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The Massachusetts Attorney General's lawsuit alleges that Jaffarian Volvo Toyota charged Black customers $510 more and Hispanic car buyers $429 more on average than they did white shoppers.
Jaffarian Volvo Toyota did this through add-ons and additional costs for features such as paint protection, GAP insurance, and remote starters that it didn't charge for white customers, the Attorney General's Office said. The suit contends the dealership earned $170,000 in extra revenue through this scheme during a two-year period.
The dealership said in a statement to Boston25 that the AG's office didn't reach out before filing its lawsuit.
“Jaffarian Volvo Toyota ... has never received any complaint from any customers regarding discrimination in its sales, pricing or services and denies the Massachusetts Attorney General’s claims of discrimination," the statement said.
Gary Jaffarian, president of Jaffarian Volvo Toyota, told the news station that the dealership serves a large Latinx community and discriminating against them "would be hurting ourselves." He also said many of the company's employees are Black and Latinx.
The state's Consumer Protection Act and the Public Accommodations Law prohibit businesses from discrimination on account of race, color, and birth country. The lawsuit says Jaffarian Volvo Toyota didn't adequately train its employees or explain these laws and incentivized finance managers to increase prices with higher commissions for add-ons.
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