A disabled man living on a low, fixed income with no bank account walked into a Tri-Cities car dealership in June 2021.
He drove off in a used Toyota RAV4 after signing a sales agreement packed with nearly $54,000 in dealer add-ons, according to a lawsuit filed in Benton County Superior Court.
The lawsuit also claims that Toyota of Tri-Cities in Kennewick, committed loan fraud to get Brian Hoffman, 63, financing for the used 2021 SUV.
And it wasn’t the only local dealership that tried to sell Hoffman a car, despite it being “plainly evident to anyone who interacts with him even for a short period of time” that he is fully disabled, according to the lawsuit filed by his sister.
Within months of getting the SUV, Hoffman thought he should have a different car and tried to trade it in.
Other Tri-Cities car dealerships tried unsuccessfully to arrange a loan to sell him another car, according to the lawsuit.
Just one dealership reached out to his family or caseworker to check if Hoffman should be buying a car.
Hoffman’s purchase of the SUV prompted his sister, Lisa Nealey of Redmond, Wash., to become his full guardian, over his strong objections.
Hoffman, who has schizophrenia, has never had a job and before June 2021 was living on Social Security Disability and Supplemental Security Income totaling $814 a month.
In June 2021, he was awarded a benefit from the Railroad Retirement Board because his late mother had worked for Burlington Northern and he had become disabled before...
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