BUYER BEWARE AT BARRETT-JACKSON AUTO AUCTION

By Kent Berk on August 11th, 2012 in BLOG

For all of you auto auction junkies out there, beware. In Castle v. Barrett-Jackson Auction Company, LLC, the Arizona Court of Appeals upheld the trial court’s dismissal of a consumer fraud claim filed against the auction company by the purchaser of a 1957 Thunderbird Convertible ‘E’ Type at the January 2010 auction.

The purchaser claimed that Barrett-Jackson violated the Consumer Fraud Act by falsely representing on the Car Card that the vehicle had undergone a “professional off-body” restoration and was in drivable condition. There was no allegation that Barrett-Jackson, as opposed to the actual seller of the vehicle, made the alleged misrepresentations on the Car Card. 

The Court of Appeals ultimately determined that there were no representations made by Barrett-Jackson that pertained to the vehicle that might otherwise support a consumer fraud claim. The Court’s finding was based in large part on the Bidder Agreement that the purchaser signed prior to successfully bidding on the vehicle. In that Agreement, the purchaser acknowledged that Barrett-Jackson made no representations about any of the vehicles in the auction.