The state of New Jersey has ordered a North Jersey car dealer to pay more than $800,000 after investigators documented hundreds of violations tied to car sales.
The business is BM Motorcars, a luxury dealership now operating out of Linden. The judgment, entered Jan. 20, totals $842,776.24.
The State says the violations piled up over years.
Investigators found that the dealership failed to clearly show full vehicle prices in ads. Customers were asked to sign inspection waivers that are not allowed under state law. Required paperwork, including odometer disclosure forms, was missing or not provided to buyers.
In one two-month stretch alone, investigators recorded 511 violations.
BM Motorcars sells high-end vehicles, including brands such as Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche. The dealership previously operated in Rahway before relocating to Linden. Regulators say the same problems followed the business to its new location.
This was not the first time the dealership had been flagged.
In 2018, the business entered into a consent order with the state after selling “gray market” vehicles—cars imported without proper authorization that may not meet U.S. safety or emissions standards. The agreement required the dealership to stop those sales and follow specific disclosure rules.
According to the state, the conduct continued anyway.
The latest judgment includes $793,500 in civil penalties. An additional $49,276.24 covers investigative and legal costs. The order also bars the dealership from engaging in deceptive practices and requires compliance with all applicable state and federal laws going forward.
Cases like this are uncommon mostly because they rarely reach this scale. Regulators say the issue here was volume. Not one mistake. Not a short lapse. Years of the same problems, even after prior enforcement.
For consumers, the case is a reminder that car pricing and paperwork are not optional details. When those details are hidden or skipped, the consequences can be significant, for buyers and, eventually, for the seller.
The New Jersey Digest is a new jersey magazine that has chronicled daily life in the Garden State for over 10 years.