# Refundable Deposit in AZ?



## kpt6 (Nov 29, 2010)

Hey everyone, 

I put down a $5000 deposit via my credit card on an ordered car at a BMW dealership in AZ, but I have since decided to pass on buying a new car at this time due to circumstances. I made the deposit more than 8 weeks ago and the car is still not even in the US yet. I emailed the salesman I have been working with, asking him if my deposit was refundable. He said they refund deposits on cars in stock, but not cars that have been ordered. I asked him if I signed anything that said my deposit was NON-refundable and he said he would look into it and get back with me. He never got back with me, so I emailed him last week again, asking him to cancel the order and refund my deposit. I still have heard nothing back from him, (before he was responding rather quickly to my messages). On the paperwork I have, it doesn't say anywhere the deposit is non-refundable.

What do you recommend I do? I have been reading and I know in CA, FL, NY, NJ deposits are always refundable but I haven't seen anything about AZ. I have contacted my credit card co and they are sending docs for me to work on, but shouldn't the dealer just refund it?

Thank you.


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## SD ///M4 (Jan 24, 2011)

Why did you ever put down a $5,000 deposit? There's just no reason to put down this large a deposit, most people do $500 or $1,000, and some do $0, it all depends on the dealership and your relationship with them. Good luck and I hope you get your full deposit back.


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## kpt6 (Nov 29, 2010)

^Thank you. I've never ordered a new car before, so I figured the $5000 was normal until I started reading up on these forums


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## adrian's bmw (Feb 14, 2003)

Did you sign a form noting that the deposit was refundable or non-refundable? 

Did you order an out of the ordinary optioned car? Maybe that's why they asked for a $5k deposit. 

They might refund it once the ordered car gets sold to someone else if it stays in stock a long time. 

Most centers require large deposits on cars that they wouldn't otherwise order for stock or have a hard time selling. 

Since your CA hasn't gotten back to you, you might want to contact the new car manager instead.


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## kpt6 (Nov 29, 2010)

Thank you for the advice about contacting the new car manager.

I did not sign anything stating it was refundable or non refundable. I signed paperwork and it said I put down a $5000 deposit and the remainder was the balance due. It didn't say anything about whether the deposit was refundable or non-refundable.

I had ordered an E90 M3 AW on FR/BL/BL. 6 spd, ZCW, ZCP, moonroof, alarm, Premium Package 3 with carbon leather, and auto high beams. Optioned well- without Nav, so I'm not sure how much that would affect a buyer's decision. I wouldn't want one with nav personally.

As far as them being able to sell it, there are only 4 BMW dealers total in AZ (3 in Phoenix area and one in Tucson) and the dealer I ordered from was the only one who had remaining allocations for an e90. There is currently one new e90 M3 for sale in AZ and that is in Tucson. It's black and has DCT.


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## petriej (Jul 29, 2010)

OT: Tom, I thought I recognized your avatar. You posted it to the BMW CCA wall when they asked for pics! I'm about a half dozen pics up from yours :thumbup:


Back on topic: That must really suck for the dealer if they ordered your car on their last production allocation. I hope you get your deposit back either way!


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## SD ///M4 (Jan 24, 2011)

petriej said:


> OT: Tom, I thought I recognized your avatar. You posted it to the BMW CCA wall when they asked for pics! I'm about a half dozen pics up from yours :thumbup:


OT: Yup, that was me! Thanks for noticing!


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## JW_BMW (Oct 3, 2007)

kpt6 said:


> Thank you for the advice about contacting the new car manager.
> 
> I did not sign anything stating it was refundable or non refundable. I signed paperwork and it said I put down a $5000 deposit and the remainder was the balance due. It didn't say anything about whether the deposit was refundable or non-refundable.
> 
> ...


A 6sp M3 with no navi...one of a kind...It will sit in the showroom for many full moons.

That car is not in 150 status yet so I suggest you call (not email) the manager to tell them you are canceling asap. If they are smart they will change the order to something else before its too late. Forget the CA...now its about getting your money back and giving a chance to the dealer to modify this unit


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## admranger (Dec 24, 2005)

Which credit card did you use? If you used AMEX, then just do a chargeback if the dealer sales manager won't communicate with you. Other credit cards (Visa/MC) aren't quite as customer friendly as AMEX (which is why some retailers don't take AMEX).


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## adrian's bmw (Feb 14, 2003)

JW_BMW said:


> A 6sp M3 with no navi...one of a kind...It will sit in the showroom for many full moons.
> 
> That car is not in 150 status yet so I suggest you call (not email) the manager to tell them you are canceling asap. If they are smart they will change the order to something else before its too late. Forget the CA...now its about getting your money back and giving a chance to the dealer to modify this unit


:stupid:

And since it hasn't been built yet, there's no risk of having it in stock. Yeah, forget calling- I'd high tail it over there and get a refund.

