- She repossessed the car. - Uh-hmm.
She started yelling at me and telling me,
"I don't wanna do this to you because we're friends."
Um she was just very awful to me.
You drove her car for six months and you made no payments, as agreed.
Uh-huh.
Were you not understanding me
or were you just pretending not to understand me?
[announcer] This is Judy Justice.
[theme music playing]
[announcer] Mia Magdaleno is suing her former friend, Blanca Rodriguez,
for car payments after she repossessed
the car Mia was driving.
[Kevin] Court come to order. All rise.
Be seated, please.
Hello, Judge. Case number 1048,
Magdaleno versus Rodriguez.
- Thank you. - Yes, ma'am.
Miss Magdaleno, how do you know the defendant?
Um, we became friends around my birthday last year.
- [Judge Judy] How? - Um, through her business.
She did my hair keratin treatment.
[Judge Judy] So she's a hairdresser?
Um, that's what she told me. Yes.
- Did you go to a store, shop? - A shop. Yes.
[Judge Judy] In what month was that? Do you remember?
- [Mia] September. - [Judge Judy] Of 2020?
- Yes. - [Judge Judy] And there came a time
subsequently that you made an arrangement with her
to take over the payments on a car that she owned?
- Correct. - With a view towards
once the car was paid off, it would be yours?
Yes.
[Judge Judy] That was the arrangement?
Yes.
[Judge Judy] What kind of car was it?
A 2018 Hyundai Elantra, I believe.
- You believe or you know? - Yes, it's a 2018.
And what was the car note?
[Mia] Um, I believe there was 15,000 left on the vehicle, roughly.
[Judge Judy] And what were the monthly payments?
Um, $412 for the car
and then $112 for the insurance.
Is this the first car that you owned?
No, this isn't my first vehicle.
What happened with your last vehicles?
Um, it was in the shop and then we, um, made an agreement
to go ahead and, um,
I take over the car payment because...
No, no. What happened to your last car?
[Mia] Oh, it was just in the shop.
Um, there was just a few mechanical issues going on with it.
So what did you do with it?
[Mia] Um, well, she wanted to trade it but I...
- [Judge Judy] No, no, no, no. - Oh, um, I just sold it.
- I ended up selling it. - You ended up selling it when?
In November, roughly.
- Of what year? - 2020.
[Judge Judy] Who did you sell it to?
[Mia] My neighbor.
[Judge Judy] What did you sell it for?
I think like $1,000.
- What kind of car was it? - Um, it was an Audi, an older Audi.
[Judge Judy] Okay. So you wanted a new car.
And I assume that you made inquiries
- about buying a new car. - [Mia] Well...
Is there any reason why you didn't buy a car from a dealer?
[Mia] Well, Blanca actually purchased a new vehicle of a Palisades
so she had this vehicle extra.
So I was willing to go ahead and just do her a favor
while she was doing me a favor.
Well, why was she doing you a favor?
I mean, did you have sufficient credit to...
Yes.
- [Judge Judy] ...get a car? - I do. Yes.
Did you think that this was a good deal?
I did believe I was helping a friend out. And she...
[Judge Judy] No, no, no. I don't believe that. (chuckles) Actually.
[Mia] Um, um well, I did believe it was, you know, fair.
It was, you know, a car that wasn't gonna have
any mechanical issues being relatively new.
How many miles did it have on it?
[Mia] I don't know the exact number.
[Judge Judy] Sarah, just d-do me a favor, please.
Would you look up
a 2018 Hyundai Elantra?
New...
- or [indistinct] mileage. - What it was
and she bought it in 2020.
So she bought it. It was two years old.
- [Sarah] Okay. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
So what I got--this is your complaint,
that according to you,
you made your payments on a regular basis to her.
But one month you were late in paying the insurance.
- [Mia] Correct. - And she repossessed the car.
She asked for it back while I was at work.
And I had no other option. I'm a caregiver.
So my job is very demanding. And...
[Judge Judy] S-so you gave her back the car or she took back the car.
She demanded the car back. Yes.
She demanded the car back because you didn't pay
the insurance on time.
