Press Release

Acting Attorney General Cori Mills Announces that Payless Used Car Sales Will Pay Over Half a Million Dollars in Restitution to Its Customers for Hidden Document Fees

September 22, 2026

(Anchorage, AK) – Acting Attorney General Mills announced a settlement with Payless Used Car Sales, LLC (Payless) over document fees it did not include in the prices it advertised for its cars on its website. Under Alaska law, motor vehicle dealers must include all dealer fees in the advertised price of their vehicles. Under this settlement, consumers who were charged hidden fees by Payless will be eligible for $100 payments from Payless. The State estimates that Payless will pay more than $500,000 in restitution. Payless is required to provide the State with a final report of the number of people owed restitution within 90 days of court approval of the settlement.

“Alaska’s law on dealer fees is clear,” said Acting Attorney General Mills, “it is unacceptable for a business to offer one price online and then a higher price at the dealership as a result of tacking on previously undisclosed dealer fees.”

The period where consumers are entitled to restitution extends back to November 4, 2018—this exceptionally long restitution period exists in part because Payless and the State agreed to pause the running of the State’s six-year statute of limitations while Payless unsuccessfully attempted to quash an investigative subpoena issued by the State. The vast majority of the illegal fees were charged prior to 2024.

Payless’s document fees were generally $499. The State chose to accept less than full restitution to avoid putting Payless out of business. “This is the first time my office has had a serious issue with Payless,” said Mills, “and sometimes our team has to make a call about whether a stronger settlement is worth putting a significant number of Alaskans out of work—many of whom had nothing to do with the conduct at issue.”

Payless has 280 days from court approval to complete the process of identifying, contacting, and providing a check to over five-thousand impacted consumers.

If a motor vehicle dealer tries to charge you a dealer fee that wasn’t included in the advertised price of the vehicle, file a consumer complaint.

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Department Media Contact: Information Officer Sam Curtis at sam.curtis@alaska.gov or (907) 269-6269.

Due to resource constraints, we no longer post links to referenced records. Records filed in a federal court are readily available at Docket Search or PACER, and records filed in a State of Alaska court are readily available from the Alaska Court System (Trial Courts - Alaska Court System and Search for an Appellate Case). Contact Sam Curtis to request a referenced record that is not readily available from a court or on the internet, or contact law.recordsrequest@alaska.gov to submit a formal Alaska Public Records Act request.