Governor Kathy Hochul has announced that the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) helped New Yorkers recover more than $13.6 million in stolen vehicles, titles, parts and services during 2025.
The figure is an increase from $11 million in 2024, highlighting the crack down on organized vehicle theft and fraud operations.
“When consumers are ripped off, New York will stand up for them and take on bad actors,” said Governor Hochul.
“Most auto repair shops and dealers in our state do excellent work, but when fraud or theft takes place, state government will do everything in its power to make things right. The DMV does so much more than many New Yorkers realize, and this is a great example of the work they do every day to protect consumers.”
After investigating consumer complaints, the DMV has also taken action against car dealers and repair shops for selling vehicles without disclosing significant defects to the buyer, for charging consumers for repairs that were never completed or completed unsatisfactorily, or charging consumers for repairs they did not need.
DMV Commissioner Mark J.F. Schroeder said: “Our employees and leadership are very proud of the work they do to assist consumers. If you’re sold a lemon, given a shoddy repair or not given a title to a vehicle you buy, our staff can help. We try to work out differences between customers and businesses first, but we will not hesitate to use our enforcement tools to protect consumers as needed.”
Through this work, DMV assisted 538 consumers in recovering a total value of $1,604,460 from dealerships and repair shops. The breakdown includes $882,131 in refunds, $459,979 worth of vehicles repurchased, and $252,655 in redone work.
