Deception and lies are two common aspects in today’s time. It is elementary for sellers to trick their customers into buying false informational products. As a buyer, it should be an utmost priority to verify the authenticity of a product through legal documents. One such fraud in the car dealership industry is the ‘Odometer tampering.’
Odometer Tampering refers to the alterations made to a vehicle’s odometer by changing, replacing, or falsely representing the car’s actual mileage. It is done solely to make unhealthy profits by the dealers and sellers. It is a cunning strategy to portray a car’s high performance by increasing the mileage even though its true story is the opposite.
1. Culprits behind the Fraud
A Private Dealer
It is difficult for private dealers to fulfill their quotas of car sales. Their fixed target keeps fluctuating from time to time.
The dealers try to alter the odometers to make sure the car’s performance looks as sporty as ever and that customers are impressed. Changes in the odometer are legally allowed when the vehicle is more than 10 years old, but that also affects its selling price. These dealers are highly fixated on making profits; therefore, they make these false alterations.
Fraud Vehicle Franchises
It is essential to be aware of certain franchises that claim big promises about their products but fail to generate legal proof. Certain franchise companies offer luxurious cars selling at discounted prices for the buyers. They use false evidence to justify the vehicles with high mileage ratings by making odometer alterations. Buyers must check previous legal reports of the car’s maintenance and oil change reports. It will verify its originality. A damage disclosure statement NC is provided to the buyer, verifying any earlier damage.
2. Odometer Deceit Laws
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has passed legal commands against tampering with an odometer. It is a crime to:
Change any part of the mileage reading device, install or remove any vital gadget from the vehicle that will change the reading of its performance before its original one.
Sell a car knowing its odometer is mechanically tampered with.
3. How to detect a tampered Odometer?
Buyers should check the following:
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- The vehicle’s original car service history. It will state all its previous mileage readings, so it will show up if the dealer makes any changes.
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- The odometer should not have any markings, fingerprints, or smudge marks; if it persists, you must get an alert.
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- There should be no sticker on the driver’s gate stating an odometer replacement. It means that the original one has been changed.
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- There shouldn’t be any extra switches around the dashboard. These switches turn the odometer on or off, which is an apparent deception.
Parting Thoughts
It is very easy to be misled by sellers and their fraud showcase of tampered components. Therefore, our earnest request to you to kindly be well informed. Insist on documents like damage disclosure statement NC to see through these trickeries.
Even if you’ve found an odometer tampering with your newly purchased car, file your complaint and take legal action right away.
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