- Maryland Attorney General accused DARCARS Honda of “unfair and deceptive sales practices”.
- The dealer allegedly added an optional 2% fee over the vehicles’ prices, advertising it as a “sales commission”.
- Cars were packed with “unwanted equipment and products”, which were not clearly disclosed and itemized.
Shady tactics are not new among dealerships, but authorities are here to protect customers and their hard-earned money. The latest case comes from Maryland, where a Honda dealer is accused of “unfair and deceptive sales practices” in violation of the local consumer protection act.
The dealership in question is located at 2260 Crain Highway, in Bowie, Maryland. According to the press release issued by Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, DARCARS Honda, its parent company, and its owners are charged with “unfair or deceptive trade practices at nearly every stage of their dealership’s sale of new vehicles to consumers”.
More: Five Nissan Dealerships To Pay $1.9 Million For Allegedly Ripping Off Customers
The document states that the dealer charged an extra 2 percent of the vehicle sales price, misleadingly labeling it a “sales commission”, despite not being directed to the salesperson. Furthermore, customers were “unaware” that the aforementioned fee was optional.
The Attorney General also claims that the Honda dealer “deceptively” charged consumers more than the advertised vehicle sales price, adding “significant charges for already installed equipment and dealer markup”. As if this wasn’t enough, cars were packed with “unwanted equipment and products“, which were not clearly disclosed and itemized as required by the law.
Finally, additional products like the “DARCARS Assurance” and the “DARCARS Protection Plan” were allegedly financed in an “unlawful manner”, further increasing the price of the vehicle.
As reported by Automotive News, a DARCARS Honda spokesperson suggested that the case “is not supported by the record or the facts”, adding that they are prepared to fight against these “baseless claims”. The spokesperson also claims that “over the past two years, Honda of Bowie has cooperated fully with the Maryland Attorney General to respond to its request for information and address its concerns”.
The Consumer Protection Division of the Maryland Attorney General is now seeking “an injunction to stop the alleged violations as well as the payment of restitution, economic damages, penalties, and costs”. The hearing is scheduled for October 29. If found guilty, DARCARS Honda may need to pay penalties of up to $10,000 for each violation, and issue refunds to the affected customers.
Photos: Google Maps
Commercials Cooperation Advertisements:
(1) IT Teacher IT Freelance
立刻註冊及報名電腦補習課程吧!
电子计算机 -教育 -IT 電腦班” ( IT電腦補習 ) 提供一個方便的电子计算机 教育平台, 為大家配對信息技术, 電腦 老師, IT freelance 和 programming expert. 讓大家方便地就能找到合適的電腦補習, 電腦班, 家教, 私人老師.
We are a education and information platform which you can find a IT private tutorial teacher or freelance.
Also we provide different information about information technology, Computer, programming, mobile, Android, apple, game, movie, anime, animation…
(2) ITSec
www.ITSeceu.uk
Secure Your Computers from Cyber Threats and mitigate risks with professional services to defend Hackers.
ITSec provide IT Security and Compliance Services, including IT Compliance Services, Risk Assessment, IT Audit, Security Assessment and Audit, ISO 27001 Consulting and Certification, GDPR Compliance Services, Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA), Penetration test, Ethical Hacking, Vulnerabilities scan, IT Consulting, Data Privacy Consulting, Data Protection Services, Information Security Consulting, Cyber Security Consulting, Network Security Audit, Security Awareness Training.
Contact us right away.
Email (Prefer using email to contact us):
SalesExecutive@ITSec.vip