The struggle to ensure that working families can get and keep a reliable car at fair terms is going on across the country. This page will allow us to update you on local efforts to address these issues. If you know of something going on in your area that we should share with others please contact us.
Alabama
California passes the Car Buyers Protection Act, requiring car dealers to pay off outstanding liens before trading or selling a used car. More
Maryland
The Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition has been trying to address a number of car related issues in Maryland. See How to Buy a Used Car Without Being Taken for a Ride: What You Need to Know Before Buying a Used Car or Truck to Get a Good Vehicle at a Fair Price. Funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
Modernizing the Massachusetts Exemption Laws
Massachusetts has amended its exemptions laws to better protect the family car and other necessities. This law sets out what property debtors are able to protect from unsecured judgment creditors. From the article in the Boston Globe:
The new law updates decades-old property exemptions, allowing consumers to keep a car worth up to $7,500 out of reach of collectors, up from $700 in the past. Owners who are 60 or older or disabled will get a $15,000 car exemption. Consumers also may hold on to $2,500 in a bank account, five times the current level.
“This new law will protect thousands of struggling Massachusetts residents, and allow them to house, feed, and support their families and continue to work as they struggle to pay debts and get back on their feet after an economic setback,’’ said Robert J. Hobbs, deputy director of the National Consumer Law Center.