A man bought an old van, and the transmission failed three days later. The car dealer repossessed the van and sold it to another unsuspecting customer. At a public hearing at the Capitol on Tuesday, consumer advocates said stories like that are why they oppose a bill introduced last month in the House of Delegates.
A man bought an old van, and the transmission failed three days later. The car dealer repossessed the van and sold it to another unsuspecting customer.
After a test drive, a single mother bought a used car. The day she took it home, the car wouldn't even make it up the hill to her house.
At a public hearing at the Capitol on Tuesday, consumer advocates said stories like that are why they oppose a bill introduced last month in the House of Delegates.
The legislation (HB2667) would let dealers sell a vehicle without a warranty if the vehicle is at least 7 years old, or has at least 75,000 miles on it. The dealer wouldn't have to pay for any repairs.
"If you pass the bill, the car would not have to operate properly the day it is purchased," lawyer David McMahon told members of the House Roads and Transportation Committee.
Complaints about automobiles are the second-most common type of complaint received by the state Attorney General's consumer protection division, Deputy Attorney General Jill Miles told the committee.
The bill is "targeted at the most unfortunate among us," Miles said, referring to people who must spend their last dollar on a used vehicle so they can get to work or to their doctor's appointments.
Based on the average age of vehicles on the road, "over half the vehicles currently being driven on West Virginia roads would be subject to this legislation" Miles said.
Bill sponsor Delegate Greg Butcher, D-Logan, told his colleagues he knew they'd hear tales of "some little old lady getting swindled by a car dealer."
"None of us here in the Capitol wouldn't want to take care of a little old lady, or a young little lady," he said.
A man bought an old van, and the transmission failed three days later. The car dealer repossessed the van and sold it to another unsuspecting customer.
After a test drive, a single mother bought a used car. The day she took it home, the car wouldn't even make it up the hill to her house.
At a public hearing at the Capitol on Tuesday, consumer advocates said stories like that are why they oppose a bill introduced last month in the House of Delegates.
The legislation (HB2667) would let dealers sell a vehicle without a warranty if the vehicle is at least 7 years old, or has at least 75,000 miles on it. The dealer wouldn't have to pay for any repairs.
"If you pass the bill, the car would not have to operate properly the day it is purchased," lawyer David McMahon told members of the House Roads and Transportation Committee.
Complaints about automobiles are the second-most common type of complaint received by the state Attorney General's consumer protection division, Deputy Attorney General Jill Miles told the committee.
The bill is "targeted at the most unfortunate among us," Miles said, referring to people who must spend their last dollar on a used vehicle so they can get to work or to their doctor's appointments.
Based on the average age of vehicles on the road, "over half the vehicles currently being driven on West Virginia roads would be subject to this legislation" Miles said.
Bill sponsor Delegate Greg Butcher, D-Logan, told his colleagues he knew they'd hear tales of "some little old lady getting swindled by a car dealer."
"None of us here in the Capitol wouldn't want to take care of a little old lady, or a young little lady," he said.
But Butcher said the bill would help consumers: "This bill would allow a bigger, better variety of vehicles for our consumers."
Ruth Lemmon, president of the West Virginia Automobile and Truck Dealers Association, called the measure "a consumer bill."
"It makes available affordable transportation for people who have a need for that type of transportation," Lemmon said.
Dealers would have to post a conspicuous "as is" sticker on the vehicle, stating that it's being sold without warranty. They would have to disclose all known defects or safety issues in writing.
Dealers who fail to do so could be fined or lose their dealer's license.
"The consumer is protected," Lemmon said.
She also said West Virginia is losing tax dollars to states that allow dealers to sell cars without warranty.
Opponents of the bill far outnumbered supporters at the hearing Tuesday. Legislators heard from a number of them, as well as from West Virginia AFL-CIO President Kenneth Perdue.
Reach Alison Knezevich at alis...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1240.
Post a comment