Many consumers believe there is a general "right to cancel" or "cooling-off period" for car purchases. There is not. Once you sign a car purchase contract at a dealership, you are generally bound by it. The three-day cooling-off rule that applies to door-to-door sales does not apply to dealership transactions.

Rescission is a legal remedy that unwinds a contract as if it never happened. To obtain rescission, you generally need to show that the contract was induced by fraud, misrepresentation, or a material omission — meaning the dealer told you something false or failed to disclose something important that would have affected your decision to buy. FDUTPA violations can also support a rescission claim in appropriate cases.

Common grounds for rescission in car purchase cases include: undisclosed prior accident damage, a salvage or rebuilt title that was not disclosed, yo-yo financing where the dealer changes the terms after delivery, forgery of the buyer's signature on contract documents, and the addition of products or charges the buyer never agreed to.

If you want to pursue rescission, timing matters. Courts expect buyers to act promptly once they discover the problem. If you continue to drive the vehicle for months after discovering the fraud, a court may find that you "ratified" the contract by your continued use. Consult an attorney as soon as you discover the problem.

Even if full rescission is not available, you may still be entitled to damages — the difference between what you paid and what the vehicle was actually worth, or the cost to repair undisclosed defects. And under FDUTPA, you may be entitled to attorney's fees regardless of whether you seek rescission or damages.