N.H. proceedings anger Maine car dealer

ROCHESTER, N.H. – Car dealer Richard Belisle of Winslow, Maine, feels he’s been robbed twice: once by a New Hampshire dealer who allegedly sold cars for him and didn’t pay, and then by the New Hampshire courts, which wouldn’t let him repossess the vehicles to recover his losses.

“I’m done doing business in New Hampshire,” Belisle said. “It’s just been a terrible experience.”

Belisle, of RRAS Auto LLC, lost five vehicles worth about $59,000. But he said he has given up trying to recover his losses, which he attributes to doing business with Charlotte’s Cars Inc., which also did business as Diamond Motors in Rochester.

Belisle had consigned the vehicles to Charlotte’s Cars with the agreement that when the dealer sold them, he would receive the proceeds.

He said Charlotte’s Cars sold the vehicles, but kept the money. He still held the titles, so he repossessed the vehicles from the buyers.

Two of them, Larry Matsumoto of Milton and Peter Masse of Farmington, hired lawyers. In March, Strafford County Superior Court Judge Peter Fauver ordered Belisle to return three vehicles he repossessed.

“I think it’s one of the few times where the system has worked pretty well,” said Marsha Ostroff, who represented Matsumoto. “Diamond Motors was the bad guy here because they didn’t do what they were supposed to do.”

Ostroff said Belisle took the law into his own hands when he repossessed the vehicles.

Charlotte’s Cars is bonded with the state for $25,000 to cover creditors. Ostroff and Masse’s attorney, Jason Sullivan, said the state needs to increase the required bond because $25,000 is insufficient to cover debts for a business such as a car dealership.

The case is an example of how consumers can blindly walk into situations where the law may not offer adequate protection, the two lawyers said. The Matsumotos bought their minivan in good faith and nearly lost it, and could have been left with a $20,000 loan, Ostroff said.

Belisle said he couldn’t believe the court sided with Matsumoto and Masse. He maintains his titles gave him the right to repossess the vehicles and resell them.

“They [the court] stole those cars,” he said. Belisle is also out a 1998 Pontiac Grand Prix, a 1999 Honda sedan and a 1995 Ford Ranger pickup. He said his legal fees were about $7,500.

Belisle said he has been unable to recover any of his losses and so far, no criminal charges have been filed against anyone.