Wichita car dealer ordered to pay $418,000, DA says

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — A judge has ordered a Wichita car dealer to pay $418,197 over an issue with air bags. District Attorney Marc Bennett says the dealer allegedly failed to disclose that cars had blown air bags before selling them, and it was not the first time it happened.

According to the district attorney’s office, the dealership is Carnation LLC, also known as Car Nation, 1301 E. Lincoln.

Investigators say a car buyer complained about finding an air bag simulator device installed in the car. According to the DA, the device disabled the air bag light on the dash, concealing that the air bag had been deployed.

The DA’s Consumer Protection Division began investigating and allegedly found that Carnation LLC sold 12 more cars in the first quarter of 2023 with blown air bags that were not replaced. Bennett says Carnation failed to disclose these blown air bags to the buyers.

The DA says Carnation LLC entered into a consent judgment five years ago, admitting to a deceptive act for failing to disclose a blown air bag on a car. At the time, the dealership and owner were ordered to pay more than $20,000 in fines and refunds.

This time, the fines are much higher. The court found that the sale of each of the 13 cars in the current case with undisclosed and concealed blown air bags constituted willful violations of the 2019 consent judgment and the Kansas Consumer Protection Act.

Judge William Woolley ordered a default judgment against Carnation LLC for “engaging in deceptive acts and willfully violating” the previous consent judgment.

The court revoked the company’s license to do business in Kansas. It also ordered Carnation LLC to pay $390,000 in civil penalties, court costs and investigation fees. One car buyer has received restitution already, but the company must pay $2,000 per car in restitution to the other 12.

Advice to car buyers

The district attorney says car buyers must be careful when buying a used vehicle. He said trained mechanics may be unable to find the devices that conceal air bag problems.

Bennett says that is why it is essential to examine a vehicle’s Carfax report or similar history to see if the car has been in crashes that may have resulted in the deployment of air bags.

He also recommends doing a general online search of the VIN, vehicle identification number, which can often reveal photos of prior damage to the car.

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