New Jersey and Switch Claims

Bait and Switch occurs when a vehicle is advertised but when the prospective customer comes to the dealership, the vehicle is not available.  That frequent conduct constitutes bait and switch and thereby violates the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act.  The regulation states,

13:45A-26A.4  Bait and switch

• The following motor vehicle advertising practices constitute “bait and switch” and are prohibited and unlawful:
  1. The advertisement of a motor vehicle as part of a plan or scheme not to sell or lease it or not to sell or lease it at the advertised
  2. Without limiting other means of proof, the following shall be prima facie evidence of a plan or scheme not to sell or lease a motor vehicle as advertised or not to sell or lease it at the advertised price:
     1. Refusal to show, display, sell, or lease the advertised motor vehicle in accordance with the terms of the advertisement, unless the vehicle has been actually sold or leased during the period of publication; in that case, the advertiser shall retain records of that sale or lease for 180 days following the date of the transaction, and shall make them available for inspection by the Division of Consumer
     2. Accepting a deposit for an advertised motor vehicle, then switching the purchaser to a higher-priced motor vehicle, except when the purchaser has initiated the switch as evidenced by a writing to that effect signed by the
     3. The failure to make delivery of an advertised motor vehicle, then switching the purchaser to a higher-priced motor vehicle; except when the purchaser has initiated the switch as evidenced by a writing to that effect signed by the purchaser.

        

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