Well, I was only a day and a half late. But yes. And I told her--
and I kept communication with her that I would be paying the vehicle
as soon as I got off work.
And I made that connection very clear,
um, to which she started yelling at me and telling me, you know--
because I was at work. I told her I'm what work.
What day of the month was the insurance due?
It was due, I believe on the 12th. I believe...
[Judge Judy] And what date was the insurance payment due?
It was due on the 12th, Your Honor.
And this was on the 14th.
And, um, I don't understand how she's saying
that I was yelling at her when we were texting.
She said, "Are you yelling at me in your thoughts?"
She was the one who told me that.
- I have a proof here. - So, we were texting.
[Judge Judy] Just a second. Just a second.
How could I be yelling?
I'm gonna take a look at the texts back and forth.
- [Mia] Okay. I have this... - Just a second.
Based upon a 20,000, uh, mileage,
it's between 14 and 15,000 for a 2018.
[Judge Judy] Great. Thank you.
I'd like to see the texts, Kevin.
- Where was the next message? - Um...
[Judge Judy] I'd like to see the next message.
- I... [Judge Judy] She said,
who is "Erik told me if you can make payments for the $1,000 too."
What is that about?
So she did want $1,000 starting for the--
for the vehicle, um, which she was allowed--
she was willing to do in payments.
- So the next just message... - [Judge Judy] Just--just a second.
In what month was this?
[Mia] I believe that was...um
Just a second. So it wasn't just insurance.
Were you overdue in your down payment as well?
Oh, she was willing to make, uh, payments worth, uh...
[Judge Judy] Just a second. I'm asking you.
Were you overdue in the down payment?
- I believe so. Yes. - [Judge Judy] "The down payment--
Erik told me if you can make payments for the $1,000 too."
[Mia] Uh-hmm.
What is the $1,000 for so that I understand...
He asked for $1,000 down
- to cover... - [Judge Judy] Who did?
Me and my husband, but she never made any payments on it.
Okay. Do you have a written contract?
No. It was all verbal.
So she didn't make the $1,000 down?
No, she never did.
[Judge Judy] Okay. And she got the car in what month?
In...I believe it was in November.
Well, that's when she sold the other car.
And in what month did you take the car back? That was in May?
No, I didn't take it back, Your Honor.
She went and left it in Bloomington, California.
[Judge Judy] Oh, just a second. What month?
- May. - [Judge Judy] That's what I said.
Did you give her the keys to the car back immediately?
As soon as I could without having the car.
[Judge Judy] Not as soon as I could.
The keys are in your house. You put them in an envelope to send them.
Yeah. Well, I...
[Judge Judy] That doesn't take a month.
We don't use Pony Express anymore.
[theme music playing]
[announcer] Mia Magdaleno says former friend, Blanca Rodriguez,
wrongfully repossessed the car Mia was paying for.
Blanca is countersuing for vehicle damages,
excess mileage, and filing a false restraining order.
[Judge Judy] Okay. So this is my question to you.
Between November of 2020 and May 2021,
you hadn't made any payments on this down payment of $1,000.
Correct. I didn't make any payments because she was--
she was being told by her husband what to do,
but the car was in her name.
And so she said, "I don't wanna do this to you that...
because we're friends, being that we're friends.
So I would just give you the vehicle but my husband wants $1,000 for it."
Just a second.
But that was your agreement
that you would pay $1,000 down.
Uh-huh.
[Judge Judy] And you didn't pay any part of the $1,000 down?
- Yes. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
And you drove the car on November, December, January,
February, March, April into part of May.
So you drove the car for six months,
- right? - Y-yes.
[Judge Judy] It's a relatively new car.
And the payment for the insurance is due on the 12th.
Did you try to get your own insurance on the car?
Yeah, she did end up canceling the insurance that same day.
- [Judge Judy] Just a second. - Go ahead.
My question is,
did you try to get insurance on the car
in your own name?
Um, no, because she offered to go ahead and get in her...
So is what you're telling me
that you never tried to get insurance
in your own name and it was too expensive?
No, it wasn't too expensive.
Um, I just never tried to get insurance.
- Because it was--it's not... - That's not what she told me.
She said she had to pay 400 a month.
