Deceptive Car Dealer Ads and Activities - Pervasive As Ever

By: David Maillie

You hear them on the radio and TV everyday. Some have outrageous
ads and sales gimmicks. "Push, pull or drag your trade in for
$4000 minimum trade", "Best price in the world!" "Best bumper to
bumper warranty ever - we cover everything." "Repo'd car sale
today." Bet you didn't know that these ads can be and usually
are very misleading and can be illegal.

According to Leslie Anderson, AAA, Misleading advertisements
and deceptive marketing from car dealers has been on the rise in
recent years. Car dealers, due to a struggling economy are
resorting to grey market sales tactics and ads. Many of these
ads are either borderline or even illegal in nature. With all
the publicity in recent years of scams and illegal business
activities by businesses from every state you would think most
states would have toughened up their laws and started to crack
down on bad car dealers. Only one state, New York, has really
done anything.

There are laws already on the books that make many of these
advertisements and such illegal, but few states will even look
into these activities. In New York, if you run a Push, Pull or
Drag sale the odds are you will get fined. The thinking behind
New Yorks laws is that if you promise someone a set figure for
their vehicle it should not be factored into the discount or
markup of the newer, replacement vehicle. This is deceptive
advertising. Yet I hear these same ads, with even higher amounts
promised on the radio and TV in North Carolina and South
Carolina all the time. Then there's the matter of expressed and
implied warranties.

Expressed and implied warranties are actually covered under
federal laws. Every car dealer must have a federally approved
warranty disclosure placed in the window. This is to show if a
warranty exists and what is actually covered. This was done as
there was too much discrepency in the past with car salesman
blurring the line of what is really covered and what isn't. On a
recent drive from North Carolina to South Carolina I saw 11 used
car dealerships that did not have these in the windows - at one
we found they were in the glove compartment. When we asked the
salesperson why it wasn't in the window he said it wasn't
necessary. In New York, every car dealer you drive by or visit
will have these prominently displayed.

Then you have the usual lies - car dealers advertising a
repossession sale, cream puffs, etc... They will lie about the
origination of cars just like in a recent Carfax ad. Oh that was
just a little fender scratch (complete repaint from a 50mph
accident) or new upholstery (due to a flood and complete
submersion). These repossession sales, like Repo Joe, do a media
Blitz and claim they have all repossessed vehicles for a great
buy. When in fact they probably don't even have one repossessed
car that is for sale. Most car dealers get their cars from
either trades or local auctions.

Regardless of what they claim they most likely do not know the
vehicles history. You can't even rely on Carfax 100% as many
vehicles are repaired without full salvage disclosure or even
any repair history. A carfax report is only as good as the
information that is actually entered into the system. Before you
rely on that Carfax or what the dealer says is the cars history
listen to this - Tennessee attorneys Frank Watson and David
McLaughlin charge that Carfax's ads promise more than it can
deliver. "Carfax fails to disclose the limitations of their
database," says Watson. "People think they have a little
insurance policy on their Carfax report, and it's just not
accurate," says McLaughlin. Carfax is an online company that
searches databases for a vehicle's history, claiming to be "your
best protection against buying a used car with costly, hidden
problems." But, critics say when it comes to many accidents,
online reporting companies fall short. A class-action lawsuit
against Carfax claims the company doesn't have access to police
accident data in 23 states.

This article should be a wake up call to car buyers to be more
on the alert to car dealer scams, lies and untruths. It should
also be an alert to states from Oregon to Florida that more
needs to be done to curb bad car sales tactics. Most car dealers
aren't small mom and pop organizations. They are large million
or billion dollar companies that will do anything to make a
dollar. Even crossing the line or blurring what is legal and
what isn't. And according to one big dealer in Charlotte, North
Carolina whom didn't want his name or dealership mentioned for
obvious reasons - "its all about that bottem line and if we get
caught, thats what our lawyers are for. Per another car dealer,
"it's a buyer beware market: Buyers must beware and be
detectives too."

About the author:
David Maillie holds numerous patents including his recently
awarded patent for headlight repair, cleaner and restorer. He is
always striving to create new products that save the consumer
money: MDwholesale.com