A South Florida woman’s title nightmare and a lawsuit involving 11 consumers competing for the same $25,000 dealer bond are raising questions about whether Florida’s consumer protection law has kept pace with the cost of buying a car.

For more than five decades, Florida has required independent licensed motor vehicle dealers to carry a $25,000 surety bond intended to protect consumers when a dealership fails to meet its legal obligations.

The requirement is contained in Florida Statute 320.27(10), which requires licensed motor vehicle dealers to maintain the bond as a condition of doing business. The bond is designed to compensate consumers who suffer financial losses because of certain dealer violations, including failing to properly transfer ownership of a vehicle.

But while the cost of buying a car has increased dramatically since the law was enacted, the required bond amount has not.

Today, a South Florida woman’s experience and court records involving multiple consumers competing for the same dealer bond are raising new questions about whether the law still provides meaningful protection.

Pamela Wright says she has spent nearly two years looking at a car she cannot legally drive.

The 74-year-old retired realtor purchased a used Mazda in June 2024 for just under $6,000. She bought it for her grandson after he graduated from high school and needed transportation to get to work.

The car remains parked in her driveway.

Not because it doesn’t run.

Because Wright says she never received the title.

“I cannot register the car. I cannot insure the car. I cannot drive the car,” Wright told Local 10 News. “I have no use for it more than it’s sitting in my driveway.”

Wright alleges Superior Car Sales repeatedly promised the paperwork would be corrected but never delivered the title before the dealership ultimately closed.

“I’m just like, ‘How can this happen?’” she said.

According to court records reviewed by Local 10, Wright is not alone.

A lawsuit filed by Hudson Insurance Company shows 11 consumers are asserting competing claims against the same $25,000 dealer bond issued for Superior Car Sales. Hudson filed the case, asking a judge to determine how the limited bond proceeds should be distributed among the competing claimants.

If the court were to divide the bond equally among all 11 claimants, each person would receive approximately $2,270, an amount far below what several consumers claim they lost.

Josh Feygin, a South Florida attorney whose practice includes representing consumers in disputes with automobile dealerships, says the law no longer reflects today’s marketplace.

“It’s definitely outdated at this point,” Feygin said. “When the average cost of a vehicle is much more than $25,000, it doesn’t make sense that there’s only a $25,000 pot to go after.”

Asked whether the current bond adequately protects consumers, Feygin offered a blunt assessment.

“No. More often than not, absolutely not,” he said.

Feygin said he has represented numerous consumers who obtained judgments against dealerships only to discover there was little or no money remaining in the dealer’s bond.

“I’ve had many times where clients have gotten judgments against car dealerships and went to apply against the bond, and there’s no more funds left in the bond,” Feygin said. “So yes, it happens quite often.”

Local 10 reviewed the legislative history of Florida Statute 320.27 and found the $25,000 bond requirement dates back to the 1970 legislative session.

Richard Nixon was president, gasoline averaged about 36 cents per gallon, and the average cost of a new vehicle was only a fraction of what consumers pay today.

Yet despite decades of inflation and rising vehicle prices, the amount of financial protection required by state law has remained exactly the same for 56 years.

Only the Florida Legislature has the authority to change the law.

To find out whether lawmakers believe the current bond still adequately protects consumers, Local 10 contacted legislators from both political parties representing South Florida.

Emails seeking comment were sent to Representatives Christine Hunschofsky, Fabian Basabe, Daryl Campbell, Kevin Chambliss, Chip LaMarca, Daniel Perez, Juan Carlos Porras, Mike Redondo, Felicia Simone Robinson and Marie Paule Woodson.

Local 10 also contacted Senators Brian Avila, Alexis Calatayud, Ileana Garcia, Tina Polsky, Jason Pizzo and Barbara Sharief.

Each was asked essentially the same question: Does Florida’s $25,000 dealer bond still provide adequate protection for consumers, or should lawmakers revisit the law?

Only two legislators responded.

State Rep. Dan Daley told Local 10 that his office is reviewing whether Florida’s current dealer bond law adequately protects consumers and plans to evaluate the issue before next year’s legislative session.

State Rep. Daryl Campbell said didn’t know enough about the issue to comment.

The remaining lawmakers did not respond before publication.

Local 10 also contacted the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, the agency responsible for licensing motor vehicle dealers and enforcing dealer laws.

The department was asked whether it has ever recommended increasing the $25,000 bond amount, whether it believes the current law adequately protects consumers and whether it has proposed legislative changes to modernize the requirement.

Despite four separate requests for information dating back to June 2, the department did not answer those questions before publication.

Meanwhile, Wright says she continues searching for answers.

“I call the State of Florida and the Attorney General’s Office,” she said. “They tell me there is nothing they can do for me.”

“All they do is just send me around in circles,” she added.

Wright believes Florida’s elected leaders should take another look at the law.

“The politicians should do better,” she said. “The governor needs to step in. The Attorney General’s Office. It don’t make no sense.”

For Wright, the issue is a car that has sat in her driveway for nearly two years.

For Florida lawmakers, the question is much broader.

Has a consumer protection law written in 1970—and unchanged since then—kept pace with the realities of buying a car in 2026?

That is a question only the Florida Legislature can answer.

Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.