Oops! Did a car dealership make a very costly mistake?

In Cobaugh v. Klick-Lewis, Inc., a man is awarded a Chevy Beretta Cobalt for golfing a hole-in-one. Cobaugh went golfing with friends on a Monday. There was a charity golf tournament at the course the weekend before and Klick-Lewis Buick Chevy Pontiac offered the car to any tournament participant who hit a hole-in-one on the ninth hole.

Forgetting to remove the car and the attending sign, Cobaugh proceeded to hit a hole-in-one on the ninth hole, albeit on Monday after the tournament was over, and then demanded the free car from Klick-Lewis. The dealership refused to honor its offer, arguing that it was valid only during the tournament. Cobaugh sued and won.

Writing for the majority the judge noted that the sign was an offer to reward anyone who accepted by performing the challenge. Consideration for the dealership was that it received publicity from the sign.

Comes now a Honda dealership in Roswell, New Mexico that is facing a similar problem. Unfortunately for any potential plaintiffs, they'll have a difficult time collecting the $30,000,000.

Since this was a unilateral mistake and there is little reason to believe that the 30,000 recipients saw this as an unreal offer, it's likely to be ruled a valid contract if it ever makes it to court.