FTC Buyers Guide   "AS-IS"

 

The Rule covers used vehicles including light-duty vans, light-duty trucks, demonstrators, and program cars that meet the following specifications: 

• a gross vehicle weight rating of less than 8,500 pounds;
• a curb weight of less than 6,000 pounds; and
• a frontal area of less than 46 square feet

Exceptions to this Rule are:

The Buyers Guide must be posted prominently and conspicuously on or in a vehicle.  This means it must be in plain view and both sides must be visible.  A Guide in a glove compartment, trunk, or under the seat is NOT conspicuous because it is not in plain sight.  You may remove the Guide for a test drive, but you must replace it as soon as the test drive is over.

 

If you conduct a sale in Spanish, you must provide a Spanish Buyers Guide.  But if the Spanish-speaking customer brings their own interpreter, you are still conducting the sale in English and this provision would not apply.

 

Fill out the Buyers Guide completely, including vehicle information, dealer information and warranty information.   Although it is not required to have your customer sign and date this document, we strongly recommend it.  As former investigators for the state, we occasionally found that customers would dispose of their copy and claim they never received one.  A signed and dated copy in your files will protect you!

 

The Buyers Guides must be the same wording, type style, type sizes and format specified in the Rule.  The Guides must be printed in 100% black ink on white paper, cut to at least 11" x 7 1/4".  These requirements cannot be modified in any way.  For more information, see the FTC web site FTC Buyers Guide Rules.

 

CAPSS does provide FTC Buyer's Guides with the signature and date line on the reverse side.   If you need to order any of these forms, give us a call, or go to our web site at  CAPSS Shopping Mall. 

Tow-Away Vehicles

 

Temporary permits may not be issued to a tow-away vehicle, and that vehicle cannot be driven off the dealership's lot.  The dealer must indicate on the Buyer's Order the extent of the vehicle's safety problems in order to bring them to the attention of the certified law enforcement VIN Inspector to obtain road worthiness.

 

Don't forget to display a FTC Buyer's Guide in all tow-away vehicles.  For more information on state safety standards - keep reading!

 

Safety Standards

Upcoming Training Seminars

Getting the Car Deal Rolling:  This seminar concentrates on how to complete the basic car deal paperwork involved in a sales transaction.  It includes an introduction to the required sales documents for motor vehicles and power sport sales, and to title transfer documents.  This seminar is uniquely formatted for the novice dealer/and or title clerk. 

 

Intermediate & Refresher Title Document Training:  This seminar includes basic title documents for incoming and outgoing title transfer, various title forms, applications for title, how and why to do a VIN inspection, title assignments, odometer disclosures, secure and verifiable identification and more.

 

The Well-Informed Dealer - Do You Think You Know It All?  Are you complying with the Federal Truth-in-Mileage Act?  Do you know what damage disclosure is required to be furnished to your customer?  If you did not know the vehicle you sold was previously salvaged, do you have to buy the vehicle back?   What charges can be added to an advertised price?  This seminar covers numerous items required for compliance of industry's rules and regulations.  Dealers taking this class will be prepared for a compliance inspection by the Auto Industry Division.

 

OFAC/Safeguard Training/Redflags:  This seminar explains what Red Flags is all about, who must comply, how to comply, and the sanctions for non-compliance.  It includes a template to help you compose your Red Flags policy.  The seminar also covers OFAC, and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, including Privacy Notices and Safeguard Training.

 

To register for any of these seminars, go to www.capss.biz .   

Legislative Update Reminders

 

Effective January 1, 2010, the basic emissions program area shall consist of the County of El Paso.   The enhanced emissions program area shall consist of the counties of Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, Jefferson, Larimer and Weld, and the cities and counties of Broomfield and Denver.  A portion of Adams, Arapahoe, El Paso, Larimer and Weld are excluded from their respective areas and are outlined in Colorado State Statute 42-4-304.

 

Colorado motor vehicle dealers that extend consumer credit should be aware of the Uniform Consumer Credit Code and must register with the Colorado Attorney General's Office to extend credit.   Credit sellers and retail merchants that regularly extend consumer credit as a "creditor" must annually file and pay the Uniform Consumer Credit Code notification fees.

 

Previously only businesses that collected consumer credit sale and lease payments for more than 30 days after the contract date must have complied with this law.  Changes in the law became Effective January 1, 2010.

 

Following are the current compliance requirements:

The notification fee is $50 annually.  You are subject to UCCC notification and fees if you are a "Creditor".  A creditor is:

Payments are due within 30 days after commencing business in this state and on or before January 31st of each year thereafter.  If you are required to pay the fee and fail to do so:

 

Compliance Examinations:

The UCCC Administrator may examine credit sellers, lessors and sales finance companies for compliance with UCCC requirements.  Examination reports advise businesses of practices that do not comply with the UCCC and request corrective action.

 

Next year dealerships will have to comply with another disclosure requirement before they can extend financing to car buyers.  The Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Trade Commission issued their final Risk-Based Pricing Rules on December 22, 2009.

 

The disclosure rule applies to any lender that bases credit terms on a customer's credit score, including dealerships that arrange financing for customers.

 

The rule becomes effective January 1, 2011, and requires dealerships to give their finance customers a written report showing their current credit score, the name of the credit reporting agency providing the score and either a bar graph or clearly worded statement telling customers how their scores rank against those of other consumers.

 

The FTC will provide a form that dealerships can use to meet the disclosure requirements.  Dealers must give finance customers a written report showing:

 

We will keep you informed on this requirement as it gets closer to the implementation date.

Titles & Registrations

Form Changes/Updates