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FTC considering warning stickers for used Chrysler vehicles
07/08/2009,
Source: leftlanenews

If several consumer groups have their way, used Chrysler vehicle could soon come with a warning sticker. Under the terms of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, Chrysler shed its liability for any defective vehicles produced before May 30th, potentially putting thousands of consumers at risk.

After fielding several petitions, the Federal Trade Commission is now reviewing a plan that would require every Chrysler vehicle made before May 30th to carry a sticker warning consumers that Chrysler cannot be held liable for product defects, even if the defect results in personal injury. About 30 million used Chrysler vehicles have lost liability protection previously afforded by state laws, according to Automotive News.

“In Chrysler’s bankruptcy, the ability to form a new company free from the product liability burden of the old company was essential to the new company’s survival,” Chrysler spokesman Michael Palese said in an e-mail to Automotive News. “This is not an issue involving an identified potential safety issue with these vehicles, nor do petitioners claim to have uncovered a systemic defect that requires disclosure.”

The petition claims the buyer of a used Chrysler vehicle could be on the hook for “millions of dollars in medical expenses, hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost income and other losses — with no possibility of recompense — even if their injury was clearly Chrysler’s fault”.

The FTC has yet to decide if it will move forward with the case, but any law regarding used Chrysler vehicles would take about a year to officially hit the books.