Concord's Dan O’Brien Kia Fined $1.25M For Unfair, Deceptive Practices

CONCORD, NH — An automotive dealership in Concord has paid a $1.25 million fine to resolve unfair and deceptive sales practices in 2019 and 2020, according to the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office.

Dan O’Brien Kia doing business as DMO Auto Acquisitions LLC agreed to pay a $1.25 million fine as well as hire a compliance monitor for five years to eye business practices after using deceptive sales pitches and fraudulently inflating customer income. The investigation also discovered one count of forgery of a loan document, Michael Garrity, the director of communications for the department, said.

“The settlement is the result of an extensive investigation by the Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau into the business practices of DMO initiated after the volume of consumer complaints filed against DMO drastically increased between 2019-2021,” he said. “The investigation revealed DMO employees engaged in three distinct types of deceptive acts or practices that violated New Hampshire consumer protection laws.”

An investigation found the dealership pitched a credit rehab program to customers that did not exist. It led to consumers agreeing to loans they could not afford. The pitch was made that consumers qualified for the program, requiring six months of timely payments. Then, the customer’s credit would be reevaluated, leading to a refinancing opportunity and a more affordable rate.

“The investigation revealed that program did not actually exist and was nothing more than a carefully calculated sales pitch,” Garrity said. “There were no written policies, procedures, literature, or information available for the customers to review. The program was not endorsed or affiliated with any financial institution despite representations by salesmen that it was affiliated with well-known banks.”

The lack of an actual program left the consumers with a loan obligation they could not afford at the end of the six months.

The company also was found to have increased customer incomes on loan applications before accessing finance offers. The state found that on “several occasions,” employees submitted accurate statements to banks. After loans were declined, employees would resubmit the applications with false incomes to score the loan.

In one case, too, a customer’s signature was forged on a loan document, the state found. That customer also was given multiple insurance products they did not want and were submitted on their behalf, the state said.

To resolve the issues, along with the fines and compliance officer, Dan O’Brien Kia paid $49,209.50 in legal fees to the state and restitution to two customers who were victims of the practices. The dealership will also audio and video record “all substantive financing discussions that occur between DMO employees and customers” and “implement an approved training and education program for all DMO staff to ensure knowledge of and compliance with state consumer protection laws.”

Brian Quirk, an attorney for the company, said the company was pleased the matter had been resolved and that the settlement recognized there was no admission of wrongdoing.

"DMO Auto Acquisitions has addressed all issues raised by the NH Attorney General’s Office," he said. "DMO has put in place best practices and welcomes the NH Attorney General’s monitoring process in the area of recording transactions, something it has done for years. DMO’s focus continues to remain on its customers and providing them with the best possible service."

If you or someone you know has experienced unfair or deceptive acts or practices by a New Hampshire Business, contact the Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau of the Attorney General's Office by calling 603-271-3641.

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