Is Filing an Inaccurate Motor Vehicle Odometer Disclosure Statement a ‘Strict Liability’ Offense?
State of Ohio ex rel. Nancy H. Rogers [Richard Cordray], Attorney General of Ohio v. Midway Motor Sales, Inc., et al., Case no. 2008-1451 10th District Court of Appeals (Franklin County) ISSUE: Does Ohio’s motor vehicle odometer rollback and disclosure law, R.C. 4549.46, impose “strict liability” on a vehicle owner who, in the course of selling a vehicle, provides the buyer with an affidavit stating that the current odometer reading is accurate “to the best of the seller’s knowledge,” when it is later learned that the vehicle’s odometer had been rolled back by a previous owner without the knowledge or participation of the current seller? BACKGROUND: In this case, a Youngstown auto dealership, Midway Motors, purchased vehicles from General Motors for sale or lease through its dealership and subsequently leased a large number of those vehicles to Modern Builders Supply. The terms of those leases specified a maximum mileage allowance of 30,000 miles. Pursuant to a dealer agreement with Ge
