SYRACUSE, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) — New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced April 21 that his office has reached settlements with 104 auto dealerships that allegedly sold vehicles to consumers in the state without disclosing that the vehicles were under recall for defective and sometimes dangerous issues.
According to Schneiderman’s office, prospective car buyers reasonably assume that any safety issues on a used car have been repaired or will be properly disclosed before the sale. But this is often not the case. The 104 auto dealerships sold cars that were under recall for such unfixed issues including unintended acceleration, airbag problems, vehicle fires, steering and brake loss.
“The safety recalls we uncovered were serious — and potentially deadly," Schneiderman said. “Consumers deserve to know of any unresolved safety issues before buying a car for themselves or their family. I am pleased that thanks to our investigation and today's settlement, more New Yorkers will finally receive the critical safety information they need to make an informed decision. I encourage all auto-dealerships across the state to follow our guidelines to ensure that they too uphold the highest standards of consumer safety. This is an important first step toward making all cars on New York’s roads safer.”
