KENNESAW, Ga. — A north Georgia family claims a metro Atlanta car dealership took advantage of their elderly loved one, who they say has dementia, after he was sold a nearly $90,000 truck.
The dealership disputes the allegation and says the matter has already been resolved.
The family says a salesperson with Carl Black GMC of Kennesaw traveled about 40 minutes to the man’s home in Hiram, picked him up and brought him back to the dealership, where he purchased the vehicle. They say the man later drove the truck miles back home on his own, alarming relatives who say he rarely drives.
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Jamie Faulkner, the man’s stepdaughter, said her family was shocked to see the expensive truck in his driveway. She said her stepfather, a former GMC employee, occasionally visited dealerships to look at vehicles but was not capable of negotiating a major purchase.
“He was in no condition to be negotiating the sale,” Faulkner said, adding that her stepfather has dementia and drives only rarely.
Faulkner said doorbell camera video shows a salesman arriving at the man’s home before taking him back to the dealership. She said the salesman convinced him to trade in his 2017 Nissan Frontier for $11,000 as part of the deal.
After learning of the purchase, the family said they immediately tried to reverse the sale. Faulkner said the family returned the truck, but the dealership had already sold the trade-in and later sold the GMC truck to another dealership.
“It makes us all angry that somebody has taken advantage of an elderly person,” Faulkner said.
She said the family wants the man’s money returned, including the trade-in values and has filed a complaint with the state.
The dealership declined to speak on the record but provided a statement through its attorney disputing the family’s claims.
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According to the attorney, when the man purchased the vehicle on Nov. 12, he “did not appear to be impaired in any way, or lacking the capacity to purchase a motor vehicle.” The statement says the man drove himself off the lot after the purchase, without a caretaker or personal representative present.
The attorney also said that on or about Nov. 25, representatives from Carl Black Kennesaw met with the man and his family and reached a resolution that included the dealership buying back the vehicle.
The statement says all necessary paperwork was signed at that meeting and that the family was informed the dealership needed to receive the vehicle’s certificate of title before issuing a refund check.
According to the statement, the dealership contacted the man on or about Dec. 20 and informed him that a check for the purchase price of the vehicle was available for pickup.
“As the matter has been fully resolved with Mr. Dow, it is unclear to Carl Black Kennesaw as to why Mr. Dow’s family has chosen to contact the media,” the statement said.
Faulkner disputes that the situation has been fully resolved, saying the dealership has made an offer that includes conditions she believes are unfair.
She also said the dealership told the family the salesperson involved had been fired, though she claims his name still appears on the company’s website.
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