California car shoppers will gain new protections Thursday under a law by state Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, requiring dealers to provide the full price of a vehicle up front and giving used-car buyers three days to return a vehicle.
Senate Bill 766, known as the California CARS Act, also requires dealers to disclose that add-ons are optional and prohibits them from offering add-ons that provide no value to the customer, according to Allen’s office.
The three-day return period gives used-car buyers time to have a vehicle inspected or check for unrepaired safety recalls. Dealers may charge a restocking fee, and a vehicle cannot be driven more than 400 miles before it is returned.
“For years, car shoppers have been mistreated and duped into purchasing unsafe vehicles or vehicles with add-ons and features they didn’t know about, saddling them with unnecessary debt and risking their lives on the road,” Allen said. “These practices will finally come to an end in California.”
Allen’s office cited the experience of David Lappen, who said a dealership added $5,000 in options to the advertised price of a used electric vehicle. The options included catalytic converter etching and free oil changes, which Lappen said did not apply to the vehicle.
The office also cited Anthony Vento, who said he bought a used vehicle with an unrepaired safety recall defect after the dealership told him in writing that it had checked the car’s recall status.
“The California CARS Act will give California’s used car buyers a new 3-day window of opportunity to check for unrepaired safety recalls and take unsafe cars back to the dealership for a refund. That can be a lifesaver,” Vento said.
Allen represents the 24th Senate District, which includes the Westside, Hollywood, the coastal South Bay and Santa Monica Mountains communities of Los Angeles County.