By Jody Godoy
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Federal Trade Commission sued Asbury Automotive Group on Friday, alleging that three of its dealerships in Texas charged Black and Latino customers higher prices than others and routinely added services to customers’ contracts without their consent.
Up to 75% of customers of Asbury’s David McDavid Ford dealership in Fort Worth, and Honda dealerships in Irving and Frisco, Texas, reported being charged without their permission for services such as protective coatings, service contracts and insurance, according to the FTC.
In some cases, customers had declined the services or been falsely told they were mandatory, while in others their permission was never sought, the FTC said.
The dealerships on average charged Black customers $298 more and Latino customers $214 more for the same add-on products than they did white customers who were not Latino, the FTC said.
Asbury said it rejects the allegation and will contest the lawsuit. It denied in a statement that minority customers were charged more for protection products than other customers.