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Technews Announces Class-Action Suits and Multi-State Investigations

24 November 1998

Technews Corp. Announces Class-Action Suits and Multi-State Investigations Alleging Deceptive Leasing Practices by Ford

    LOUISVILLE, Ky., Nov. 23 -- Technews Corp. today announced
the following:

    Class-action lawsuits alleging deceptive and fraudulent practices have
been filed in approximately 30 states and counting against Ford Motor Credit,
the company that provides leases on Ford and Lincoln-Mercury vehicles.  The
civil class-action filings are in addition to Friday's announcement that
22 state attorneys general are investigating Ford's leasing practices.
    "This may be the biggest consumer fraud of the decade," said Mark
Eskeldson, automotive consumer advocate and author of a 1997 book which first
exposed the leasing practices of Ford and its dealers.  "It involves hundreds
of thousands of people, each of whom were allegedly cheated out of hundreds,
or thousands, of dollars on leases."  The practices in question: overcharging
on early payoffs ("payoff packing"), secret price increases, disappearing down
payments and trade-ins, charging undisclosed fees, and other unfair tactics.
    "Some dealers are telling consumers they owe Ford Motor Credit hundreds,
if not thousands, of dollars more than they actually do," said Florida
Attorney General Bob Butterworth.  "They then pocket the difference between
the amount charged and the outstanding lease obligation.  We believe this
blatantly deceptive practice is being carried out possibly with Ford Motor
Credit's knowledge."
    According to Eskeldson, Ford not only knew of the practices, it instigated
them.  He says the company provided a national lease training program that
taught dealers and salespeople deceptive sales practices that were used to
cheat customers on leases.  In his book, Eskeldson quotes from Ford's own
lease training manuals to show exactly what was being taught.
    Eskeldson posted worksheets at http://www.carinfo.com to help consumers
determine whether they were victims of leasing fraud.  Since he started
exposing lease fraud in 1995, Eskeldson has helped victims recover almost
$800,000.
    So far, prosecutors in four states have already caught a number of
individual Ford and Lincoln-Mercury dealers cheating people on leases.  In one
state, average restitution has been around $1300 (some victims received over
$2000).  The current class-action suits specify hidden acquisition fees that
typically hiked lease prices by $500 to $700 (or as much as $1200 on vehicles
worth $30,000).  The suits seek restitution, punitive damages, interest and
attorneys fees.  They are being filed on behalf of all Ford Credit lessees in
the states where 94% of Americans live, and could result in total payments of
a billion dollars or more.