So if anyone is looking for an E90 M3 allocation- voila! Here's one. lol Shoot, take ED on that bad boy, if they're willing.


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## [email protected] BMW (Aug 2, 2010)

Get your $ back asap!!! If the car is 111/112 status it has not been built yet... they can modify it and add nav etc.....


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## chrischeung (Sep 1, 2002)

Is it possible that the deposit is refundable - however, the OP is still liable to complete the agreement to purchase? It sounds counterintuitive, but can a dealership separate the 2 items, saying that the deposit is an act of good faith, but an agreement is an agreement irrespective of deposit? If they really choose to play hardball?


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## ard (Jul 1, 2009)

admranger said:


> Which credit card did you use? If you used AMEX, then just do a chargeback if the dealer sales manager won't communicate with you. Other credit cards (Visa/MC) aren't quite as customer friendly as AMEX (which is why some retailers don't take AMEX).


Agree. if you spend a lot of money wih your credit card, they should take care of you.

Just do a chargeback and screw the dealer.

Write a letter supporting the chargeback, state it was not "non-refundable" attach a copy of the document, tell them you've asked the dealer, attach a copy of that request.

CC the dealership

Send it all via PAPER, certified, return receipt, to the credit card company. Send the copy to the dealer the same way.

Easy


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## SD ///M4 (Jan 24, 2011)

Here's another thought. Have a friend that's an attorney? Ask him if he'll write a letter on his stationery requesting the deposit be returned. It's amazing what a letter from an attorney can do!


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## chrischeung (Sep 1, 2002)

As an Australian, I find the US concept of a deposit strange.

There doesn't seem to be any point of a deposit if it is refundable. As to the argument it shows you have money, well showing you have $5K doesn't mean you have $50K, so there is still some risk of the deal not proceding, as we're seeing here. Where I'm from, a deposit was lost (generally speaking) if you backed out of a deal. Thus deposits were generally small (say $100-$500 on a car purchase, even for $100K). Otherwise, it was generally a strong handshake between parties. If you couldn't do the deal, everyone said perhaps next time, and went on their way - things happen. The dealership was compensated for paperwork etc. through the lost deposit, give or take.

The world's become more complicated. I'm not sure if this is because of the buyers or sellers - probably a little of both. Plus the advent of easy credit. It's nostalgic to see folks like Walmart bringing back layaway. What a foreign (sic) concept - pay for something before you can get it.

I'm with the OP - $5K is too much to lose. Non-refundable deposits should be much smaller.


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## lqaddict (Dec 5, 2006)

SD 335is said:


> Why did you ever put down a $5,000 deposit? There's just no reason to put down this large a deposit, most people do $500 or $1,000, and some do $0, it all depends on the dealership and your relationship with them. Good luck and I hope you get your full deposit back.


I don't know at a Subaru dealership they took $100 on my wrx pre-order, but a BMW dealership I ordered my e90 from required $5000 non-refundable deposit.

Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Bimmer


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## Elias (Jun 26, 2005)

If its been eight weeks since you put your deposit down your car has most likely been built but you should still be able to get your deposit back. Its happened to me before and I got my deposit back no questions asked. You haven't signed any contracts yet and no product or service has been rendered so its up to you now to go there and get your money back. 


Btw don't expect any warm fuzzies from the dealer when you go see them and good luck ordering a car from them again in the future!:tsk:


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## chrisk03 (Jun 30, 2010)

Try and check your State law, as well, especially if u signed anything that could b construed as a "nonrefundable" statement. 

My car took almost 3 months and I almost cancelled and could have gotten my deposit back based on that because the dealer had to "perform" within 8 weeks unless stated otherwise in the contract per PA law.

Otherwise go the credit card company route if they don't respond to u. Good luck.

Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using Bimmer


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## Ty Vil (Dec 19, 2002)

Weird how all the CA's knew this was going to be a "goofy" order for a car... It's like we've seen this story play out before.


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## SARAFIL (Feb 19, 2003)

chrischeung said:


> As an Australian, I find the US concept of a deposit strange.
> 
> There doesn't seem to be any point of a deposit if it is refundable. As to the argument it shows you have money, well showing you have $5K doesn't mean you have $50K, so there is still some risk of the deal not proceding, as we're seeing here. Where I'm from, a deposit was lost (generally speaking) if you backed out of a deal. Thus deposits were generally small (say $100-$500 on a car purchase, even for $100K). Otherwise, it was generally a strong handshake between parties. If you couldn't do the deal, everyone said perhaps next time, and went on their way - things happen. The dealership was compensated for paperwork etc. through the lost deposit, give or take.


doesn't prove that you have all of the money, but it shows commitment. How many people will put down $500 or $1000 or possibly more and let a dealer keep it for a few months if they have no intention to buy the car? Sure, things could still happen and you could still cancel... but they have a much better shot of getting you to take delivery if you let them hold your money.


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