FTC Approves Amendments to Used Auto Parts Guides

The Federal Trade Commission has amended its Used Auto Parts Guides, which are designed to prevent the unfair or deceptive marketing of used motor vehicle parts and assemblies containing used parts, such as engines and transmissions.  The Guides refer to such parts and assemblies as “industry products.”

The “Guides for the Rebuilt, Reconditioned and Other Used Automobile Parts Industry” declare certain acts and practices to be unfair or deceptive under the FTC Act, including misrepresenting that an industry product is new or the amount of use of an industry product, misrepresenting the identity of anyone who worked on an industry product after its removal from the original vehicle, and misrepresenting its condition or the amount of work done to it after its removal from the original vehicle.

In May 2012, the FTC sought public comment on the costs, benefits, need for, and regulatory and economic impact of the Guides as part of its systematic review of all current FTC rules and guides. After considering the comments, the Commission decided to retain and amend the Guides. Significant amendments include providing that the term “remanufactured,” like the term “factory rebuilt,” should be used only if the product was rebuilt “at a factory generally engaged in the rebuilding of such products”; applying the Guides to used tires; and shortening and updating the sample list of parts that may be industry products.

The Commission vote approving the amendments to the Used Auto Parts Guides was 5-0. The amendments to the Guides will be effective on August 22, 2014. The amended guides are available on the FTC’s website and as a link to this press release and will be published in the Federal Register soon. (FTC File No. P127702; the staff contact is Jonathan L. Kessler, East Central Region, 216-263-3436)

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