Regula v. Gerber

70 N.E.2d 662, 47 Ohio Law. Abs. 196, 34 Ohio Op. 206, 1946 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 201
CourtTuscarawas County Court of Common Pleas
DecidedNovember 4, 1946
DocketNo. 27842
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 70 N.E.2d 662 (Regula v. Gerber) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tuscarawas County Court of Common Pleas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Regula v. Gerber, 70 N.E.2d 662, 47 Ohio Law. Abs. 196, 34 Ohio Op. 206, 1946 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 201 (Ohio Super. Ct. 1946).

Opinion

OPINION

By LAMNECK, J.

The plaintiffs in this case, doing business as a partnership, seek to recovér the sum of $700.00 from the defendant which represents the balance of the purchase price of a secondhand 1940 Studebaker Commander 4-door automobile which the defendant purchased from the plaintiffs on June 3, 1946, for the sum of $760.00.

To this claim of the plaintiffs the defendant asks judgment against the pláintiffs for $86.30 representing a cash down payment on the car of $60.00, sales tax amounting to $22.80 and transfer fees of $3.50. The defendant claims that the plaintiffs impliedly warranted said automobile to be of quality and fitness for the particular purpose of transportation, and that said automobile was unfit for such purpose.

Both parties waived a trial by jury and the issue was submitted to the Court.

The evidence in this case discloses that the car in question was advertised for sale by the plaintiffs, the exact language of the advertisement not having been shown, but the advertisement included the description of the car as to make and model and that the price was within the O. P. A. ceiling; that in response to the advertisement the defendant called at the plaintiffs’ place of business on June 3, 1946, and inquired about the car advertised; that he was shown the car by Lewis R. Regula, one of the partners, and was given a ride therein for several city blocks or about a quarter of a mile; that the said Lewis R: Regula after explaining to the defendant that there were two O. P. A. ceiling prices for a used car, viz. a low ceiling price and a high ceiling price, then told the defendant that the low ceiling price on this particular car was $760.00 and the high ceiling price was $910.00; that the said Lewis R. Regula then showed the defendant a printed book containing O. P. A. ceiling prices for automobiles and which included the prices quoted by him, and which also showed that a low ceiling price was a sale without warranty and that a high ceiling price included a warranty; that after some consideration the defendant said 'hie would take the car for $760.00, which was accepted, and made a deposit of $60.00 in cash on the sale, plus the sales tax and transfer fees; that on the next day, June 4, 1946, the defendant returned and gave the plaintiffs a check for $700.00 [198]*198and drove the car away; that after he had driven the car several miles on his way home and while going up a hill, it began to knock and continued to knock with increased intensity until he arrived home, a distance of ten miles; that the defendant shortly thereafter called an automobile mechanic who inspected the car and found that two connecting rod bearings were causing the knocking and that the car was entirely unfit to be used for transportation without being repaired; that said mechanic found a heavy grade of motor oil in the crankcase which he testified was of “50” or higher in grade; and that on June 5,1946, the defendant stopped payment on the check and had the car towed to plaintiffs’ place of business where he left the car and demanded the return of his down payment, which the plaintiffs refused.

It was not made clear from the evidence who has possession of the car at the present time.

The plaintiffs introduced evidence to show that one of their employes had greased and lubricated the car several days before the sale; that a 30 grade oil had been put in the crankcase; and that no. other oil of a higher grade had been used by them on this particular car.

Under the provisions of §8443 GC, when title to goods “has. passed to the buyer, and the buyer wrongfully neglects or refuses to pay for the goods according to the' terms of the contract of sale, the seller may maintain an action against him for the price of the goods.”

Under §8449 GC, when there is a breach of warranty by the seller, the buyer may at his election rescind the sale by promptly returning the article purchased after discovering the breach of warranty and recover the consideration paid, or he may keep the article and recover damages by reason of the breach.

Under the provisions of Sec. 8395 GC there is no implied, warranty or condition as to the quality or fitness for any particular purpose of goods supplied under a contract to selL or a sale, except as follows:

“(1) When the buyer, expressly or by implicátion, makes known to the seller the particular purpose for which the goods are required, ahd it appears that the buyer relies on the seller’s giriii or judgment, whether he be the grower or manufacturer or not, there is an implied warranty that the goods shall be reasonably fit for such purpose.
"(2) When the goods are bought by description from a seller who deals in goods of that description, whether he be the grower or manufacturer or not, there is an implied warranty that the goods shall be of merchantable quality.
[199]*199“(3.) If the buyer has examined .the goods, there is no implied warranty as regards defects which such examination ought to have revealed.
“(4.) In the case of a contract to sell or a sale of a specified article under its patent or other trade name, there is no implied warranty as to its fitness for any particular purpose.
“(5.) An implied warranty or condition as to quality or fitness for a particular purpose may be annexed by the usage of trade.
“(6.) An express warranty or condition does not negative a warranty or condition implied under this chapter unless inconsistent therewith.”

Under these statutes, which are a part of the Uniform Sales Act which originally became effective on May 9, 1908, if the car in question in this case was sold without an implied warranty, then the plaintiffs are entitled to a judgment of $700.00.

If there was an implied warranty that the car was of “sufficient quality and fitness for the purpose of transportation,” then the defendant is entitled to a judgment for $82.80, because the evidence clearly discloses that the car was not fit for transportation, and that the defendant promptly attempted to rescind the contract of sale.

At common law the general rule is that there is no warranty implied by law on the part of the seller with respect to an article sold under the doctrine expressed in the maxim “caveat emptor” — let the buyer beware — , unless there was fraud on the part of the seller inducing the sale.

In Bayer v Winton Motor Car Co., 194 Mich. 222, 160 N. W. 642, an action by the purchaser of a secondhand automobile to recover from the seller the money claimed to have been expended by him, without any value received, for the purchase price of the car, and expenses incurred in connection therewith, the Court held there was no implied warranty in the purchase of a secondhand automobile.

There is nothing in the Uniform Sales Act, §§8381 to 8456, inclusive, GC, declaring there is no implied warranty in the sale of secondhand chattels. It is specifically provided in §8395 GC that there is no implied warranty pr condition as to quality or fitness for airy particular purpose of goods supplied ■under a contract to sell or a sale, except (then this general statement is followed by several exceptions).

It is therefore quite clear that the legislature intended this section to apply to all sales of goods, whether new or secondhand, which would include the sale of secondhand automobiles.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
70 N.E.2d 662, 47 Ohio Law. Abs. 196, 34 Ohio Op. 206, 1946 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 201, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/regula-v-gerber-ohctcompltuscar-1946.