This was quite the deal. Unbelievable really, but here you judge.
How would you like to buy a car for less than $800? And not just any car, a brand new Toyota 2008 RAV4 – the price advertised was $745.
Michael wilder immediately called Toyota of Alameda.
"And said hey you got this vehicle in stock, gave them the serial number. I asked them if they offered their Internet prices and they said 'sure.' So I said I would come down there and take a look at it," said Wilder.
And it looked good, so he offered to buy it.
"When they saw the printout they said, no we can't honor that price," said Wilder.
"Now when you saw that price, $745, you couldn't have thought it was real?" asked ABC7's Michael Finney.
"Uh, no," said Wilder. "Obviously it shouldn't have been the correct price. But they have to honor Internet at $745."
"The dealer has the law behind them on this one," said attorney Mark Anderson.
Anderson is one of the most knowledgeable in the state when it comes to this area of law. He says the California Supreme Court decided just this type of case.
"They held that yes it was a contract because the ad was an offer and it was accepted, but dealers have the right to rescind the contract based on their own mistake," said Anderson.
So the dealership didn't want to talk with 7 On Your Side on camera, but it had every legal right to do as it did. In fact, the dealership even offered to buy Michael a tank of gas for his trouble.
The dealership made the same offer to a couple of other consumers who tried to buy the same RAV4.
"A tank of gas to a new car is a big difference," said Wilder.
"So you can't hold them to the deal?" asked ABC7's Michael Finney.
"Absolutely not," said Anderson.
This isn't just card dealers or big ticket items. Retailers that make a mistake are allowed to unwind the deal.
The car is actually listed at a littlebit more than $24,000.
