Dutch Miller Chevrolet Dutch Miler Chevrolet false advertising and fraud Huntington West Virginia

I am filling this complaint on this site to warn others of the deceptive and fraudulent practices of Dutch Miller Chevrolet in Huntington WV. I also hope to encourage others to file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission if they have had a similar experience at that dealership. What I describe below is exactly what the FTC describes as fraud where a car is advertised for a price to get you in the door then they try to make you pay more for it. However where Dutch Miller really screwed up here is they offered me the car for that price when I called provided I get there that night. Providing that sense of urgency is a key element of such types of fraud.

It was their reply to my Better Business Bureau that has encouraged me to post this. In essence they lied in their reply. Ignoring facts such as a direct offer articulated to me to purchase the car involved in this complaint in order to get me into the dealership. They also ignored the fact that I did in fact call them to ask about the car and the price and it was at that point I was told that I would be sold the car for that price provided I came in that night.

This issue occurred on December 15^th between 5:51pm and 6:53pm when I called Dutch Miller Chevrolet to ask about a 2017 Chevrolet Cruze LT they had listed on their website for about a week for $14, 986 plus a $500 rebate for a total of $9669 off the retail price. I place my first call at 5:51 to ask about the car, why it was discounted so much, was it a demo, red tag sale item or what. I was told by (with holding his name because this guy was just relaying information to me I believe) that he would speak with the sales manager and call me back. At 5:59 he calls me back and tells me the sales manager says I have to come down that night and I would be sold the car for that price. Being dark already I said I would rather come down the next day or on the weekend instead. I was told the price would be changed tomorrow and I had to be there tonight to get the car for that price and I would be getting “the deal of the year”. So I agreed and was told specifically to ask for Robert.

The dealership closes at 7pm so I rush down there, about a 20 minute drive. When I arrive Robert immediately starts doing paperwork for my credit and trade in. I found that very odd. I don’t know about you but other time the salesman would show you the car you asked for first. So I stop him and insist that he show me the car and test drive it. That is when he gets up and comes back less than a minute later and refuses to sell me the car unless I pay more for it. At this point I have been at the dealership maybe 5 minutes. Needless to say I was pretty angry at this. Robert also tried to get me to buy a different car (at a higher price of course) when I told him I could get a better deal at the dealership in Chapmanville and that I was only there tonight because of the offer they already made to me for that car by the sales manager. Robert offered me no explanation why I told to get there that night to buy the car if they were only going to increase the price once I arrived, so I left. I tried to call back and talk with the guy I spoke to on the phone but I was told he left already. It was 6:53 at that point.

I filled a complaint the GM about this and they would only say they would forward the complaint to the dealership and I would be hearing from their GM rep at that location. I never heard from anyone. I could only find out from GM about the middle of January 2017 that the dealership had ignored the complaint I filled with them. GM’s official response is that the dealership can do as they please since all GM does is sell them the cars. This seems like an official endorse me of fraud by GM to me. I know very well that any such partnership agreements include ethic clauses.

When I heard nothing from the dealership or their so called local GM rep at that location I called on December 19^th. I was not allowed to talk to this GM rep, instead I was handed off to Dan who dismissed me and said they were fully protected by their website disclaimers, which is completely false according to the FTC, even if they did not articulate the offer to me specifically. Dan seemed to know every detail of what happened so it seems GM and the dealership were talking yet made no attempt to reach out to me in anyway. But I will not let them get away with this. The way they went about this in such a direct manner shows me that this is something they are comfortable doing and it was not the first time. I hope to encourage others to file an FTC complaint. With enough complaints the FTC will get involved and stop them.