NC Department of Justice VehComplaintID 1197
False advertising complaint filed 8-19-2011 with the North Carolina Dept of Justice against Mark Jacobson Toyota of Durham NC and Toyota USA Attached to complaint was Title application showing Prius III, screen shot of Google search for VIN showing the car advertised as a Prius III and the sales contract.
Mark Jacobson Toyota of Durham NC is engaged in ongoing false advertising. On their website they claim to guarantee complete customer satisfaction which is not true. My case alone is proof of that.
On 6-25-2011 I was sold a 2011 Toyota Prius II that was stated by the sales person and everyone involved to be a Prius III for $29714.40 A few days later I discovered it to only be a Prius 2 even though they even stated Prius III on the title documentation.
I have a web printout of a Google search of the VIN that shows them advertising it as a Prius III. While not denying their false advertising they only offered to roll back the deal. That was unacceptable to us because of the time and effort in securing financing and that there were no other low mileage Prius models available.
The dealership was well aware of the time and energy we had spent obtaining financing and they were aware that there were no low mileage or new Prius cars available so they knew that their offer to roll back the deal would not be acceptable.
To establish that an advertisement is false, a plaintiff must prove five things: (1) a false statement of fact has been made about the advertiser's own or another person's goods, services, or commercial activity; (2) the statement either deceives or has the potential to deceive a substantial portion of its targeted audience; (3) the deception is also likely to affect the purchasing decisions of its audience; (4) the advertising involves goods or services in interstate commerce; and (5) the deception has either resulted in or is likely to result in injury to the plaintiff...
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