Dealer increases price on custom order after delivery

[pconroy]

Originally Posted by mgparr

Jayco is refusing to price protect the order and camping world is saying that I either accept the new price or they will be glad to let me out of the deal.

Youtube's RV sales guys have already posted about this a month or so ago. If you didn't get price protected, then the offer is to let you out of the deal.

That sounds perfectly legit to me.

Extremely disappointing?
Heck yeah.

Illegal, immoral?
Probably not!

Grumpy's right - the environment is absolutely crazy now. There are material shortages all over, prices have gone way up. No sensible manufacturer with a JIT approach to materials would eat these costs when the end is not in sight.

Also knowing that if you don't want it, there are 12 people behind you who will take it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDlNDrAr3A4

[mgparr]

Originally Posted by pconroy

Youtube's RV sales guys have already posted about this a month or so ago. If you didn't get price protected, then the offer is to let you out of the deal.

That sounds perfectly legit to me.

Extremely disappointing?
Heck yeah.

Illegal, immoral?
Probably not!

Grumpy's right - the environment is absolutely crazy now. There are material shortages all over, prices have gone way up. No sensible manufacturer with a JIT approach to materials would eat these costs when the end is not in sight.

Also knowing that if you don't want it, there are 12 people behind you who will take it.

We signed an agreement which spelled out an agreed upon price, fees, etc. We gave a non-refundable deposit. Had my situation changed, would they have let me out of the deal without loss of my deposit? If cost would have went down, would they have reduced my price? Purchase agreements are for this reason - so that both parties are clear on what is being purchased and for how much. It needs to be binding or why bother?

[mgparr]

Also, from the comments on his video:


Matt's RV Reviews
135K subscribers
Hey everyone I have 3 announcements.

1. RV Prices are going up like crazy! The RV Industry can no longer price protect on orders. (If you already placed your order dont worry you are good to go)

This Video is from May. I placed my order in January.

[Grumpy]

Originally Posted by mgparr

Also, from the comments on his video:


Matt's RV Reviews
135K subscribers
Hey everyone I have 3 announcements.

1. RV Prices are going up like crazy! The RV Industry can no longer price protect on orders. (If you already placed your order dont worry you are good to go)

This Video is from May. I placed my order in January.

But as posted from FOREST RIVER.

those without price protection should expect a price hike of some kind, if scheduled for delivery after June 1.

So who do you believe?....

[67L48]

Originally Posted by mgparr

[...] I'm not sure, even with the extra 5k (new price around 54K), that I can replicate the deal or beat it. [...]

Originally Posted by 2edgesword

[...] I guess one question is will taking the hit leave a long term bitter taste in your mouth? Every time you see the trailer are you going to be think "I was played"?[...]

If the first comment in the OP is correct, then this is all about principle, as articulated in sword's hypothetical question -- and it's a fair point..

Your old deal looks to be gone. So, you can pay $5K more and get the trailer your ordered or you can go elsewhere an pay >$5K more (and the wait) to get the trailer.

That's a fairly personal decision. There are some who would pay 2x more elsewhere out of principle; others would take the best financial deal and simply hold a grudge against the dealership. That's really up to you.

The lawsuit thing is tricky without seeing what you actually signed. Generally speaking, advertised prices are seen legally as an enticement to the public to make an offer to buy and, strangely, not an offer to sell. Thus, the seller has a right to reject an offer to buy, even if that offer meets the advertised price. It's part of why stores aren't obligated to honor mistakenly advertised prices and why people can sell their homes for more than their listed price.

In this case, what did you sign and what was the express written legal obligations on what you signed? Lots of times, people and dealerships will sign all kinds of pieces of paper that have no legal standing. If there was a piece of paper with $67,219 on it with a bunch of signatures, that may not mean much.

The courts will generally attempt to make a person whole. That usually means dissolving the contract and returning parties back to where they started. Usually, exceptions to this would be specifically governed by express contractual language that discussed other remedies in cases of breach.

I'm not a lawyer, but I would expect that the best you could do is to recover any deposits you made. I doubt that a court would compel the sale of real property without some pretty customer-friendly contract language on the docs you signed.

But, I could definitely be wrong. Laypeople often overlay their own personal sense of right/wrong onto these legal issues, which usually isn't the way things work; laws can be counterintuitive in many cases. There is no such thing as common sense. If there were, then we wouldn't need laws.

Good luck.

[pconroy]

Originally Posted by mgparr

We signed an agreement which spelled out an agreed upon price, fees, etc. We gave a non-refundable deposit. Had my situation changed, would they have let me out of the deal without loss of my deposit? If cost would have went down, would they have reduced my price? Purchase agreements are for this reason - so that both parties are clear on what is being purchased and for how much. It needs to be binding or why bother?

I came across as being critical - that wasn't my intent. I apologize. It was more to share some other information that corroborates your experience.

