The FTC says a Florida dealership group added $3,350 on average above its advertised prices

The Federal Trade Commission says Greenway Auto Group, a Florida dealership operator, charged more than $3,350 above the advertised price, on average, in over 92% of transactions. The agency filed a complaint and a proposed stipulated order against the group on Oct. 8 in federal court in Orlando. The order is a settlement: it carries conduct bans and disclosure rules, and it contains no monetary judgment.

The day in tech, in one email: TLDR is the daily newsletter with links and TLDRs of the most interesting stories in startups, tech and programming.

Get TLDR →

We may earn a commission if you sign up.

Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, put the agency’s position in a single sentence: “Consumers can’t make informed choices when the actual price is hidden.” The commission voted 2-0 to authorize staff to file the complaint and the order. Everything below about what Greenway did is the FTC’s allegation, made in a complaint, and not a finding after a trial. Where the documents say what the order would require, that language describes a proposal awaiting a judge.

The Greenway complaint in the Middle District of Florida

The case is FTC v. Greenway Automotive, Inc., et al., No. 6:26-cv-2337, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Orlando Division. According to the FTC’s announcement, the group added mandatory fees, packages and penalties to its advertised prices, including administrative fees, dealer fees, delivery fees and processing fees, and some advertised prices reflected rebates and discounts that only some shoppers could actually get.

The complaint itself is narrower and more specific than that average. It names seven corporate defendants, among them Greenway Automotive, Inc., Greenway Automotive Management, LLC and the entities behind Greenway Kia at the Avenues, Greenway Kia North, Greenway Kia East, Greenway Kia West and Greenway Hyundai Orlando. It says the group operates 35 or more dealerships under the Greenway Auto Group name. No individuals are defendants.

The 92% calculation covers a defined slice of sales. For vehicles advertised on CarGurus.com and Cars.com at the Kia stores between March 1, 2023, and May 6, 2026, the complaint says over 92% of consumers paid more than the advertised price, by at least $3,354 on average, a figure that excludes government charges and optional add-ons. The release rounds that to “more than $3,350” and describes it as the group’s pattern. Both versions are allegations.

Prize mailers and a warning letter that came first

The second count has nothing to do with fees. The complaint says Greenway mailers, including scratch-off pieces and “Official Winning Codes,” told recipients they had won prizes such as $2,500 in instant cash or a vehicle, and directed them to call a number or visit a website and then collect at a specific Greenway dealership. The FTC alleges the prizes were not real and served to bring people onto the lot. One mailer went out as recently as July 2026, pointing to Greenway Hyundai Orlando.

Both counts are brought under Section 5(a) of the FTC Act, and the agency is seeking a permanent injunction under Section 13(b). The complaint does not rely on the FTC’s separate rule for vehicle dealers. That keeps the case to a familiar theory: an advertised price that a reasonable shopper reads as the price to pay, followed by charges the shopper learns about only at the desk, with the added claim here that a cash prize was the bait to get the shopper there.

The group had been warned. In March 2026 the commission sent letters to 97 dealership groups, as laid out in the FTC’s March announcement, and Greenway received its own warning letter. The complaint alleges that afterward the group added price-transparency assurances to its websites while continuing to advertise prices well below what customers were charged. The agency treats that sequence as the reason to sue rather than send a second letter, and the FTC’s release calls the websites’ price-transparency assurances false.

What the proposed stipulated order requires and what it leaves out

The proposed stipulated order is an order for permanent injunction. Greenway’s advertised prices would have to prominently show the actual amount a consumer must pay, with the single exception of charges the government requires. The defendants would be barred from deceptive prize mailers and from misrepresenting whether any charge, fee, tax, product or service is optional or required, and whether any type or source of financing is required.

The disclosure rule is the most concrete piece. Whenever the defendants state an amount a consumer may pay, the order requires them to disclose the total price clearly and conspicuously, as the most prominently displayed item in any visual disclosure. It also runs on a schedule: sworn acknowledgments within seven days of entry, a compliance report after one year, five years of recordkeeping covering deal worksheets, ads and complaints, and notices of changes to contact details or corporate structure. The order also lets the FTC demand further reports, documents and depositions, and it includes a limited safe harbor for third-party advertising that follows set conditions. The court would keep jurisdiction to enforce and modify the terms.

No money changes hands under the order as filed. Neither the release nor the order states a monetary judgment, a refund fund or a civil penalty, and the defendants waive claims for costs and fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Shoppers who were charged the fees therefore see no restitution in these documents, which is a notable gap in a case built on an average overcharge of more than $3,350.

One procedural point remains open. The FTC’s page says stipulated orders take effect once a district court judge approves and signs them, and the copy of the order the agency posted has the judge’s name and signature lines blank. Until the Middle District of Florida enters it, the document is a proposal. The docket in No. 6:26-cv-2337 is the place to confirm entry.

This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.

The day in tech, in one email: Get TLDR →

We may earn a commission if you sign up.