Cabrera v. Haims Motors, Inc.

288 F. Supp. 3d 1315
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Florida
DecidedDecember 22, 2017
DocketCase No. 17–cv–60500–BLOOM/Valle
StatusPublished

This text of 288 F. Supp. 3d 1315 (Cabrera v. Haims Motors, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cabrera v. Haims Motors, Inc., 288 F. Supp. 3d 1315 (S.D. Fla. 2017).

Opinion

BETH BLOOM, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

THIS CAUSE is before the Court upon Plaintiff's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment. See ECF No. [44] (the "Motion"). The Court has reviewed the Motion, all supporting and opposing submissions, the record and applicable law, and is otherwise fully advised. For the reasons that follow, Plaintiff's Motion is granted in part and denied in part.

*1318I. BACKGROUND1

This dispute stems from the sale of a used car to Plaintiff by Defendant, a used car dealer. In February 2017, Plaintiff began searching for a car to purchase for his own personal use. See ECF No. [45], at ¶¶ 5, 19. Plaintiff came across a used 2015 Infiniti Q50 Sport being advertised on Defendant's website for $27,977. See Id. at ¶¶ 6-7. The online advertisement contained certain representations by Defendant, including that: Defendant has "full-service garages [that] thoroughly inspect and service each new arrival"; each new arrival is "sent to [Defendant's] detail departments to be meticulously cleaned"; the 2015 Infiniti is a "High Quality Luxury Car"; and a "[f]ull inspection [was] performed by [Defendant's] technicians" on the 2015 Infiniti. See Id. at ¶ 8; ECF No. [44-2]. Based on these representations, Plaintiff contacted Defendant to see the 2015 Infiniti. See ECF No. [45], at ¶ 9. On February 15, 2017, an employee of Defendant emailed Plaintiff informing him that the 2015 Infiniti had a "clean car fax" and asking when Plaintiff wanted to test drive the car. See Id. at ¶ 10. After Plaintiff pointed out to the employee that he had not received a car fax for the vehicle, the employee replied and again told Plaintiff that the car fax was clean and that the 2015 Infiniti had no accidents. See Id. at ¶¶ 11-12.

On February 18, 2017, Plaintiff went to Defendant's auto dealership and met with Mr. Jay Zelaya, one of Defendant's salesmen. See Id. at ¶¶ 13, 15. Mr. Zelaya represented that the 2015 Infiniti was in excellent condition and that it had been thoroughly inspected by Defendant's service department. See Id. at ¶ 17. According to Plaintiff, however, Mr. Zelaya did not disclose that Defendant had performed repairs on the 2015 Infiniti, that the 2015 Infiniti was damaged in any way, or that the 2015 Infiniti had been in any accidents. See Id. at ¶ 16.

Plaintiff proceeded to purchase and finance the 2015 Infiniti. See Id. at ¶ 20. Prior to visiting Defendant, Plaintiff obtained pre-approved financing from Tropical Financial Credit Union "for 1.99% for a used car with mileage under 75,000 and an LTV of 89% or less." Id. at ¶ 14. The 2015 Infiniti met these requirements. Id. Nonetheless, Defendant told Plaintiff that if he chose to use his own financing, he would be charged a $750 "Draft fee." See Id. at ¶ 21. Plaintiff chose not to use his own financing.

Rather than paying the $27,977 price advertised online, Plaintiff ultimately purchased the 2015 Infiniti for $32,912, with a 3.98% interest rate through JPMorgan Chase Bank. See Id. at ¶ 22. In connection with the purchase, Defendant prepared a Retail Purchase Agreement ("RPA"). See Id. at ¶ 23. The RPA, which itemized the *1319various costs and prices, included a $699 "Pre-Delivery Service Charge Dealer Fee/Loan Processing Fee" and a $47.95 "DMV E-File" fee. See Id. at ¶ 24; ECF No. [44-3]. Plaintiff assumed that the DMV E-File fee was a "required fee that was paid to the Department of Motor Vehicles in order to properly title my vehicle." ECF No. [45], at ¶ 24.

Defendant also prepared a Retail Installment Sale Contract ("RISC") that provided Plaintiff with a breakdown of the financing charges. See Id. at ¶ 25; ECF No. [44-4]. The total amount financed for the 2015 Infiniti (the amount of credit provided to Plaintiff) was $24,551.49. See ECF No. [44-4]. As part of the financing for the vehicle, Defendant traded in his 2012 Infiniti. See ECF No. [45], at ¶ 25. Plaintiff estimated that he owed $10,700 on the 2012 Infiniti. See ECF No. [44-1], at 104, 108. At some point, Mr. Zelaya called the lienholder, Capital One, and confirmed that the actual pay-off amount for Plaintiff's 2012 Infiniti was $10,317, and that the pay-off amount was good until February 28, 2017.2 See ECF No. [44-1], at 108, 114; ECF No. [44-8]. Nevertheless, the estimated pay-off figure of $10,700 was included in the RISC and was used to calculate the total amount financed for the 2015 Infiniti. See ECF No. [44-4].

On his way home after purchasing the vehicle, Plaintiff attempted to turn on the fog lights. See ECF No. [45], at ¶ 26. The fog lights, however, did not function properly. See Id. Plaintiff proceeded to have the vehicle inspected at an Infiniti dealership, where it was discovered that the 2015 Infiniti had been painted following a repair, the bumper was being held together by a plastic zip tie, and there were missing pieces of the undercarriage that had been previously ripped off. See ECF No. [45], at ¶ 26. The total cost of the repairs was estimated to exceed $5,000. See Id.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56, summary judgment is appropriate "if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." Celotex Corp. v. Catrett , 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986) ; see also Fed. R. Civ. Pro. 56(a). The parties may support their positions by citation to the record, including, inter alia , depositions, documents, affidavits, or declarations. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). An issue is genuine if "a reasonable trier of fact could return judgment for the non-moving party." Miccosukee Tribe of Indians v. United States , 516 F.3d 1235, 1243 (11th Cir. 2008) (quoting Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc. , 477 U.S. 242, 247-48, 106 S.Ct. 2505

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Bluebook (online)
288 F. Supp. 3d 1315, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cabrera-v-haims-motors-inc-flsd-2017.