Dud Car Negotiation Common Facts PDF

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BOND UNIVERSITY

Dispute Resolution Centre

BOND UNIVERSITY DISPUTE RESOLUTION CENTRE

TheDudCarNegot i at i on-Common Facts Vince is the owner of a small firm called Vince Motors. He is a mechanic by trade and the main business of his firm is the repair and maintenance of motor cars. Recently, Vince has expanded his business by carrying three or four vehicles for sale. He displays the vehicles at the front area of his garage. He usually picks up the cars at auction, repairs them as necessary and sells them on through advertisements in the local weekly press. Robert is a law student who has inherited a small sum of money ($7,000) and decides that he would like to buy his first car. In the local paper he sees advertised a Ford Falcon Sedan, eight years old with a fairly high mileage on the clock. The advertised purchase price of the car is $7200. The seller is Vince Motors. Along with some of his fellow students, Robert visits the garage and sees the car out the front. The bodywork looks shiny and unscratched and in the road tests, the vehicle performed well, showing no signs of any mechanical defects. On his return to the garage, Robert asks the owner/manager of the garage (Vince) “Has the car ever been in an accident?” to which Vince replied, “Only just a small bump at the rear which we have put right; nothing to worry about”. Robert offers to pay $7000 for the car and his offer is accepted. Robert takes delivery of the car the next day. The following week he takes it in to a local auto-electrician to have a radio and CD player fitted for $500. When Robert comes to collect the car, the electrician who did the work says to him, “This one’s been in a bad accident. Looks as though the suspension and wheels are all out of alignment. Big job, it needs to be put up on a special jig to straighten out that problem”. He returns to the garage, points out the defects and asks for the return of his money. The manager of the garage refuses. “What do you expect for $7000, a Rolls Royce?” he says. He offers Robert the opportunity to swap with another car from the another at the garage. Robert is extremely annoyed as he believes he was lied too and threatens to report the garage to the Motor Traders’ Association if Vince doesn’t return his money. Vince refuses, and in anger, Robert stormed out of the garage screeching his tyres as he left. Unfortunately, Robert didn’t notice the garage cat sitting on the driveway and ran it over but didn’t stop. Vince has no family and is extremely attached to the cat. He was very emotionally upset which instantly created strong hostility towards Robert. The cat survived but Vince is now demanding that Robert pay the resulting $1,000.00 in veterinary bills or he will commence legal action. The two men are both now openly aggressive towards each other and all communications have broken down. Robert now asks you to negotiate with the garage for the return of his money.

[Adapted from D Tribe, Essential Legal Skills: Negotiation (1993) Cavendish, London © Bond University, Dispute Resolution Centre, Gold Coast, Queensland, 4229, Australia May only be reproduced or adapted with written permission and acknowledgment of source...