I recently came across this and thought it was important to share, epecially since so many of us purchase or are in the market to purchase a previously owned vehicle. It’s a reminder to arm ourselves with as much information as we can and to be aware that if it seems to good to be true, it probably is.

A man in Buford, Georgia was recently sentenced to 18 months in federal prison, followed by a year of supervised release for rolling back odometers on used cars and trucks to make the vehicles more valuable.

Ronald Dale Cole, 55, has pleaded guilty to odometer tampering and was sentenced on October 14, 2008. The judge in the case also ordered the defendant to pay $191,395.00 in restitution, reflecting the amount the court found Cole had defrauded victims through his odometer fraud scheme.

Apparently, Cole purchased high-mileage cars as well as sport-utility vehicles and trucks, all at wholesale auto auctions in Georgia and South Carolina.  He then rolled back the odometers by an average of 97,742 miles and resold the vehicles at auto auctions. At sentencing, the judge found that Cole had sold 56 vehicles with altered odometers with an average loss per victim of $3,418.00.  Most of the vehicles Cole sold were more than 10 years old.

Because of the age of the cars, Cole was not required to sign a disclosure certifying the mileage on these 10-year old vehicles as being accurate, however, each time he altered an odometer with intent to change the mileage on the odometer, he violated federal law.

Gregory G. Katsas, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division said about the case:

 ”Just because a car dealer does not have to certify the mileage on so-called ‘exempt’ cars, that does not give him a license to roll back odometers. We are vigilant in enforcing this important consumer protection law and will prosecute anyone who tries to skirt the law by rolling back odometers on vehicles of any age. This is especially important as cars last longer and longer and as people rely on older cars for reliable transportation.”

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation (NHTSA) investigated this case and estimates that odometer fraud in the United States results in consumer losses of more than $1 billion annually.  The NHTSA has established a special hotline to handle odometer fraud complaints. Individuals having information relating to odometer tampering should call (800) 424-9393 or (202) 366-4761.

So, how can you protect yourself against this kind of consumer fraud?  Below are some suggestions to guard against odometer tampering:

• Look for loose screws or scratch marks around the dashboard.
• Check to make sure that the digits in the odometer are lined up straight – particularly the 10,000 digit.
• On General Motors cars, look for silver between the digits – it should not be there.  The area between the numbers should be black.
• Tests drive the car to see if the speedometer sticks.
• Check for service stickers inside the door or under the hood that may give the actual mileage.
• Look in the owner’s manual to see if maintenance was listed, or if pages that might have shown high mileage were removed.
• Ask the dealer whether a computer warranty check has been run on the car.
• Ask to see the title documents and look to see if the mileage reading on the documents has been altered.
• When buying from an individual, look at the date the car’s title was issued by the state.  Be wary if the car is being sold immediately after the title was issued – the new title could have been obtained to hide a mileage alteration on the old title.
• Look for signs of excessive wear on the arm-rest, the floor mats, steering wheel, the pedals for the brakes and gas, and the area around the ignition.  If these items were recently replaced, that could also indicate efforts to hide the vehicle’s true use and mileage.
• Have a mechanic check out the car.
• Insist that the seller fill out and sign the odometer information on the back of the title.  This may help you in the future if there is a problem.

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