Appeals Court Rejects Carvana’s Arguments to Avoid Court Review of Its Unfair or Deceptive Conduct

Last year we reported to you that the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit was considering Carvana’s effort to avoid judicial review of its practice and custom to sell cars for which it could not provide timely registration and title.  CARVANA APPEAL PENDING BEFORE THE THIRD CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS (marylandconsumer.com).

Recently the appeals court denied Carvana’s effort and Carvana now faces the prospect that its conduct will be presented to a jury of Pennsylvania citizens In its decision, the appeals court affirmed the trial court ruling against  Carvana’s effort to avoid accountability for its actions in a public court proceeding.  In sum, Carvana sought to have a private arbitrator pre-selected by it to review its pattern and practice of selling vehicles without proper title and registration.

The Third Circuit’s rejection of Carvana’s arguments upheld principles of basic contract law. It explained:

“The language of the statute is clear: ‘when a buyer makes a purchase of a vehicle by installment sale, the Retail Installment Sales Contract subsumes all other agreements relating to the sale.’ …Thus, no other ‘agreement’ is enforceable as part of the unless it is included in the Retail Installment Sales Contract.”

If you have been harmed by Carvana’s practices and would like updates about these and other related matters, please complete this survey.  As this action proceeds, we will keep you abreast of any changes.