On January 2 I went to Car Corner of Cabot to purchase a 1996 Ford Probe for my soon to be 16 year old daughter. The asking price was $1850. I wanted to pay $1000 down and pay the rest off with my taxes that I should've received by the first week of February. Well Mr. Farnam wanted to tack on $850 for "Financing". That should have been my first big hint. I talked him down to just $425. We dicker around back and forth a while and I explain what I wanted to do very plainly, all of which Mr. Farnam was willing to do (verbally), but he wanted to nail something down in writing. Should have been my second hint. He got me to agree to $1000 down, $50 a week til paid off if by the 1st of Feb or if not, $500 on the 1st of February.
I tried to explain to him that there would be no way I could make a $500 payment in the very slight possibility that I didn't get my income tax by then and he just shrugged it off and assured me that he would work with me when we got there. He also added some fluff about how he is such a good judge of character, he could tell I was a good honest person, blah blah blah right. I knew I was dealing with a shady character, but I thought I would be able to pay it off before I would even have to deal with any of this right? Oh and did I mention the man only accepts CASH???!!! Should have been the biggest hint of all, but no, stupid me thought I was smarter.
I take the car, everything is cool, I make the first payment, which by the way, I bought the car on a Tuesday, gave the man $1000 and he started my payments that following Friday... Go figure. (the greedy b*#%@&d!) The following Friday rolls around, the 13th, I didn't make my payment but the contract says I have a 3 day grace period and he also had told me this when I made my first payment so I was thinking I was fine right. The following Monday, the 15th he calls me to remind me about my payment. I ask him if I can just make a double payment on Wednesday and he agrees. No sense making two trips so close together right? That night the car starts acting up. Won't stay started unless I have the clutch in and keep my foot on the gas to rev it up. I park it. Just my luck on the Wednesday I was to make the double payment, my fairly new job started my direct deposit so my money would not be available until 8am the next day. Granted I should have called, but I had a bad cold and didn't feel good so I went home. Granted, I should have called but I didn't. He knocks on my door at 10pm that night. The same day he agreed to accept a double payment.
The minute I opened the door I realized I had forgotten to call and I started rambling trying to explain things. He didn't say anything until I mentioned that the car wasn't running right and he said "Why didn't you call me?" I said, "Because it isn't your problem, I bought the car as is" and he tells me, "That isn't the way it works, you should have called me. I have mechanics, etc" Leading me to believe he would have helped me right??? HA! He tells me to get the keys so he could take a look. I think, hey maybe this guy isn't such a bad guy so stupid me, (by the way, I had taken Nyquil also so I wasn't in my right mind anyway) I give him my key ring. He takes the keys and goes to the car, I went in to get my jacket and when I return, he is sitting in the car and he hands me a piece of paper and my key ring back. He said, "I am taking the car tonight, come see me in the morning". I read the paper and it is repo papers in which he added $25 late fee and $300 repo fees!!! HELLO, he showed up with his wife!!! He didn't hire anyone and how the h*l do you repo a car on the same day you agree to take a payment?
So he drives off with it and I bawl all night thinking how I just got screwed for $1050 because there is no way I can come up with $1550 in 10 days.
The next morning I get up to go see the man and I discover not only had he taken the key to the Probe, he also took my only key to my other car, so I couldn't go see him. Talk about sneaky and stupid all in one. He couldn't tell the difference between a toyota key and a Ford Probe key??? I call him and explain he took my other key and that I need it back to come see him and go to work, he tells me he will be right there. 2 1/2 hours later and 5 phone calls later he finally shows.By now I am late for work so I told him I would come see him afterward. I go see him and I notice my car is out on the front line with all the other cars for sale, it was washed and cleaned out and that all my personal stuff was in a plastic bag on his desk, minus all my paperwork.
I think to myself, this man has no intention of giving me this car back. WE talk and sure enough, he doesn't. He treats me like some stupid, little girl and he was the father trying to teach me a lesson... All for what? Not calling within a few hour time frame. He tells me by law he has to keep the car, he refused any type of payment and tells me he would have refused it the night before also when he was at the house. (How is that legal when he had already agreed to accept a payment on that day???) Then right before I leave, he assures me he will put me in another car if I can't afford to get that one back. SEe this creep thought he had me over a barrell because he knew the chances of me getting the rest of my w2's were slim before the end of the month, he knew I wouldn't have my ssi in time because in 10 days was only the 28th and he figured I was some dumb blonde that wouldn't fight it. But I leave anyway.
I consult two lawyers who both tell me that it would be my word against his and that they weren't so sure every thing was legal but it wasn't worth hiring them to fight it.
I return on the 28th to talk with him once again and at the very least to see if he would make good of putting me into another car because I had yet to get all my w2's for my taxes. Oh he was perfectly willing to put me in another car, but would not give me any of the $1050 I had already paid him towards another vehicle! I know, I know, I shouldn't have been surprised! When my father speaks up and just says, "Hey man, she gave you $1050 and you won't give her ANY, that ain't right". What does Jim Farnam do, he opens the door and basically kicks us out. I tried to get him to talk to me and told him I didn't want it to get ugly and he tells me it ain't ugly. Then I proceed to tell him what the lawyers said about it being illegal to sell me a car with out him having possession of the title, (Oh I forgot to mention that part didn't I? Yeah, he didn't even have the title and told me that if it didn't come in within the 30 days, he would just write me new paperwork) and then turning around and refusing payment on a day we agreed upon and then repoing the vehicle was illegal and he then proceeds to yell at me and tell me that "I could have come and got that car on the 1st day if I wanted too" and I told him "No you can't, you cant agree to things and then just change them when you want too". I told him to enjoy my $1050 dollars and that he would get his.
Which will be decided by small claims court here in Cabot soon enough. I will keep you posted. But please, anyone who even thinks about buying anything from that man, don't. He is a scumbag and a terrible business man. I hope he reaps what he sows.
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