Again, my guess is that price increases are there in the fine print some place. But that's just a guess. In any event, you do have my sympathy! And you're in a very difficult spot.

These things are the Gift That Keeps Giving... It's clearly a horrible time to buy a motorhome, find a camp site, rent a car, buy a house out here, etc.

[TaftCoach]

It doesn't cost much to have an attorney read over the contract. Usually $150 or so. Those contracts are usually very one sided in favor of who is writing it. I wouldn't be surprised if there are provisions for a price increase. If the attorney thinks you can win it doesn't cost much to have them write a letter. The costs don't get too crazy unless you get to the point of suing Camping World.

A couple phone calls to other dealers with your original price in mind will reveal what the market is. Then you have a decision, buy at the price they are offering or walk away. Their profit percentage actually drops by not marking up the increase, so they are helping you out a little.

[TaftCoach]

No force majeure clause?

[67L48]

Originally Posted by TaftCoach

No force majeure clause?

Force majeure is probably at the statute level and would only allow the OP to reclaim his deposit.

That is, a verifiable tornado just blew through my neighborhood and took out my home. Therefore, I'm not in a position to buy recreational items right now. And, by virtue of a state law/statute, I'm able to reclaim my non refundable deposit. Force majeure is a way to undo the deal and return people to the pre-deal state without penalty.

But, that's not even a problem here. The dealership has already offered to unravel the deal and return the deposit, thus making the OP whole. OP doesn't want his deposit ... he wants the dealership to honor the original deal, even though the factory cost structure changed dramatically in the interim (and I'd want that if I were the OP, too).

Ultimately, the conversation sort of conflates the questions around legality with the questions around integrity/character. You can think the dealership slimy and rotten, but I doubt very much that there's a legal way to compel the dealership to take part in this commercial transaction.

[jpgale]

I understand not wanting to get a lawyer involved they can be expensive. However it is best to know if you have a clause allowing the price increase. It should not cost you $5k to have a lawyer review it, and you can always call and get a price to do so. So I would spend a few hundred to talk to a lawyer and find out if the contract is price protected or not. You can then make the decision based upon that information.

[curver900]

IF you have a signed contract with a dollar amount and no clause that says they can change the price, it is a contract they have to honor regardless. you don't need a lawyer.

I would tell them see you in court you and I have a signed contract whatever is withing the boarders of that contract is legal and binding by BOTH parties...

I would take them to court myself... what do you have to loose? $5k is small claims court... and you have a contract..unless they have a special judge you should be fine... file i bet they go oh okay ...

[TaftCoach]

Originally Posted by curver900

IF you have a signed contract with a dollar amount and no clause that says they can change the price, it is a contract they have to honor regardless. you don't need a lawyer.

I would tell them see you in court you and I have a signed contract whatever is withing the boarders of that contract is legal and binding by BOTH parties...

I would take them to court myself... what do you have to loose? $5k is small claims court... and you have a contract..unless they have a special judge you should be fine... file i bet they go oh okay ...

Are you certain a $50,000 RV contract can be settled in small claims court? While there is a difference in the purchase price of $5,000, you would be trying to have enforced the original sales agreement.

[pconroy]

Originally Posted by 67L48

Ultimately, the conversation sort of conflates the questions around legality with the questions around integrity/character. You can think the dealership slimy and rotten, but I doubt very much that there's a legal way to compel the dealership to take part in this commercial transaction.

For the sheer tens of thousands of trailers sold by Camping World (and other dealers) I'm willing to bet a nice hamburger that the dealer's contract is iron-clad.


If not originally written with language to address supply chain problems, then I'm sure it was amended sometime in early 2020.


Again, I hope I'm wrong and I hope the dealer Sees the Light of Negative Publicity and does honor the original price.

[corv65]

Seems to me that Jayco and the Jayco dealer should have been up front before there was a "contract " signed. The dealer sent the builder the work order it's there job to look it over and make the corrections and inform the customer. I believe you have a binding contract and a good lawyer should be able to get your trailer his fees . I would first contact Marcus Lemonis

[Scottenj]

Originally Posted by mgparr

Curious what you guys would do if you were in my situation. We did a custom order for an Eagle HT 31MB back in January. After multiple delays, the RV arrived at the dealer last week. Jayco raised the price on the unit to the dealer (camping world) by over 5000 and the dealer is passing the entire increase down to me. There is nothing in our signed documents stating that we are liable for the price increase.

We have a signed purchased agreement, signed build sheet, and signed receipt for a deposit (which they told me was non-refundable at the time). None of which they are wanting to honor. Jayco is refusing to price protect the order and camping world is saying that I either accept the new price or they will be glad to let me out of the deal.

