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Luxury Motors says consumers who pay a deposit are securing the price of a car, not necessarily the car on the dealer's lot at the time of the deposit. This policy is stated on the dealer's deposit agreement. In the case of the Florida customer, the attorney general's office says he was not aware of the deposit policy.
"That's not true," says Dave Rafus, vice-president of Luxury Motors' Bentley dealership in Downers Grove, who says he knows the customer in question.
Mr. Rafus points to the clause on Luxury Motors' standard deposit agreement. "Ninety-nine percent of people understand (the policy), but there is always the 1% who doesn't," Mr. Rafus says.
Joe Abbas, Luxury Motors' president, says some of the complaints about deposits stem from consumers who are unable to arrange financing for a car and are angered when the car is sold. "If a guy makes me wait three or four weeks and I'm paying interest on a car, that's not fair. We can't have one guy take it off the market," says Mr. Abbas. "We give that (deposit) money back."
DEALER A GIANT HERE
Luxury Motors is a giant in Chicago, selling 7,000 cars valued at $225 million last year. A Bentley spokeswoman says Luxury is "one of the largest" Bentley dealers in the U.S., and that the dealer is in good standing with the automaker. According to a Bentley survey, Luxury's consumer satisfaction score was 95 out of 100 last year, compared with a regional average of 94.2.
Allegations by consumers and in numerous lawsuits against Luxury Motors seem to center on Luxury's used-car business. Those complaints include failure to deliver a title promptly, failure to disclose a vehicle's history and selling cars with nullified warranties.
A customer from Green Bay, Wis., bought a 2000 Mercedes E320 from Luxury for $21,069 in cash on Oct. 27, according to a bill of sale provided by the customer, who declined to be identified and has not sued Luxury Motors. Mr. Abbas says the customer didn't receive the title until Jan. 21. A dealer has 20 days after a sale to submit title paperwork to the state for processing, according to Jim Kazimour, commander of the secretary of state police in Cook, Lake and DuPage counties.
"We expanded our offices and moved to a bigger one. We went from six people to 22 people in our office and we were just overwhelmed," says Mr. Abbas. "We had the title on Nov. 11, and we lost it in the move."
Mr. Rafus says the dealership has hired new workers to address the problems. "I just added another person who's just a librarian for titles. That's all they do is track titles," he says.
The Illinois attorney general's office says it has received about 50 consumer complaints against Luxury Motors Inc. since 2000. Photo: Brett Kramer
SUITS PENDING
Chicago law firm Krohn & Moss Ltd. is pursuing eight cases against Luxury, all in DuPage County Circuit Court. "I would say that's a lot," says firm partner Adam Krohn. "I can't think of another dealer we have eight with."
One of Mr. Krohn's clients alleges Luxury failed to pay off the loan on his trade-in car, damaging the client's credit rating. Another claims he bought a defective car that Luxury had already repurchased from another customer under lemon laws. Another client alleges he bought a car he thought was under warranty but, after a $3,100 repair bill, discovered was no longer covered. All of the cases are pending. Luxury denies any wrongdoing in connection with the Krohn & Moss lawsuits.
"There are some people no matter what you do you can't make them happy," Mr. Abbas says. "Worst case, we tell the customer we will take the car back. There is not one complaint that hasn't been answered yet."
The Better Business Bureau has collected 47 complaints on Luxury in the last 36 months, 16 of which are unresolved, according to a business bureau spokesman. The business bureau says the remaining 31 complaints have been resolved, which in most cases happens through mediation. Mr. Abbas says he has tried to make good on all complaints.
The Illinois secretary of state police, charged with inspecting businesses for compliance with licensing requirements, has not had any complaints about Luxury Motors, nor is the dealership on the police's "hot list" of problem dealers. "If there was something glaring, they would be on our hot list," according to Mr. Kazimour, the secretary of state police commander.
The attorney general's office took 16 actions against car dealers in Illinois in 2004, according to the spokeswoman.
