For Used Car Buyers, an Out
Used car purchasers suffering buyers’ remorse would have three days to cancel the sale under “cooling-off” legislation approved Thursday by the state Assembly.
The customer would have to repay the dealer $200 or 2.5% of the purchase price -- whichever is less -- as well as a fee for the mileage put on the car after it was purchased.
The right to return the car would be limited to those who drove it less than 750 miles. However, the Assembly approved the bill 43-32 with the understanding that the maximum would be lowered to 250 miles in the Senate.
The return policy does not apply to new cars or to those on a consignment sale.
Shelley Curran, a policy analyst with Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports magazine, said car buyers deserve the same opportunity for second thoughts that homeowners have.
“This is the second-biggest purchase a consumer makes in their lifetime; for some it’s the biggest,” Curran said.
California law already provides for a three-day cooling-off period for many other products, such as large household appliances, but automotives are exempt.
Car dealers strongly opposed SB 1839, sponsored by Assemblywoman Cindy Montanez (D-San Fernando) and Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, a Sacramento nonprofit organization.
Dealers said it would hurt them financially because the three days a buyer had to reconsider the purchase meant three days in which the car was not on the lot to sell. They also said that many dealers already had return policies and that customers were free to go to those businesses.
“We feel that when a consumer signs a binding legal agreement, it should be binding,” said Brian Maas, director of government affairs at the California Motor Car Dealers Assn. He said the group was not appeased by the changes that were expected to be made in the Senate, including exempting recreational vehicles.
The measure was among hundreds considered this week by the Assembly and Senate as they raced to meet today’s deadline for sending bills to the other chamber for consideration.
The Legislature has until the end of August to approve bills and send them to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
In other action Thursday:
* Smoking in cars: The Assembly, led by moderate Democrats, declined to approve a bill that would have banned smoking in cars if small children were present. The bill, AB 2997, failed on a 36-30 vote, despite a daylong lobbying effort by its author, Assemblyman Marco Firebaugh (D-Los Angeles) to convince members that children were dying from second-hand smoke trapped in enclosed cars.
* Rabbits: A bill allowing landowners to kill cottontail rabbits that are proliferating and damaging landscaping and golf courses was approved by the Assembly. The measure, AB 2875, addresses complaints from homeowners associations in Southern California but has drawn the ire of animal-protection advocates who believe nonlethal deterrents should be used instead of poisons or traps. The bill does not address how the rabbits should be killed.
* Campaign loans: Lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a bill to prohibit candidates from obtaining more than $100,000 in personal loans for their campaigns. Prompted by a $4-million loan Schwarzenegger secured for his effort, AB 2842 was designed to stop candidates from getting large personal loans and then raising money to pay them off after an election -- thereby shielding their financial supporters.
* Irradiated food: The Assembly approved a measure, AB 1988, barring public schools from serving irradiated food unless first informing parents of the nutritional effect of using radiation, labeling the food as irradiated and providing an alternative for children who do not want to eat it. Some food is irradiated to kill bacteria such as E. coli, campylobacter and salmonella.
* Outsourcing: The Assembly approved three bills designed to cut back on companies sending work overseas. AB 1829 would prohibit state agencies from signing contracts with companies that outsource jobs; AB 2715 would require customer-services telephone workers to disclose to customers if they are operating in another country; AB 3021 would require companies to report to the state how many jobs they keep in California and elsewhere.
* Tax credits: The Assembly approved a measure, AB 2106, requiring all tax credits and deductions allowed by the state to be reviewed to see if they stimulate enough business to be worth the loss of revenue.
