Advice needed asap - possible fraud – Used Car purchase

I am waiting to hear from a UCDA dealer/garage to pick up my car today

Have a sales contract and put a $500 down payment from a licensed UCDA dealer in the area on Friday. Good deal and 3 month warranty.

I expressed that I needed the car ASAP, they said it would be ready today. I need a car for work – I'm out in the sticks and start my job Monday. They said it would be ready today. Anyways I am now second guessing my choice – see below.

I'm thinking of cancelling with him now, and looking for another car – which absolutely sucks BTW at my price point – $6k max, is difficult to find a "decent" car.

Here's the bullet points:

I put a deposit down ($500 on a 6K car) on a car from a used dealer/garage Friday.

Supposed to be certified, 3 month warranty ready today. Everything checked out great, good deal.

I checked in yesterday, and did a search on google and it says SHOP CLOSED indefinitely. Maybe I didn't notice this when I went there initially. but according to Gemini, it has been closed most likely over the weekend or recent.

Contacted him, he's very short and says GOOGLE was hacked, says it's being certified and ready to go.

Texted him this morning asking for ETA details etc. Nothing. 

Called him about 30 minutes ago – Nothing.

Next steps:

I'm going to text him if I do not hear from him by 1 today.

If he does not get back to me by 2pm today, I will be assuming the deal is off and seeking a refund on the deposit (chargeback from bank etc), and contacting UCDA and/or seeking legal action.

I don't want to be a dick, but I was very upfront with my needs etc.

Is there a chance I could lose my deposit? Should I wait until EOD to pursue the chargeback and anything else?

My feeling is they have gone out of business, and they figured they'd get some cash prior if they could.

Posted Mar 5, 2026, 4:48 PM UTC

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