Is there a law that will protect the consumer from losing an ordering deposit or will it just be up to the good will of the dealership?

They told me that it was not refundable and followed up with a story of an order for an Auto Cooper S JCW with ALL the options thatwas in the 40's that the people chose not to get. The dealer refused to give them the money back.
I told them that i was uncomfortable with the notion that it was not refundable, the MA went to ask the manager, came back and said that it was refundable.
In speaking with another NAM member that ordered from the same dealership, she was told that it was refundable...

 

Interesting that you should mention that...

When I put down my deposit (August 2nd), I was told it was refundable until the point I finalized the options and the order was oficially sent in to MINI (production number issued etc).

I got my paperwork from MINI this week advertising MINI finacncing. The paperwork stated that if I decided against the car, that my deposit would be refunded. I didn't think much of it, since I anticipate taking the car home, of course.

I think it's just what some dealors say in order to limit placing orders on cars that never get picked up. Seems that MINI corporate supports a refund in that situation. Then again, MINI corporate doesn't seem to like dealor mark-ups, either. So...

 

Sorry your experience there was less than optimal. It seems no one over there knows what's going on.

Believe me, the deposit is refundable. The only thing the deposit gets you is a place in line. It does not guarantee you the car even after it arrives. You're doing the dealership's work by creating a configuration and ordering it. In fact, I believe once the car arrives the dealership only gives you 48 hours to retrieve it before they make it available for purchase by the public.

So, no worries.

 

Signed off on a deposit form it had the same restrictions like msh441.. if it didnt match all my options i could get a refund and reject the car.

 

My deposit was fully refundable all the way up until the car arrived. If it arrived and I decided I did not want it...my deposit was to be refunded on the spot. Of course I didn't change my mind but it was in the contract that I signed at the time of order and placing my deposit. I have heard that other dealers have their own thoughts about deposits though.

 

Any dealer worth a salt will refund rather than risk all the bad publicity of an unhappy customer, just plunking down $500 or so upfront is enough to scare off the lookey loos.

 

Your Dealer is Full of S**T you can't get a MCS JCW with an auto trans.

 

Maybe kook meant to say "an Auto Cooper S with all the JCW options availible"... vs. a Cooper JCW Auto.

 

I would put the smallest amount down possible. For me it was $500. I had them write refundable on the receipt. If I had to leave a non-refundable deposit I would've walked out.

 

The order sheet and receipt both at the local dealership specifically state "non-refundable" if you back out of your order after a production number has been assigned. In pretty big letters so you can't miss it.

 

Would you believe the dealer took our order WITHOUT a deposit? I think their reasoning was that I was ordering a good color (red), in a very saleable configuration (6-speed sunroof S). My options are pretty normal, too--Premium, Sport, and Cold Weather. So, if I should back out on the car when it comes in Monday, they wouldn't have a problem selling it.

Strange, though--the last new car I bought--a BMW--had to be completely prepaid weeks before we got it! And it's the same dealer family.

 

Well i had to sign off on a deposit form, but I mean the money never left my account.. so I had no issues. I still have the deposit in my account lol.

 

I never signed anything when I ordered mine. Never got an order form or anything.

 

I feel a little dumb about this deposit situation.

I was told that my deposit was non-refundable if I decide to cancel the order, etc and its my understanding that this is a deposit to order the car, not a down payment. Since I decided to go with my own financing, I have the option to apply the deposit towards the price of the car (which does not make since if I'm financing elsewhere) or they would hand my check back. Imagine my surprise when they cashed the check. So, now I feel dumb because I have no deposit and my car is still at the VDC and I should have known better than the trust that they would give me back my check. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

 

Just because they cashed your check doesn't mean that you won't get the money back. Should you decide that the car is not what you ordered or issues came up prior to delivery ie. personal issues, or VDC issues (it happens). The $1,000 will act as a down payment if you choose to take delivery (reducing the cost of the car), in effect reducing the amount of financing you will need.

If you're not happy with how things are going, your dealer sounds a bit off anyway, call them and tell them you want the money returned to you and you will be shopping else where.

 

I was told that if I decided I didn't want the car my $1,000 deposit would be refunded after the sale of the car. But I was certain I wanted the car when I placed the order.

 

We signed a Non-Refundable Deposit agreement, due to the options and use of dealers pre-allocation. We did not have any issue with this as this is the vehicle we want and have not suffered any buyer remorse. of course the vehicle has to pass our inspection including paint mil thickness, (no VDC Paint repairs) etc.. upon delivery - Mark

 

No law, just goodwill of the dealership.

If you are ordering an expensive MINI (a ton of options can get these cars to almost $50K) they might make you sign a non-refundable deposit agreement because they will have a hard time getting rid of it.

Other than that, most realize that plans change for whatever reason, and will give you your money back.

 

I ordered a base MC. No upgrades whatsoever. My dealer had me give a $1,000 deposit that was non refundable. When I signed the receipt there was a statement that it was non refundable once production started, and that it was highly recommended that financing be in place before handing over the deposit. Lucky for me everything went smoothly but I was NOT happy about it. These dealers have a hold of you because there are so few of them. I looked into purchasing in a different state, but I was afraid I wouldn't be treated well by the local dealer if I needed work done and hadn't purchased from them.

 

I doubt a dealer is gonna hold a grudge like that. That'd be very unprofessional.

 

It has been said that some dealers have free loaner cars limited to purchasers from their dealership.

Service and warranty should extend to any US Dealer, as MINI-USA pays them for that.

 

I'd be pretty mad if I drove the 2 hours to Phoenix (the closeted dealership to me) and didn't get a loaner car purely because I did not purchase it there. What happens if you were someone from say Washington and had just moved to nicer weather. Are you gonna end up walking home? That sounds pretty unprofessional to me.

 

I think most dealerships will not give you a MINI Loaner if you did not buy the car from them. However, they will provide you with a car from a car rental place, usually enterprise, that is free for the first 24 hours.

 

support your local dealer

 

I wish I could, but my local dealer has a $2500 non-refundable deposit.