Salvaged-vehicle bill gains support

Wednesday, April 2, 2003 | 11:15 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A Las Vegas single mother of two urged an Assembly committee Tuesday to pass legislation to protect unsuspecting Nevadans from buying wrecked and unsafe vehicles.

Denise Sell said that when she bought her car she was never told it had suffered extensive damage in a wreck -- and that the air bags and horn didn't work, among other things.

"Someone should be required to look at rebuilt cars and certify that they are safe before they are sold to people," Sell said.

Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson, representatives of insurance companies and the state Department of Motor Vehicles said Sell is right. They all endorsed Assembly Bill 325, which was introduced by Assembly Majority Leader Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas.

Gibson recounted the story of "hundreds of vehicles" that were damaged in floods in North Carolina and then "sold to unsuspecting people" in Nevada.

Buckley said Nevada's present law covering the sale of salvaged vehicles is "full of holes." For one thing, there is no requirement for a notation on the title that the car was salvaged. Other states require such a notation. Her bill would require it in Nevada.

Her bill also says the prospective buyer must be informed that a vehicle is a salvaged vehicle. If he fails to obey, the seller would have to pay several penalties, including a $5,000 award to the buyer in addition to other compensation.

The bill also says that a vehicle with a "salvaged" notation on the title cannot be sold until it is inspected by a garage and certified as safe. The garage must certify that the car has been repaired to the standard of the manufacturer and any safety equipment, such as safety belts are working. The state could revoke the license of the garage if it is found it conducted a fraudulent inspection.

Assemblywoman Vonne Chown ing, D-North Las Vegas, the chairwoman of the committee, said the legislation was "long overdue."

A similar bill was introduced in 2001 but it died in the Senate. The committee did not take any action on AB325 and instead gave Buckley time to work out minor amendments.

Sell told the Assembly Transportation Committee that no consumer should ever have to go through what she has. She spent a hard-earned $2,000 as a down payment on a 1-year-old Suzuki with less than 7,000 miles. The sales people at a "major Las Vegas dealership" told her the car was in good condition and had hardly been used.

On a test drive, however, she noticed the car pulled to the left. She said she was assured that would be fixed. After the purchase, other problems were discovered including the air bags not operating and the horn did not work because the wiring had been cut.

She took it back to the dealership but they referred her to Suzuki because, they said, the defects were covered by the warranty. But the Suzuki dealer said the factory warranty did not cover the car because it had been wrecked.

The dealer who sold the vehicle refused to fix the car, she has filed a lawsuit and the car wound up being repossessed, she said.