In a huge win for Pennsylvania car purchasers, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania recently held that an arbitration clause that appeared only in the dealership’s buyer’s order or purchase contract but not the finance agreement was invalid and not enforceable. This is great news for consumers. Many dealerships put arbitration clauses in their buyer’s order or purchase contracts, but these clauses are rarely seen in finance agreements. This ruling will stop almost all attempts by dealerships to force consumers into binding arbitration.
Most people pay no attention to arbitration clauses when buying a car. Purchasers only find out when there is a problem that the arbitration clause says that they have given up their right to a jury trial and instead have to pay to have their case heard by an expensive arbitrator with no right to appeal. Dealerships used these clauses to increase the cost of going to suit and to scare consumers with legitimate problems into just giving up. Thanks to this recent ruling, consumers still have a right to a jury trial for their defective cars or fraudulent acts of dealerships even if a purchase contract tries to take away that right.
If you think you have a Lemon or a dealership committed fraud when you purchased your car, call Roseman Law Firm at 1-1-800-745-5259.