CarMax Lawsuit Investigation Over Lemon Complaints

ClassAction.org is investigating a rising number of complaints from CarMax customers who say the used car chain sold them lemons. We’ve looked through dozens of complaints posted online from consumers who say the cars they purchased had been in accidents despite the fact that the cars were listed as “accident free” and had clean Carfax reports. CarMax customers have also complained that the company sold cars that were subject to recalls – but failed to tell consumers about them.

Complaints Against CarMax

CarMax says that its vehicles undergo a rigorous 125+ point inspection, but some consumers are claiming otherwise. Some even allege that CarMax buys damaged vehicles whose accidents were never reported to the DMV or Carfax. Here are some of their complaints [sic throughout].

“I purchased a car from CARMAX in May 2012.The car is a 2011 Mitsubishi Endeavor with a clean auto check and car fax history…I paid 19K…I took the car to CARMAX service where I found out that the…entire rear of the car had been painted from the back doors all the way around. With this much damage the car and repairs should have been reported to the dmv, carfax, and autocheck but was not. This means that according to Kelly Blue book the condition of the car was actually fair condition and only worth 11,900...” PissedConsumer.com

“I had pulled a carfax report prior to buying my vehicle, and they provided some other type of vehicle confidence check and also that was clear of any accidents or insurance claims. I had taken my vehicle in to get a dent appraised and they spotted the damage in the front end. They said my front end was all replaced with either take-offs or salvage parts…My vehicle is not worth crap to any dealership in the columbus area because they know carmax's practices. The first thing they look for is damage…” RipOffReport.com

“They also are one of the shadiest companies I've ever worked for…Carmax acts like they do all kinds of inspections and service, but they don't. The only thing they always do is oil changes. A lot of times they will do air filters too. Other then that they only replace something if it is out of spec or they can't hide it. They don't do timing belts, don't fix oil leaks unless it's dripping continously, I have actually witnessed them spraying undercoating on clamp marks (frame damage) to hide it.” AutomotiveForums.com

“CarMax sells lemons…Carmax sold us a car that had been in an accident when they told us it had not. They gave us a "car report" (that was not car fax) that said no accidents. After a year of replacing headlights and getting alignments over and over we tried to trade the car in for a new car. That's when a reputable dealer told us about a prior accident. We could not trade it in.” PissedConsumer.com

"So, Carmax of Greensboro was breaking a recently passed North Carolina law by even allowing me to drive a car with a serious safety recall in a test drive! I was so furious to think that this company doesn't care enough about customer safety to fix a recall!"ConsumerAffairs.com

These complaints are not the first time CarMax has come under fire for its business practices. In 2013, the company was accused of violating a settlement stemming from a 2008 class action lawsuit. Under the settlement, the company was required to give consumers a clear warning when for-sale vehicles had previously been used as rentals – but a Maryland judge found that the company was not abiding by this provision of the agreement.

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