WHAT IS AUTO FRAUD
Next to our homes, buying a car is the most expensive purchase many of us will make. Consumers are relying more than ever on credit to purchase their vehicles. More than 80 percent of new car shoppers are financing or leasing their new cars. With such a substantial increase in borrowing, subprime auto lending has more than doubled since the financial crisis, with one in four new auto loans going to subprime borrowers (who typically have credit scores of 640 or below). For this and other reasons, automobile sales are fertile ground for fraud and abusive sales and lending practices. Auto fraud covers a wide range of illegal and abusive practices and scams that harm consumers including non-disclosure of credit terms, undisclosed prior damage, yo-yo sales, odometer act violations and lemon sales.