How much did you pay on your old car for insurance?
$112.
[Judge Judy] You mean the exact same amount of money
that you paid for insurance on this car?
- That doesn't sound right. - [indistinct]
Miss Magdalena, were you not understanding me
or were you just pretending not to understand me?
- For my Audi? - [Judge Judy] For your Audi.
How much did you pay for insurance a month?
[Mia] Roughly--I mean, I don't remember the exact number.
Then you say I don't remember.
Under...
[Judge Judy] Now you drove this relatively new car for six months.
Then she took it back.
So it's just the car I'm dealing with, not the insurance,
insurance you have to have.
You drove it, you have to pay for it.
How much do you think it would have cost you
to rent a car a month?
A relatively new car?
Uh-hmm. Like roughly 500, roughly.
- A month? - [Mia] Uh-huh.
So this was a bargain.
So my question is, I mean, you have to be reasonable.
You drove a car for six months.
If you had to lease a car, it would cost you, you said $500,
but it will cost you at least $400 a month.
So what do you want back?
She asked for the car back because of two things.
You didn't pay the insurance on time
and you made no payments as agreed
on the $1,000 down payment.
Well, just overall while the contract was in place,
um, she was just very awful to me saying horrible words
and then even after she received the vehicle back,
her and her daughter started to harass me
which we had to go ahead
and take legal matters for that
and they dropped it, um, without prejudice.
But she pretty much just, um,
would tell me certain things like, you know,
like, her daughter was making fun of me saying you...
[Judge Judy] Don't tell me what her daughter did.
Her daughter is not here nor is she a party.
[Mia] So her and her, her as...
- [Judge Judy] No. Just her. - Okay.
So she would just go ahead and call me multiple times
and then she would change her number...
[Judge Judy] Just a second. Did you give--
did you give her the keys back?
- Yes, I gave her... - [Judge Judy] Immediately?
- I... - [Judge Judy] No, not yet.
Is--that's a question.
Did you give her the keys to the car back?
You had two sets of keys.
Did you give her the keys to the car back immediately?
I've read her answer.
- I did... - [Judge Judy] The answer is no.
As soon as I could without having a car.
[Judge Judy] Not as soon as I could.
How much after you gave her back the car?
You gave her back the car in May, what date in May?
- I don't know the exact date. - [Blanca] May 13th.
[Judge Judy] May 13th. On what day did she get the keys back?
June 28th. I received them in the mail.
[Judge Judy] What does that mean as soon as you can?
Well, 'cause I did not have a vehicle at the time.
So people were driving me around, I had to Uber everywhere.
And I did message her as well
saying that I would give it back to her...
The keys are in your house,
you put them in an envelope, you send them.
- Yeah. Well, I... - That doesn't take a month.
We don't use Pony Express anymore.
Did you get another car?
We're now talking about several months later.
- Did you buy a new car? - Yes.
Yes. What kind of car did you buy?
Well, I actually went to a dealership
and got a 2021 Nissan Altima.
Yeah. And how much do you pay a month for that on the note?
- Roughly 400. - [Judge Judy] Not roughly.
You know exactly how much you pay for it a month.
$485.92.
- That's closer to $500. - It is a 2021.
- But that's closer to $500 a month. - [Mia] Uh-huh. Yeah.
[Judge Judy] And you pay insurance...
- Correct.
- [Judge Judy] ...in addition? - Yes.
- [Judge Judy] To what company? - Allstate.
[Judge Judy] And how much is your insurance on this car?
[Mia] $150.64.
- Do you have any other cars? - No, not currently.
[Judge Judy] So all in all, you pay 650 bucks a month for your car
- that you're driving now. - Roughly.
Roughly. And you paid $500 a month
- when you drove her car? - Correct?
[Judge Judy] And you put down how much on the new car?
Um, I put down like 2 grand.
- $2,000? - Uh-huh.
Where did you get the $2,000 from?
- From work. - [Judge Judy] From work.
So that you had the $1,000 to give her as the down payment,
- you just didn't give it to her. - No.
As soon as she took the vehicle back,
I just was able to save money from not having to pay for the vehicle.
