## Facts

- R. Larry Schneider sought to buy a 1966 Chevrolet Impala SS and inspected one offered for sale by Harold Robert Miller, a used-car dealer.
- Schneider test-drove the vehicle and asked about a squeaking noise; Miller said it was the brakes and they needed replacement.
- Miller also stated that the trunk was rusted (estimating about $500 to repair) and that the engine might need rebuilding at some point.
- The parties agreed on a $2,580 purchase price; Schneider paid $100 down and returned the next day to pay the balance.
- Schneider signed a bill of sale stating the car was sold “as is” and a separate writing stating it was sold “as is” with no warranty.
- Soon after purchase, a repair shop discovered severe corrosion, including a rusted frame such that the underside was barely attached, and Schneider claimed the car was unsafe and not repairable.
- Schneider demanded rescission and a refund by letter; Miller refused, and Schneider sued.

## Issues

1. Whether signed “as is” and “as is with no warranty” documents effectively excluded implied warranties, including fitness for a particular purpose and merchantability, under Ohio’s U.C.C. provisions.
2. Whether the seller’s statements and nondisclosure of the allegedly rusted frame proved fraud/deceit or a deceptive act under the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act.
3. Whether rescission was available despite the “as is” sale and the trial court’s findings that the seller made no safety assurances and did not conceal material facts.

## Decision

- The Court of Appeals affirmed judgment for Miller.
- The court held the written “as is” disclaimers Schneider signed excluded implied warranties under the governing Ohio U.C.C. provisions.
- The court upheld the trial court’s findings rejecting fraud/deceit and Consumer Sales Practices Act liability.
- Because Schneider failed to prove fraud or a statutory violation that would justify avoidance, rescission was properly denied.

## Legal Principles

- An “as is” sale, when agreed to in a signed writing consistent with Ohio’s U.C.C. warranty-disclaimer rules, can exclude implied warranties, including merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.
- Implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose exists only “unless excluded or modified” as permitted by Ohio’s U.C.C. provisions.
- Fraud, deceit, and consumer-protection liability based on misrepresentation or concealment require proof of a false representation or concealment of a material fact; absent such proof, disclaimers allocating defect risk to the buyer will be enforced.
- Rescission is not available merely because a purchased used car later proves to have serious defects when the parties validly allocated the risk by an enforceable “as is” agreement and no actionable fraud or deceptive practice is shown.

## Conclusion

The court enforced the parties’ written “as is” allocation of risk in a used-car sale, holding that the buyer’s signed disclaimers barred implied-warranty recovery and that the record supported findings of no fraud, no deceptive consumer practice, and no basis for rescission.


Schneider v. Miller, 73 Ohio App. 3d 335, 597 N.E.2d 175 (Ohio Ct. App. 1991)