ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) — An Albany woman says she was left without transportation for her children after her recently purchased used car caught fire and exploded. The dealership’s owner, however, says he was unaware of the issue and is ready to resolve it.

Diamond Tinch purchased a vehicle from Rainey Used Cars on Jan. 8. Almost immediately, she said, she faced major electrical and mechanical issues.

“I’ve been contacting them every day since I got the car, bought the car,” Tinch said. “Messing up, not working, lights cutting off, radio going in and out. So, even when I come to, like, stop signs or stop lights, [the engine will] just cut off.”

Tinch also claimed she never had functioning regular headlights and was forced to drive with her high beams on. She alleged that when she contacted the dealership, she was told she would need to pay a deposit of $100 to $250 to have the vehicle repaired.

The situation escalated dramatically when the vehicle caught fire.

“It started smoking,” Tinch said. “I was coming down the road, and I noticed the black smoke. I smelled the fire, but I didn’t see the fire. But because the smoke got so heavy, that’s when I pulled over. And when I pulled over, that’s when, like, I seen the fire drop into the ground and it just kind of went, the front just went in flames.”

Tinch said she called 911 and contacted Rainey Used Cars to report that the vehicle had exploded, requesting a rental car. She claims she was denied a rental because those are reserved for customers whose cars are undergoing repairs, not those whose vehicles are totaled.

Tinch further claimed that after she posted about the incident on Facebook, she was placed on a “do not resell” list.

“Honestly, that made me feel some type of way because y’all just selling lemons at this point”, she said.

Dealership owner responds

Bob Rainey, owner of Rainey Used Cars, said he had no personal knowledge of Tinch’s situation until recently but expressed a strong desire to make things right.

“Rainey Used Cars was established in 1963 by my father, and I’ve worked in the business all my life. We’re here to serve the community with good, dependable, used car transportation,” Rainey said, adding that his mission statement is “to be the greatest car company by being the greatest care company.”

Rainey defended the dealership’s service department, which he described as one of the largest in Georgia for “buy here, pay here” businesses.

“I always tell our people that I want to be the Chick-fil-A of the car business because I really do care about our customers,” Rainey said. “They are our lifeblood... and I would really love to help whoever and whenever it is possible for me to do.”

When asked about Tinch’s complaints regarding communication with the service department, Rainey directed customers to contact his service manager, Hunter.

“Hunter knows what to do when we have issues,” Rainey said. “And if Hunter needed my help and my advice, he has my number. We will call, and we will get these things worked out. In my lifetime of being in the car business, I don’t know that I haven’t ever solved an issue with a customer that I knew about.”

Rainey extended an open invitation to Tinch to resolve the issue.

“I would welcome the person... to call Hunter and for them to set up a meeting with myself and Hunter,” Rainey said. “We can solve the issue. This is just a car issue. We can solve car issues. That’s what we do every day.”

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