Bloomington auto dealer illegally selling cars and issuing fake license plates

INDIANAPOLIS (May 18, 2018) — Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson has issued a cease and desist to H Auto in Bloomington for selling cars without a license and illegally issuing interim license plates. Consumers should not do business with H Auto. They are not licensed to sell cars or do business in the state of Indiana. 

The Secretary of State’s office was first alerted to the situation through consumer complaints. H Auto has been advertising in English and Chinese. It is alleged that they may be targeting Chinese students at Indiana University. The advertisements encourage potential clients to make an appointment because H Auto does business by appointment only. They will not do walk-in business as is typical with most dealerships.

The consumers who have notified the Secretary of State’s office of issues with H Auto allege they were sold cars with fake New Jersey license plates. Other complainants allege H Auto took their money but they never got a title for the vehicle they purchased. 

They Secretary of State’s office and the Bloomington Police are currently investigating the matter. Any consumers who believe they have been victimized by H Auto are urged to contact the Secretary of State’s office at 317-234-7190.

“I want to thank the consumers who reported their suspicions of fraud,” said Secretary Lawson.  “While our office routinely conducts audits of auto dealerships, the licensed dealers are overall fine and reputable. It is the unlicensed dealers who are not following the law that are harder to track down. We rely heavily on the public to help us identify these bad actors and encourage any consumer with an issue to contact us.”

For more information on the Secretary of State’s Auto Dealer Services Division, visit www.in.gov/sos/dealer.