SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — A confrontation erupted outside a Shepherdsville car dealership this week after a woman accused the owner of financially taking advantage of her 84-year-old mother during a vehicle purchase.
"You can get this on camera, but I'll tell you what you're gonna get too — you're gonna get a lawsuit," Rusty Mulvaney, owner of 44 Auto Mart, said during the exchange.
The dispute is centered around a deal involving an elderly woman with cognitive decline who traded in her Honda CR-V.
Dana Horrell said the conflict began May 2, when her mother went to buy a car. Horrell said her mother suffers from cognitive decline affecting memory and decision-making.
"We didn't know she was going," Horrell said.
According to Horrell, her mother traded in a paid-off 2021 Honda CR-V with 66,000 miles for $10,000.
The family said they later discovered the dealership listed the same SUV online for nearly $27,000 — more than double the trade-in amount.
A screenshot shows the 2021 Honda CR-V later listed online by 44 Auto Mart for more than $27,000. (Photo provided by Dana Horrell)
Screenshots provided by the family also show a Kelley Blue Book estimate valuing the vehicle's trade-in range between roughly $19,000 and $24,000, depending on condition.
The family believes the dealership significantly undervalued the SUV during the transaction.
A Kelley Blue Book estimate provided by the family shows the trade-in value range for the 2021 Honda CR-V. (Photo courtesy of Dana Horrell)
Horrell's mother drove home in a 2020 Hyundai Kona costing roughly $20,000.
After learning about the purchase, Horrell said she immediately contacted the dealership and told employees her mother suffers from cognitive decline and that she and her sisters have power of attorney.
"I was basically told that was 'too bad,' that the deal was final," Horrell said.
Horrell said the family believed her mother shouldn't have completed the transaction on her own because of her cognitive condition.
Because of those concerns, Horrell returned to the dealership May 11 hoping to get her mother's Honda back.
Mulvaney refused to return the Honda, Horrell said, after her mother said she liked the replacement vehicle.
"He immediately said he's not going to give her Honda back to her and that our only option would be to renegotiate the deal," Horrell said.
The family said they ultimately agreed to an even trade between the two vehicles. Mulvaney said he paid the transfer fees and sales tax.
Mulvaney disputed Horrell's version of events.
"You can't be in business 38 years and treat people bad," Mulvaney said. "Some people don't want their parents making decisions."
Mulvaney declined to discuss the difference between what the dealership paid for the Honda and what it later listed the SUV for online.
"I'm not going to get into numbers," he said.
When asked whether he believed the original deal was fair, Mulvaney said "As far as fair is concerned, that would be subjective."
Tensions escalated outside the dealership again this week when Mulvaney approached Horrell during an interview about the dispute.
During the confrontation, Horrell accused Mulvaney of financially taking advantage of her mother over the trade-in value of the Honda CR-V.
"Did you not financially rape my mother for $10,000?" Horrell asked.
Mulvaney denied responsibility, telling Horrell "I wasn't even here."
The two also disagreed over who proposed the renegotiated deal that ultimately resulted in the vehicles being swapped back evenly. Horrell said Mulvaney gave her "no other choice," while Mulvaney claims Horrell made the offer herself.
Another family speaks out
Horrell's family isn't the only one raising concerns.
Neal Bennett said he believed he was purchasing a 2016 Chevrolet Silverado for $38,000 before applying his down payment and trading in his 2018 Chevrolet Equinox.
"I bought 11 trucks in my life," Bennett said. "I go thru 'em pretty good because I was a brick layer."
Bennett said he later received paperwork from banks showing the loan amount was $38,000 with a 16% interest rate, despite his down payment and trade-in already being applied.
"I can't afford it," Bennett said.
Mulvaney defended the dealership's sales process and said he believed financing details were properly explained in Bennett's case.
"We go over the numbers very well with our customers," Mulvaney said.
Bennett said he left the dealership without copies of the contract paperwork, something Mulvaney disputed.
An attorney for 44 Auto Mart pointed to paperwork Bennett signed showing the financed amount.
"Right here on the contract the amount financed was given," the attorney said.
But Bennett said he signed most of the paperwork on a mouse pad and could not see the computer screen. He said he did not know the terms of the agreement until his daughter later obtained part of the paperwork.
"They keep saying it's plain as can be black and white, but I see black, blue and green," said Tara Bennett, Bennett's daughter, while referencing different ink on some of the paperwork. "And more importantly, I see everything on the back written, that I asked twice for and I did not get a copy of that paper."
Mulvaney said the dealership uses different ink colors to highlight responses on sales documents.
"We use a different color ink — every dealer does — to highlight what the response to the offer would be," he said.
The disagreement over the paperwork and financing terms between the two remains unresolved.
There are no specific federal laws regulating how dealerships interact with elderly buyers with cognitive decline.
Because of the experience, Horrell said she hopes other families pay close attention when elderly relatives make major financial decisions.
"Be your family member's advocate," she said. "Which was what we were trying to do."
The Kentucky Attorney General has an office of senior protection. It offers mediation services and investigates consumer complaints.
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