Don't mess with the state of Texas. That is the message that Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott sent when his office filed a lawsuit against automotive dealer ASAP Motors and Parts, Inc. earlier this month for advertising and selling faulty auto parts.
The civil suit, filed with the Harris County District Court, charges owners Brian McCutcheon and John Scott Sandell of falsely dealing in and selling automotive parts to customers. The lawsuit accuses the co-owners of falsely advertising parts obtained from Houston area junkyards as being high quality and low mileage engines and transmissions from Japan.
"By advertising junkyard scrap as legitimate, inspected, overseas products, ASAP Motors and Parts defrauded their unwitting customers," said Attorney General Abbott in a news release.
According to the lawsuit, the dealers violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
Parts sold include "rusted, mismatched or cracked motors and transmissions," says the lawsuit.
According to the Attorney General's office, they have received hundreds of complaints about the business and its practices.
"350 customers have complained," said Tom Kelley, a spokesman for the Attorney General's office, in a telephone interview. "Those were complaints received by us directly and Federal Trade Commission but mostly from the Better Business Bureau."
Complaints have been coming in about ASAP since 2001, but the vast majority was filed within the last two years.
According to the lawsuit, when the parts failed to produce promised results, the dealers "blame the consumer or the consumer's mechanic for defects or damage, and claim that the unit must have been damaged during installation" to deny refunds.
ASAP customers were faced with an average loss of $1,000 to $1,500 for purchase of damaged and failed parts.
Customers were also charged with a 20 percent restocking fee when products were returned.
However, according to information on ASAP Motor's Web site, all "engines and transmissions are quality tested."
The lawsuit seeks civil penalties of $20,000 per violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and over $250,000 in penalties over Sandell and McCutcheon for each violation over customers over 65.
ASAP denies all claims. Owners McCutcheon and Sandell refused to comment.
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