Editorial: Watch your language

Friday, June 30, 2006 | 7:37 a.m.

A law that went into effect last year requires that car dealers provide sales contracts and credit applications in Spanish to customers who ask for them.

But, according to a recent story by the Las Vegas Sun, such contracts are not always available, forcing some Spanish-speaking residents into signing paperwork in English. As a result, they may not always know exactly what kind of car deal they are getting - violating the spirit of the 2005 law, if not the letter of it.

Many customers for whom Spanish is their first language may be able to converse in English, but they may not read English well enough to comprehend the complicated language of automobile sales contracts and loan applications.

Compounding this problem is the fact that many Hispanic residents don't know they can ask for Spanish forms. And the Sun reported that the state has notified only new-car dealers, but no used-car dealers, about the law.

For most people, the purchase of a motor vehicle is second only to a home in its financial significance. The paperwork is difficult enough to decipher. Imagine doing it in a foreign language.

The state should be diligent in making sure all dealerships - including those selling used vehicles - are notified of this law. Dealerships shouldn't have to store reams of forms they will never use.

But they should have a few copies of Spanish documents available, post signs to that effect and expect to offer such an option to customers who ask or with whom salespeople converse in Spanish.