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  NYC Department of Consumer Affairs Files Charges Against Brooklyn Used Car Dealerships for Deceptive Financing and Illegal Sales Practices
  

  The following describes a pending government action that has been formally brought by a government agency but has not yet been resolved. We are providing a summary of the government’s allegations, which have not yet been proven.
  
  On May 24, 2017, the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) Commissioner Lorelei Salas announced charges against multiple used car dealerships in Brooklyn, which are all under the same ownership, and their owners for engaging in deceptive and unlawful trade practices that preyed on New Yorkers. Three of the dealerships—USA1 Auto Sales, Inc., Lenden Used Car Sales, Inc., D&A Guaranteed Auto Sales, Inc.— are currently in operation in East New York and two others—Linden Used Cars, Inc. and Mosulei Group, Inc.—have DCA secondhand auto dealer licenses but are not currently in operation. DCA’s complaint document, which will be heard at the City’s Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH), alleges numerous violations and wide-ranging consumer harm, and seeks nearly $1.2 million in fines and restitution ($600,000 in fines and $577,000 in restitution) for 75 consumers. DCA is also seeking to revoke all of the dealerships’ licenses. 
  
  In response to the growing auto lending crisis, DCA will also for the first time be seeking consumer restitution from the financing companies—Credit Acceptance Corp., Clover Commercial Corp, and Westlake Financial Services—that were involved in the subprime lending that saddled the dealerships’ consumers with interest rates as high as 24 percent.
  
  The dealerships’ deception includes:
  Misleading Consumers about the Price of Automobiles
  Selling Unsafe Vehicles
  Failing to Disclose (and Even Concealing) Financing Terms
  Failing to do the following:
  Provide the City’s “Important Notice to Buyer” that informs consumers of their rights if their car is not in a safe condition.
  Provide copies of signed documents to the consumer.
  Maintain a record of every used car purchased or sold.
  
  On Nov. 29, 2017, DCA Commissioner Lorelei Salas announced settlement agreements with three financing companies—Credit Acceptance Corp., Clover Commercial Corp, and Westlake Financial Services—that financed subprime auto loans as high as 24.9 percent through a group of Brooklyn used car dealerships; in total, DCA secured $311,260.57 in restitution for 50 consumers. In May 2017, DCA charged the dealerships—USA1 Auto Sales, Inc., Lenden Used Car Sales, Inc., D&A Guaranteed Auto Sales, Inc., and Linden Used Cars, Inc.—and their owners, with deceptive and unlawful trade practices, including misleading consumers about the price of automobiles, concealing and misrepresenting the terms of sale and financing, and failing to inspect the automobiles. DCA encourages all consumers who were harmed by these dealerships to file a complaint before March 11, 2018 so that they can potentially be included in the settlements and receive restitution.

  http://www1.nyc.gov/site/dca/consumers/file-complaint.page

   

   

   

   

   

   

  
  

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