Joanne Doroshow’s HuffPo Op-ed: FTC May Make it Easier for Used Car Dealers to Sell Recalled Cars

Here.  Doroshow is at New York Law School's Center for Justice and Democracy. Excerpt:

The FTC, whose tag line is “Protecting America’s Consumers,” has decided to side with the corporate lawyers and executives at General Motors and two used car chains, agreeing to a legal settlement regarding the sale of cars under safety recall. Specifically, the proposed settlement would not only allow them to sell used cars under safety recall, but also allow them to say these cars are “safe” and “repaired for safety” and passed a “rigorous inspection.” (Sort of like permitting skydiving companies to assure customers that the parachute rig is safe even though there’s no parachute.) Perhaps the FTC needs a new tag line.

All the car dealer has to do is “disclose” that the car has been recalled somewhere near language stating the cars are “certified” and “repaired” and “safe.” But obviously, the whole idea is to allow used car dealers to confuse customers into thinking they are buying a safe car when in fact the car is completely unsafe and could kill them. What’s more, this would be binding for the next 20 years, setting the de facto standard for the industry.

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