Chrysler Hit for Violating Lemon Law
Judge proposes 60-day state ban
on deliveries

"Chrysler would be barred from shipping new cars into California for 60 days as punishment for violating the state's lemon law, under unprecedented sanctions proposed by an administrative law judge.

The sanctions stem from a 1994 complaint by the Department of Motor Vehicles, which accused Chrysler of illegally reselling 116 cars it bought back from consumers under the state's lemon law without adequately disclosing the cars' checkered past.

Consumer groups cheered the proposed sanctions. 'The judge basically said 'cut it out, stop laundering lemon cars in California,' said Rosemary Shahan, head of Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, a Sacramento-based consumer group.

In his decision, Levy wrote, 'Chrysler caused untrue and misleading statements to be made advertising these vehicles and caused the retail buyers to suffer loss or damage by reason of fraud or deceit or fraudulent representation.'"

– San Francisco Chronicle, June 1, 1996

 

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