times until the vehicle is shredded, crushed, melted, or otherwise destroyed.

You bought the car in as is condition. Did the paper work show that? if it did I think you are stuck. If there was fraud involved you might be able to sue on the ground of fraud. The problem is: what is an old car worth? How much money can you afford to spend on court costs and atty fees about the matter? Probably not very much.

This is a consumer fraud issue and you do need a lawyer to subpoena the information to document the claim.

The title on the car alone should reflect whether it's a totaled vehicle or not. If you cannot afford to hire a lawyer, try reporting this to the Better Business Bureau, who will probably contact the car company, or even call one of the local investigative reporters for a local TV station or newspaper. Also, if they sold you a car that had been declared a total loss, and they failed to tell you that, a lawyer can sue them for you for fraud, and get well beyond just what you paid for the car. If you can prove fraud, you can get punitive damages against the car company.

Sue both and let a jury sort it out.