The Federal Trade Commission announced a new rule Tuesday intended to stop auto dealers from using hidden fees and bait-and-switch price tactics on buyers.
The agency says such fees and tactics cost people in the US $3.4 billion a year and add 72 million hours to their time spent shopping for vehicles.
The FTC calls the new regulation the Combating Auto Retail Scams Rule.
Read more on this story at NBCNews.com and watch “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” tonight at 6:30 pm ET/5:30 pm CT.
The agency says the rule bans misrepresentations about price, cost and other key information.…
aftermarket accessories
Daihatsu, Toyota’s small car subsidiary, shuts down factories due to falsified safety tests
Daihatsu, a subsidiary of Japanese car maker Toyota, has shut down production lines at all four of its factories as the Japanese government investigates reports the company faked safety test results on some car models for more than 30 years.
Key points:
Daihatsu makes Hijet trucks and vans and Mira hatchbacks, small cars popular in Japan
The company assembled about 870,000 vehicles at its factories in the 2022 fiscal year
It will not say when production will resume, but local media says operations will be suspended through January
The shutdown came a week after the company announced it was suspending…
Ontario car dealerships are gouging customers: survey
When you buy a car, you’ll be offered warranties, rust protection and other add-ons you can usually accept or decline.
However, a new survey by Car Help Canada, a non-profit group that provides assistance to customers buying cars, finds that some car dealers are forcing customers to buy add-ons, and if they don’t, the dealer will refuse to sell them the car.
“Many dealerships are price gouging consumers charging them excessive fees and forcing them to pay for add-on products they don’t necessarily want or need,” said Shari Prymak, executive director of Car Help Canada.
The Canadian Car Buyers Survey…