A legal settlement will require CarMax, Inc. to let Maryland consumers know the recall status of a vehicle before making a purchase.
The settlement was announced by Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown鈥檚 office Monday.
The Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General鈥檚 Office alleged that CarMax鈥檚 “failure to disclose the recall status” of vehicles for sale amounted to “an unfair and deceptive trade practice” in violation of the state鈥檚 consumer protection act.
CarMax advertises 鈥淐arMax Certified Quality鈥� of the vehicles it sells and states that “125+” details are inspected on each vehicle.
The Maryland Attorney General鈥檚 Office did say in its release that once the Consumer Protection Division began its investigation into CarMax鈥檚 claims about quality inspections, the company began including information regarding each vehicle鈥檚 recall status.
On its website, CarMax notes that 鈥渁nything that doesn鈥檛 meet our standards is repaired or replaced by our highly trained technicians,鈥� but goes on to state 鈥渟ome cars have unrepaired safety recalls. Learn more.鈥�
The website includes a hyperlink to , which carries out vehicle safety programs and has information about vehicle recalls.
In , the Maryland Attorney General鈥檚 office advises consumers to look up the recall status 鈥渙f any car that they are considering purchasing鈥� by visiting the .
Brown’s office said the settlement requires CarMax to pay $240,000.
Joe Wilson, chief operating officer for CarMax, said in an email to 海角精品黑料 that the settlement “remains consistent with CarMax’s longstanding practices.”
“In fact, as soon as NHTSA made available vehicle specific recall information in 2014, we began providing the information to customers nationwide and we continue to do so today,” Wilson said.
“As CarMax is not authorized by manufacturers to complete recall repairs and close out recalls, we work hard to ensure our customers have the information they need to take action and have recalls repaired at a manufacturer-authorized facility.”
A CarMax spokesperson clarified that the company has been educating consumers on the topic since 2014, when the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration made centralized safety recall information available.
Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that COO Joe Wilson said the company had agreed to pay $240,000. That information originated with the attorney general’s news release, not Wilson.