- Your Honor, and she also crashed... - [Judge Judy] Just a second.
On what month and day did you buy the new car?
[Mia] July roughly. At the end of the month around the 28th.
Well, that means that you just saved two months.
- That's $800. - Yeah.
And then I also, um, I'm certified to do like,
you know, like hair and I was just working really hard to try to come up
with money to go ahead and get the payment together.
But you didn't work real hard to give her the $1,000
over six months that you owed her?
- Uh-hmm. - Uh-huh. Right.
She doesn't owe you any money. You drove the car for six months.
I believe you rented it for six months. You have a counterclaim?
- Yes. - [Judge Judy] There came a time
when your car needed some repair and she gave you a loaner?
Um, it was another vehicle of hers. So yes.
- [Judge Judy] It was a loaner. - Uh-huh.
Yeah. It was a loaner.
Did you have an accident in the loaner?
- No, I did not. - [Blanca] Yes, she did, Your Honor.
I have pictures here and I have the texts that she...
She also allows a lot of others to drive the vehicle.
- [Judge Judy] Just a second. Just... - Okay.
[Blanca] Where she says, um,
"I never crashed it but I could have happened to pull,
um, out of my parking spot, there's a huge pole right next to it."
- And here it is. - May I see it, please?
[Blanca] And those are the pictures as well.
- And she also crashed the Elantra. - Shh.
You had no agreement with her with regarding mileage.
[Blanca] But, um, also, um, time loss from going
to pick up the vehicle when she left it off in the [indistinct]
- She offered to pick up the vehicle. - [Judge Judy] Just a second.
Just a second. I don't care.
[theme music playing]
[announcer] Mia Magdaleno has accused former friend Blanca
Rodriguez of repossessing the car Mia was paying for.
Blanca says Mia was late making insurance payments on the car.
[Judge Judy] Okay. Did you have an accident in the loaner?
- No, I did not. - Yes, she did, Your Honor.
I have pictures here and I have the texts that she...
She also allows a lot of others to drive the vehicle.
[Judge Judy] Just a second. Uh, that's...
- Okay. - It was...
Where she says, um,
"I never crashed it but I could have happened to pull it,
um, out of my parking spot. There's a huge pole right next to it."
- And here it is. - [Judge Judy] May I see it, please?
[Blanca] And those are the pictures as well.
- And she also crashed the Elantra. - Shh.
- I'll get to that. - [Mia] What is the number?
That's a counterclaim.
'Cause I don't remember sending those messages.
[Judge Judy] Okay. But she actually doesn't flat out
acknowledge that she scraped the car next to a pole,
which is what this looks like.
But she says it coulda happened when I was pulling
in and out of my parking space.
In any event, your insurance covered that?
- Yes. - [Judge Judy] Yes. Okay.
And then tell me about the-- 'cause this is her counterclaim.
She says that you also had an accident with the Elantra?
That's correct. Yes. So there was an accident
but the person did hit me and I have a police report
proving that it was and the insurance did cover that.
And there was no money paid out of pocket for her. So it was
- like it never happened to her. - [Judge Judy] Right.
It, it stays in the history. The vehicle history report.
- But the claim is... - [Judge Judy] Just a second. Miss
Rodriguez, if the police report says that the accident is not her fault,
and your insurance covered it,
which it did then you have no case against her.
It's not her responsibility that there's an accident on the car
unless she was at fault.
- You understand that? - Yes.
[Judge Judy] Okay.
Okay. Well, if this report clearly determines
that she was not at fault in this accident,
that someone else was at fault.
With regard to the third part of your counterclaim,
your third part of the counterclaim is for excess mileage.
Mileage, Your Honor. Um...
[Judge Judy] You didn't have an agreement with her for mileage.
No, I didn't. But she didn't pay the 1,000 either.
- And then... - [Judge Judy] She didn't--
she didn't pay the 1,000 either.
But you have no claim for the $1,000 deposit.
[Blanca] Yes. She--even though she used vehicle?
[Judge Judy] You don't. You have no--
- what I'm saying to you is... - Oh.
[Judge Judy] ...your claim alleges three things,
money owed for damages to two vehicles.