The discount was strong (msrp with options around 64k with an all in out the door price of 47K) when I negotiated the deal and I'm not sure, even with the extra 5k (new price around 54K), that I can replicate the deal or beat it.

I'm the type of guy that likes to fight for what's right but they win if I walk away (probably make more money) or if I pay the increased price. Everyone likes to talk about attorney's and I am debating it. The cost of following through with a threat like that may be more than the 5k though.

I would sit down with a lawyer and have the lawyer tell you whether you have a case. If you have a signed purchase and sale agreement I would think it would be straight forward unless there is some opt out clause for them. A lot of lawyers don’t charge for an initial consult.

I had a problem with my camper, I talked to a lawyer, he said the law in my state was completely on my side, he wrote a letter to the dealer and Jayco and they both immediately caved in.

If the purchase and sale is binding and you have to go to court make them pay your legal fees too. I am always amazed at how people on this forum roll over for Jayco and the dealers, they told me not to get a lawyer I did and it saved me a bunch of money. The other thing is companies like Jayco will never change if people let them get away with unfair business practices.

[67L48]

Originally Posted by Scottenj

[...] If the purchase and sale is binding and you have to go to court make them pay your legal fees too. [...]

That's not how that works. You don't just make someone pay your legal fees. The US justice system doesn't work in a winner-take-all scenario. Each side pays its own legal fees, win or lose, except when specifically governed by a contract (unlikely here) or when governed specifically by a statute (unlikely here).

And, outside of applying leverage to CW to cave in, eat the $5K, and give the OP his original deal, what case do you think the OP has? If adjudicated, where do you think this lands? Do you think the judge forces a commercial transaction of personal property? Do you believe that he would oversee the exchange of money from the OP to the dealership for the trailer? You believe the court would compel a specific commercial transaction?

The judge/court would only do what the dealership is already offering: unravel the deal due to breach and ensure that the plaintiff (OP) was made whole through the return of his deposit.

There literally are no additional damages to the OP to be awarded. You don't get compensated for lost time, aggravation, frustration, etc. Your damages must be real and not theoretical.

[Scottenj]

Originally Posted by 67L48

That's not how that works. You don't just make someone pay your legal fees. The US justice system doesn't work in a winner-take-all scenario. Each side pays its own legal fees, win or lose, except when specifically governed by a contract (unlikely here) or when governed specifically by a statute (unlikely here).

And, outside of applying leverage to CW to cave in, eat the $5K, and give the OP his original deal, what case do you think the OP has? If adjudicated, where do you think this lands? Do you think the judge forces a commercial transaction of personal property? Do you believe that he would oversee the exchange of money from the OP to the dealership for the trailer? You believe the court would compel a specific commercial transaction?

The judge/court would only do what the dealership is already offering: unravel the deal due to breach and ensure that the plaintiff (OP) was made whole through the return of his deposit.

There literally are no additional damages to the OP to be awarded. You don't get compensated for lost time, aggravation, frustration, etc. Your damages must be real and not theoretical.

The first thing I said was consult a lawyer, a lot of lawyers will do an initial consult for free or very little cost. If there is no opt out clause a purchase and sale agreement is a legally binding contract.

If there is no out clause I would expect a judge would order the dealer/and or Jayco to honor the original price. Judges force people to honor contracts all the time, it is literally their job in civil court to enforce agreements.

[mgparr]

Hey folks,

Just wanted to say thanks for the opinions and comments. I'm working on this from a couple of different angles and will update this post as/when the situation plays out.

MGP

[Scottenj]

Originally Posted by 67L48

That's not how that works. You don't just make someone pay your legal fees. The US justice system doesn't work in a winner-take-all scenario. Each side pays its own legal fees, win or lose, except when specifically governed by a contract (unlikely here) or when governed specifically by a statute (unlikely here).

And, outside of applying leverage to CW to cave in, eat the $5K, and give the OP his original deal, what case do you think the OP has? If adjudicated, where do you think this lands? Do you think the judge forces a commercial transaction of personal property? Do you believe that he would oversee the exchange of money from the OP to the dealership for the trailer? You believe the court would compel a specific commercial transaction?

The judge/court would only do what the dealership is already offering: unravel the deal due to breach and ensure that the plaintiff (OP) was made whole through the return of his deposit.

There literally are no additional damages to the OP to be awarded. You don't get compensated for lost time, aggravation, frustration, etc. Your damages must be real and not theoretical.

Another comment on this, in my case I had a warrantee dispute. Its a long story but due to how I bought my unit they didn't want to provide a warrantee. My lawyer said under the laws of my state I automatically get a warrantee unless it is specifically precluded in the purchase and sale and it wasn't. He also told me if we went to court under the state law I would recover my repair costs and triple damages!

[Grumpy]

Originally Posted by Scottenj

My lawyer said under the laws of my state

Bingo....every state is different that is why discussing legal options on a National forum is ludicrous.