On April 24, 2010 we entered into an agreement with Mr. Johnny Martinez and sign in a contract written by him for the amount of $6, 060.00 which included all of the modifications and repairs he said the hot dog cart needed to be ready for business. This also included an appointment with the Health Department.


Mr. Martinez assured us that once the hot dog cart had the modifications and repairs completed it would pass all of the inspections required by the city of Los Angeles, CA. This is the ONLY reason why we bought the cart from him.

Mr. Martinez also assured us that the hot dog cart would be ready in more or less a month and a half from the date we sign the contract.

On April 24, 2010, we paid in cash enquiries, $4, 500.00, a required deposit to begin the repair process.

After waiting 3 months Mr. Martinez finally confirmed that on August 26, 2010 we have the appointment with the Health Department.

On August 20, 2010 Mr. Martinez informed me that I was able to go and see the hot dog cart at his friend’s, Ricardo Martinez, shop where all the repairs and modifications were being performed.
The cart was not finished and had many more repairs needed to be completed. I spoke to Mr. Martinez whom promised to go the next day (August 21, 2010) to Mr. Ricardo Martinez’s shop to make sure and verify that all the needed repairs would be finished by August 23, 2010.

Mr. Ricardo Martinez promised that he would have the cart ready by August 23, 2010. Mr. Martinez neglected to mention that before the Health Department could inspect the cart we needed to get an appointment with RADCO, a company that inspects trailers to make sure that ours was safe with the new refrigerator and gas stove that they had just installed.
Not only that was forgotten but he also neglected to mention that before the appointment we needed to have the signs of our business installed ($900) and taken to a commissary to sign a contract before the Health Department’s appointment.

I requested Mr. Ricardo Martinez to sign a document stating the cart would be finished by August 23, 2010 and the he guarantees his job. He refused to sigh and stated he doesn’t guarantee any job performed.


On August 23, 2010 the cart was not finished. Mr. Ricardo Martinez did not give us the cart until August 27, 2010. So we missed the appointment with the Health Department which takes approximately 20 days before we can get another one.

On August 27, 2010 Mr. Martinez added an extra cost of $400.00 on top of the amount we had previously agreed on without giving an explanation where it came from.
In the contract written by him it specified that the remaining balance was for $1, 560 including all the repairs and modifications.

I agreed to pay the extra $400.00 in order to expedite the process of opening my own business.

Mr. Martinez gave us the registration for the cart and he inadvertently he gave us a note that specifies in Mr. Martinez’s hand writing that the remaining balance was to be divided among himself and Mr. Ricardo Martinez, $500.00 for Mr. Martinez and the remaining $1, 450 for Mr. Ricardo Martinez, Which explains the added $400.00 to our previous balance.

RADCO inspected the cart and told us that the cart would not pass their inspection or the Health Department’s as Mr. Martinez had sold us a cart that was inoperable and completely rotten inside.

RADCO did not give us a written statement because in order for them to do that they needed us to pay for the inspection in which they were very supportive and did it without payment with the condition that we would have nothing in writing. We immediately returned to Mr. Ricardo Martinez which wanted to charge us another $800 and his later reaction was to verbally and physically abusive Juan M. Arias, while Mr. Martinez stopped answering our phone calls.

Upon leaving the shop another vehicle pass a red light and hit our cart turning it to the side, scratching it on its side and denting the new refrigerator. Without knowing what else to do we decided to take the cart to ARMENCO (A cart repair shop that has been in business for over 30 years). The owner said the cart we had purchase from Mr. Martinez was worth less.
That only the outside tin sheet was good, the frame of the cart was completely rotten (We have pictures).

He also mentioned that the cart was a danger to be hitched due to the fact that Mr. Ricardo Martinez modified the cart beyond the legal weight and volume allowed for the particular frame and the wheels it had making the cart to be very unstable.

The wheels are 8’’and can only resist a maximum weight of 1, 000lbs, now with all the modifications the cart has an approximate weight of 1, 300lbs without adding the utensils needed to work with, the generator and the gas pipe.

Mr. Martinez assured us that we could drive the cart on the freeway, which is not true and illegal.
I writing you so you can help me fix this problem so I can get my money back. It's not fair that people like Mr. Martinez have a license to have a commissary and sell used hot dogs carts that wont ever pass the Health Department Inspection. This is called FRAUD.

I tried to reason with him, I sent him letters with an attorney, but he doesn't want to pay and he doesn't even care about small claims because they wont do anything to him if he doesn't pay me back.