I've already addressed that. Excess mileage,
you had no agreement with her with regarding mileage.
You know, if you lease a car, we usually have
a certain number of miles a year that you can put on a car.
But you had no agreement with her
because it was the intention that she purchased the car.
The final thing you have... you're questioning is the filing
of a false restraining order.
There's nothing here about a deposit. You understand that.
And in actuality, she did make payments on the car.
You now have the car back. Did you resell it?
I still have it.
[Judge Judy] You still have it. Okay.
But I'm also, um, time loss, uh,
from going to pick up the vehicle when she left it off an hour away.
- She offered to pick up the vehicle. - [Judge Judy] Just a second.
Just a second. I don't care.
She filed a restraining order
because she says that you were harassing her.
[Blanca] And they didn't give her the restraining order, Your Honor.
- [Judge Judy] Did you have a... - Without prejudice.
[Judge Judy] Just a second. Did you have a trial?
We went to court for it.
And the judge said he was not gonna give her
a restraining order because we never harassed her,
- we just... - [Judge Judy] Just a second.
- He didn't say that. - [Judge Judy] My--stop.
Did you have a hearing, a trial?
- Did you give evidence? - [Blanca] Well, we gave evidence.
Yes, Your Honor.
[Judge Judy] Well, if you give evidence,
that's a hearing. And she testified at the hearing?
- [Blanca] Yes. Yes. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
So there was a hearing and then after the hearing,
- the judge dismissed the case? - [Blanca] Yes.
As would I have, because you wanted your keys back. (chuckles)
It took us six weeks to get you your keys back.
Okay. Do you have the order of dismissal?
- [Mia] No, they said... - [Blanca] No.
...they were gonna mail that.
- [Judge Judy] But you had a trial? - Correct.
[Judge Judy] And the case was dismissed.
In her view, she was being harassed.
Did you have legal fees attending to that?
- No. - [Judge Judy] Okay. All right.
Court's ruling is your claim is dismissed.
You drove the car make believe that you leased it for six months.
You had the use of her vehicle for six months.
And you don't get that money back.
As far as your counterclaim is concerned,
the insurance covered all the damages to both your vehicles.
- Am I getting that correctly? - Yeah.
Without a deductible, correct?
[Blanca] No, there was a deductible.
That I paid.
- Oh, you did pay the deductible. - [Mia] Yeah. W--
um, they went ahead and had the other insurer,
um, cover that as well.
So she never paid anything out of pocket.
[Judge Judy] Did you pay anything out of pocket?
- No. - [Judge Judy] Okay. Very good.
Counterclaim as well is dismissed. Thank you very much. We're finished.
[Kevin] Court adjourned.
I do believe that she ruled fair.
Well, I'm happy I don't have to pay anything.
Her and her daughter were blowing up my phone,
calling me very harsh names, and being very disrespectful to me.
Pretty glad that the case was dismissed.
Very weird that someone would say they would come to your house.
She is lying about all that.
Definitely have a contract and get it notarized.
I just think it's stupid because it's a waste of time
and she knew she wasn't gonna win.
- I did get a new car. - Never do it again.
[Sarah] Like that plaintiff I've had my fair share of,
uh, unlucky car troubles. You could say accidents,
stationary objects, just unlucky.
But in my view, just take accountability,
responsibility, own it.
It's usually turns out better for you that way
than when you deny it or pass the blame.
Yeah. Well, that's true. I mean, the best advice is,
you don't have to have a long memory
if you tell the truth right at the beginning.
I think that that case also, you know,
buttresses the fact that even if you're dealing with a friend,
probably, especially if you're dealing with a friend
and you make a deal that is worth thousands of dollars,
ultimately, that you put th-that arrangement in a writing,
in a contract so that everybody knows what the parameters are.
And it doesn't have to be drawn up by a lawyer.
Well I mean, if you need any help, you can certainly go on the internet,
they, you know, they give you all kinds of forms
that you can use and tailor
to your own particular needs if it's a relatively simple transaction.
But having something in writing is good for both people.
It tells everybody what they're supposed to do,
and what the consequences are if they don't do it.
So best advice,
keep it in writing and don't hit immovable objects.
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