Pub. 8 2018 Issue 2

9 chased vehicle, or for any other purpose whatsoever. To do so otherwise is an un- lawful practice under the Act, whether a fee or charges are claimed from the down payment, whether the down payment is in the form of money, goods, chattels or otherwise, or whether made as a separate charge to the customer. This law renders it a violation for dealerships to fail or refuse to return a customer’s down payment when financing was not able to be secured for the purchase of the vehicle. Dealerships in Illinois have been subject to enforcement action by the Illinois Attorney General’s Office for violations of Section 2C of the Act. Additionally, private actions have been successfully waged by consumers against dealerships. (See e.g., Bates v William Chevrolet/Geo, Inc., 785 N.E. 2d 53, 1st Dist. Ill. App. Ct. 2003). In that case, the court rejected the dealership’s arguments stating that the failure to return the cus- tomer’s down payment after rejecting her credit application violated Section 2C of the Act. The customer was also awarded damages and attorney fees. Dealerships also continue to face vio- lations of Section 2C over use of clauses or riders to the buyer’s order or retail in- stallment contract which state that if the dealer is not able to assign the contract to a finance company, upon notice, the cus- tomer must return the purchased vehicle and forfeit to the dealership a portion of the customer’s down payment for dealership’s costs of repair or damage. Such efforts have been deemed unlawful attempts to avoid Section 2C. Check your dealership’s transactional documents and consult with your dealership’s attorney to ensure Sec- tion 2C compliance.  Julie A. Cardosi is Principal of the private firm, Law Office of Julie A. Cardosi, P.C., of Springfield, Illinois. Shehaspracticedlawforover30years, and represents the business interests of franchised motor vehicle dealers throughout Illinois. Formerly in-house staff legal counsel for the Illinois Automobile Dealers Association, she concentrates her private practice in the areas of dealership compliance matters, transfers of ownership, mergers and acquisitions, franchise law, commercial real estate transfers, and other areas impacting day-to-day dealership operations. She has also served as former Illinois Assistant Attorney General and Deputy Chief of the Consumer Fraud Bureau of the Attorney General’s Office. The material discussed in this article is for general information only and is not intended as legal advice and should not be acted upon as such. Dealers should consult their own private legal counsel for application to their specific circumstances. For more information, Julie can be reached at jcardosi@ autocounsel.com , or at 217-787-9782, ext. 1. le Financing for Dealership Customer: wn Payment Regardless of Its Form