Consumers should feel comfortable when shopping, plain and simple. Deceptive and unfair business practices shouldn’t even be a thought when purchasing things like cars and other items. After all, there are laws like the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act that protect consumers from “deceptive and unfair practices in business.” Unfortunately for consumers in Missouri, a new bill is being proposed that will exempt a lot of different types of companies from the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, including “auto dealers, payday and title lenders, finance companies, cable, and phone companies.” Essentially, the new bill would exempt “any company regulated by any government agency” from being sued for violating the act.
Consumers should feel comfortable when shopping, plain and simple. Deceptive and unfair business practices shouldn’t even be a thought when purchasing things like cars and other items. After all, there are laws like the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act that protect consumers from “deceptive and unfair practices in business.” Unfortunately for consumers in Missouri, a new bill is being proposed that will exempt a lot of different types of companies from the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, including “auto dealers, payday and title lenders, finance companies, cable, and phone companies.” Essentially, the new bill would exempt “any company regulated by any government agency” from being sued for violating the act.
For consumers like Bessie Bishop, a bill like this could be disastrous. Bishop was an unfortunate victim of deceptive and unfair business practices when she purchased a 10-year-old Taurus back in 2014 “at a CarHop lot in St. Louis County.” Despite being told by the salesman that it was a good car, a mechanic later discovered during a routine oil change that the car was actually extremely unsafe. In fact, “there was no floor in the car. There were big holes where it all rusted out,” Bishop said. “The passenger side footwell consisted of nothing but carpet and padding. Underneath was only air. Other parts were also rusted away.” But it was too late. When she purchased the car, she “agreed to pay $8,200, signing a note at 20 percent interest.” Additionally, because she had to get to and from work, she had to continue driving the car.
Fortunately for Bishop, the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act helped her out when an attorney, Rob Swearingen, with Legal Services of Eastern Missouri “filed suit against Interstate Auto Group, parent of CarHop.” Not only was the case eventually settled, but Bishop’s “debt was erased.”
With Missouri’s new bill, sponsored by Sen. Ron Richard, R-Joplin, consumers who experience the same thing Bishop did might not be so lucky in the future because they won’t be able to go after businesses like the CarHop that so clearly try to deceive their customers. The bill itself has already been approved by a Senate committee, and is “awaiting a vote of the Senate.” Unfortunately for consumers, it’s expected to “sail right through.”
The bill is especially disconcerting when you consider that the number of consumer cases is increasing, not only in Missouri but across the nation. In fact, Heidi Kolkmeyer, legislative director for the Senate’s Republican majority caucus, recently cited a “study by the Searle Civil Justice Institute,” which “reported 75 consumer protection cases filed in Missouri in 2013, a 15 percent increase over the previous year.”
Despite the outcry from consumers and consumer protection groups, some claim people are blowing things way out of proportion. For example, Brian Bunten, a general counsel for the Missouri Chamber of Commerce, claims consumers can still sue businesses that would be exempt from the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act. They would “simply have to use other laws governing those industries.” He added, “this bill does not preclude making claims against an auto dealer.”
It will be interesting to see how things play out. It will also be interesting to see whether or not other states follow suit, and how consumers will fare.
Sources:
Missouri Consumer Law Is Under Attack
Consumer Group Critical Of Bill In Legislature To Restrict Liability Lawsuits
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