The Auto Fraud Legal Center Blog

The Auto Fraud Legal Center's Blog brings you articles and news of interest to California consumers. Check back regularly for up to date auto fraud and lemon law related news.

Senior Partner Hal Rosner Quoted in Arbitration Story

Date: May 22, 2013

It’s almost impossible to live in modern America without regularly signing away one’s constitutional right to a jury trial or even access to small claims court.

Those multi-page contracts you sign or click through online without reading invariably contain mandatory arbitration clauses that bar you from taking disputes to court.

Common Illegal Finance Department Practices

Date: May 22, 2013

Dealers who tell customers: "We can't get you financed unless you buy that $1,500 extended warranty." Or GAP or etch or whatever.

Dealers who tell customers: "You don't qualify for credit, but we can get you financed if your wife (or husband) signs with you."

Dealers who tell customers: "Oh, that's our Internet price for the car. It's for good credit customers. Your credit's lousy, so you'll need to pay more for the car."

Shady Loan Companies Prey on Military Servicemembers by Skirting the Military Lending Act

Date: May 22, 2013

Seven years after Congress banned payday-loan companies from charging exorbitant interest rates to service members, many of the nation's military bases are surrounded by storefront lenders who charge high annual percentage rates, sometimes exceeding 400 percent.

The Military Lending Act sought to protect service members and their families from predatory loans. But in practice, the law has defined the types of covered loans so narrowly that it's been all too easy for lenders to circumvent it.

Forced Arbitration Kills the Right to Sue Big Companies

Date: May 22, 2013

So-called forced arbitration clauses say that in the event of a dispute, you won't be able to file a class-action suit. Instead, your dispute will be settled one-on-one in a private arbitration forum. These clauses are commonly inserted into terms of service agreements, which you must agree to if you want to use the product or service.

US Consumer Watchdog Expands Probe Into Auto Financing

Date: May 6, 2013

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau expanded its probe into the car loan industry by issuing subpoenas to auto lenders over the sale of financial products such as extended warranties, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the investigation.

Driver Will Appeal Conviction for Looking at IPhone Map Application While Driving

Date: April 29, 2013

"The Convicted Distracted Driver is sitting in a study carrel in the Cal State Fresno library, which, come to think of it, looks a little like a prison visiting room.

"I don't relish that title," said Steven Spriggs. 'But that's what I am.'

His crime: looking at his iPhone's map application while driving."

More at: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-abcarian-distracted-driving-20130426,0,769309,print.story

 

121 Auto Dealers Sue CarFax for Anticompetitive Practices

Date: April 29, 2013

CarFax, the provider of vehicle history reports, has been sued by a group of auto dealers for anticompetitive practices.

"Leonard Bellavia, the attorney leading the case, has been looking at Carfax’s practices for the past six months as a growing number of his dealer clients questioned the quality of Carfax’s reports."

Dealer Forgery

Date: April 24, 2013

Automotive News, a magazine that caters to dealers, explains different types of forgery.

Excerpts:

New Case Outlaws Use of GPS Cell Phones While Driving

Date: April 3, 2013

The appellate division of a California Superior Court has decided that the Vehicle Code section outlawing use of a cell phone without a handsfree device also outlaws use of the phone for virtually anything else.

Explosion in Sub-Prime Auto Lending

Date: April 3, 2013

The Fed has contributed to the explosion of sub-prime lending due to their activities.

Sub-prime lending encompasses "customers with an average credit score of 556 and average annual income of $38,393, according to the pitch book. These borrowers pay an average interest rate of 21.4 percent a year. (Median U.S. household income was an inflation-adjusted $50,054 in 2011, according to the Census Bureau. On the widely used FICO credit-scoring scale, produced by Fair Isaac Corp, 640 or less is considered subprime.)"