The Knucklehead of the Day award

Today's winner is Belle Glade Chevrolet-Cadillac-Buick-Pontiac-Oldsmobile Inc. They get the award for the following.

WEST PALM BEACH — What began as a $10,000 lemon turned into a $100,000-plus gold mine for a former West Palm Beach man.

A Palm Beach County jury on Thursday ordered a Belle Glade car dealership to pay Benjamin Figgie $100,000 in punitive damages for refusing to give him back the $10,000 he paid for a 1998 Jaguar he couldn't even drive off the lot.

Circuit Court Judge Kenneth Stern had already ordered Belle Glade Chevrolet-Cadillac-Buick-Pontiac-Oldsmobile Inc. to repay Figgie $10,000.

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The saga began in January when Figgie, who now lives in Fort Lauderdale, went to the lot to test drive the car. He said he wanted it but needed time to line up a loan.

He returned to the dealership two weeks later, handed over the $10,000 and got the keys to the car.

What the dealership didn't tell him was that sometime during those two weeks someone had driven the car 2,000 miles and the engine had blown up, Pincus said.

When the car wouldn't start, Figgie demanded his money back.

"Too bad," Pincus said he was told, "you bought it as is."

The way the auto dealer treated Mr. Pincus comes under the category of idiotic. Then taking it to trial, makes it Knucklehead worthy. How much did Belle Glade Chevrolet-Cadillac-Buick-Pontiac-Oldsmobile Inc spend on legal fees over this dispute? I make a bet it is alot more than $10,000.

It isn't over yet either.

However, they have already said in court papers they plan to appeal.

Former Florida Supreme Court Justice Arthur England, who specializes in appellate work, is part of the dealership's legal team.

England's legal help certainly doesn't come cheap. Who said I was the only masochist in Florida? Belle Glade Chevrolet-Cadillac-Buick-Pontiac-Oldsmobile Inc isn't just a masochist for continuing this dumb legal fight, they are also today's Knucklehead of the Day.

Linked to- Big Dog, Cao, DragonLady, High Desert Wanderer, Is it Just me?, Leaning Straight Up, Perri Nelson, Pirate's Cove, Right Voices, Third World County,