shallowmage
New Member
I'd appreciate any help I can get.
My husband sold his vehicle to a woman in Dec. 2010. The woman didn't have the money upfront so she convinced my husband to let her make payments after a $2000 down payment. (I know, I know...what was he thinking???) I wrote up a contract, gave it to him and told him to make sure she signed it and understood what was on it. She was to make weekly payments of $100 until she paid the remaining $1200. My husband GAVE her the title because of registration purposes. (Again, I know...why didn't he put a lien on it??) Her first payment was to be made Jan 3, 2011. Mind you all of this is written in the contract. The contract also stated that if she didn't make payments within 7 days of the due date, we had the right to request full payment of the remaining amount or take the vehicle back if full payment was not made.
A few days before Jan. 3, she calls my husband and says that she has spent a ton of money "fixing the car" and asks to start making payments in February. My husband, being the nice guy he is, agrees. February 1st rolls around and when my husband calls to establish payments, she says that she has had a family emergency and needs to go out of town and doesn't have the money. She asks to start making payments in March. We didn't really have a choice in the matter, so my husband agrees. March 1st is now here and my husband again contacts her to make payment. Now she isn't answering her phone. My husband decided to go to her workplace and meet her there.
After waiting for about 45 minutes, she shows up, she gives him $100, after mouthing off to her boss, and that was that. The next day my husband gets a phone call from her fiance. After a long conversation (there was no argument) the fiance told my husband that he will be the one taking care of the payments from there on. We received payment for the next two weeks (from her fiance)with a little hassle but nothing crazy.
The following week, they are not answering phone calls and sending them straight to VM. She finally called my husband back on a Sunday afternoon to tell him that she has been talking to lawyers, the contract doesn't mean anything and she isn't "going to pay sh*t". Those were her exact words.
I found a place here in our city that hosts dispute resolution and mediation for cases such as this for free. I figured this would be a good approach. After going through that process she refused to go. She told the mediator over the phone that my husband told her she didn't have to pay anything else after he handed over the title (yet they made 3 payments afterward, three months later) and also, if we sued her she was going to countersue my husband for harassment because he showed up at her workplace and because he called her fiance. Again, her fiance contacted my husband...my husband had no way of knowing his phone number up until then.
So, I know our next step is to take her to small claims. Do we have a legitimate case even though she has the title? Can we legally get the vehicle back if she doesn't pay? Can my husband really be countersued for harassment? What are the terms of harassment in Texas? Any other advice would be greatly appreciated.
My husband sold his vehicle to a woman in Dec. 2010. The woman didn't have the money upfront so she convinced my husband to let her make payments after a $2000 down payment. (I know, I know...what was he thinking???) I wrote up a contract, gave it to him and told him to make sure she signed it and understood what was on it. She was to make weekly payments of $100 until she paid the remaining $1200. My husband GAVE her the title because of registration purposes. (Again, I know...why didn't he put a lien on it??) Her first payment was to be made Jan 3, 2011. Mind you all of this is written in the contract. The contract also stated that if she didn't make payments within 7 days of the due date, we had the right to request full payment of the remaining amount or take the vehicle back if full payment was not made.
A few days before Jan. 3, she calls my husband and says that she has spent a ton of money "fixing the car" and asks to start making payments in February. My husband, being the nice guy he is, agrees. February 1st rolls around and when my husband calls to establish payments, she says that she has had a family emergency and needs to go out of town and doesn't have the money. She asks to start making payments in March. We didn't really have a choice in the matter, so my husband agrees. March 1st is now here and my husband again contacts her to make payment. Now she isn't answering her phone. My husband decided to go to her workplace and meet her there.
After waiting for about 45 minutes, she shows up, she gives him $100, after mouthing off to her boss, and that was that. The next day my husband gets a phone call from her fiance. After a long conversation (there was no argument) the fiance told my husband that he will be the one taking care of the payments from there on. We received payment for the next two weeks (from her fiance)with a little hassle but nothing crazy.
The following week, they are not answering phone calls and sending them straight to VM. She finally called my husband back on a Sunday afternoon to tell him that she has been talking to lawyers, the contract doesn't mean anything and she isn't "going to pay sh*t". Those were her exact words.
I found a place here in our city that hosts dispute resolution and mediation for cases such as this for free. I figured this would be a good approach. After going through that process she refused to go. She told the mediator over the phone that my husband told her she didn't have to pay anything else after he handed over the title (yet they made 3 payments afterward, three months later) and also, if we sued her she was going to countersue my husband for harassment because he showed up at her workplace and because he called her fiance. Again, her fiance contacted my husband...my husband had no way of knowing his phone number up until then.
So, I know our next step is to take her to small claims. Do we have a legitimate case even though she has the title? Can we legally get the vehicle back if she doesn't pay? Can my husband really be countersued for harassment? What are the terms of harassment in Texas? Any other advice would be greatly appreciated.
