[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 136 (Tuesday, July 16, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46703-46704]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-17891]



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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2002-12173]

RIN 2127-AF53


Odometer Disclosure Requirements; Disclosure of Odometer 
Information; Review: The Incidence Rate of Odometer Fraud; Preliminary 
Report

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Request for comments on technical report.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces NHTSA's publication of a Technical 
Report that is a nationwide assessment of odometer fraud. The report's 
title is Preliminary Report: The Incidence Rate of Odometer Fraud.

DATES: Comments must be received no later than November 13, 2002.

ADDRESSES:
    Report: You may obtain a copy of the report free of charge by 
sending a self-addressed mailing label to Publications Ordering and 
Distribution Services (NAD-51), National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590. A summary 
of the report is available on the Internet for viewing on line at 
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/regrev/evaluate/80944.html. The 
full report is available on the Internet in PDF format at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/regrev/evaluate/pdf/809441.pdf.
    Comments: All comments should refer to the Docket number of this 
notice (NHTSA- 2002-12173). You may submit your comments in writing to: 
U.S. Department of Trnsportation Docket Management, Room PL-401, 400 
Seventh Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590. You may also submit your 
comments electronically by logging onto the Docket Management Systm Web 
site at http://dms.dot.gov. Click on ``Help & Information'' or ``Help/
Info'' to obtain instructions for filing the document electronically.
    You may call Docket Management at 202-366-9324 and visit the Docket 
from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charles J. Kahane, Chief, Evaluation 
Division, NPP-22, Plans and Policy, National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, Room 5208, 400 Seventh Street, SW, Washington, DC 
20590. Telephone: 202-366-2560. FAX: 202-366-2559. E-mail 
[email protected].
    For information about NHTSA's evaluations of the effectiveness of 
existing regulations and programs: Visit the NHTSA web site at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov and click ``Regulations & Standards'' underneath 
``Car Safety'' on the home page; then click ``Regulatory Evaluation'' 
on the ``Regulations & Standards'' page.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The technical report estimates the 
probability of an odometer rollback during the first 11 years of a 
passenger vehicle's life to the extent it can be detected in title 
transfer and other odometer reading data. The analyses uses a 
nationally representative sample of 10,000 passenger cars, pickup 
trucks, vans and sport utility vehicles and a national vehicle history 
database to identify vehicles with odometer discrepancies that suggest 
rollback--i.e., odometer readings on two separate occasions, and the 
later reading has the lower mileage. The rate of odometer fraud over 
the life of the vehicle is 3.47 percent (confidence bounds from 2.68 to 
4.26 percent). That is a 3.47 percent chance that a vehicle would have 
its odometer rolled back at any point during the first 11 years of its 
life. There are approximately 452,000 cases of odometer fraud per year 
in the United States. This study also estimates the difference between 
the inflated prices that consumers actually paid for the rolled-back 
vehicles and the prices they would have been willing to pay if they had 
known the true mileage. Those costs average $2,336 per case of odometer 
fraud. Given 452,000 cases per year in the United States, that amounts 
to $1,056 million per year (confidence bounds from $737 million to 
$1,376 million).

How Can I Influence NHTSA's Thinking on This Evaluation?

    NHTSA welcomes public review of this preliminary report and invites 
reviewers to submit comments about the data, the statistical methods 
used in the analyses, and/or additional information. NHTSA will submit 
to the Docket a response to the comments and, if appropriate, 
additional analyses that supplement the report. If the comments warrant 
a significant revision, then NHTSA will either add an appendix to the 
report or publish a revised report; otherwise, this preliminary report 
will serve as the final report.

How Do I Prepare and Submit Comments?

    Your comments must be written and in English. To ensure that your 
comments are correctly filed in the Docket, please include the Docket 
number of this document (NHTSA-2002-12173) in your comments.
    Your primary comments must not be more than 15 pages long (49 CFR 
553.21). However, you may attach additional documents to your primary 
comments. There is no limit on the length of the attachments.
    Please send two paper copies of your comments to Docket Management 
or submit them electronically. The mailing address is U.S. Department 
of Transportation Docket Management, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, 
SW., Washington, DC 20590. If your submit your comments electronically, 
log onto the Dockets Management System website at http://dms.dot.gov 
and click on ``Help & Information'' or ``Help/Info'' to obtain 
instructions.
    We also request, but do not require you to send a copy to Christina 
Morgan, Evaluation Division, NPP-22, National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, Room 5208, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 
20590 (alternatively, FAX to 202-366-2559 or e-mail to 
[email protected]). She can check if your comments have been 
received at the Docket and she can expedite their review by NHTSA.

How Can I Be Sure That My Comments Were Received?

    If you wish Docket Management to notify you upon its receipt of 
your comments, enclose a self-addressed, stamped postcard in the 
envelop containing your comments. Upon receiving your comments, Docket 
Management will return the postcard by mail.

How Do I Submit Confidential Business Information?

    If you wish to submit any information under a claim of 
confidentiality, send three copies of your complete submission, 
including the information you claim to be confidential business 
information, to the Chief Counsel, NCC-01, National Highway Traffic 
Safety Administration, Room 5219, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, 
DC 20590. Include a cover letter supplying the information specified in 
our confidential business information regulation (49 CFR part 512).
    In addition, send two copies from which you have deleted the 
claimed confidential business information to Docket Management, Room 
PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590, or submit them 
electronically.

Will the Agency Consider Late Comments?

    In our response, we will consider all comments that Docket 
Management

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receives before the close of business on the comment closing date 
indicated above under DATES. To the extent possible, we will also 
consider comments that Docket Management receives after that date.
    Please note that even after the comment closing date, we will 
continue to file relevant information in the Docket as it becomes 
available. Further, some people may submit late comments. Accordingly, 
we recommend that you periodically check the Docket for new material.

How Can I Read the Comments Submitted by Other People?

    Your may read the comments by visiting Docket Management in person 
at Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC from 10 a.m. to 
5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
    Your may also see the comments on the Internet by taking the 
following steps:
    1. Go to the Docket Management System (DMS) Web page of the 
Department of Transportation (http://dms./dot.gov).
    2. On the page, click on ``search.''
    3. On the next page (http://dms.dot.gov/search/) type in the four-
digit Docket number shown at the beginning of this Notice (6545). Click 
on ``search.''
    4. On the next page, which contains Docket summary information for 
the Docket you selected, click on the desired comments. You may also 
download the comments.

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30111, 30168; delegation of authority at 49 
CFR 1.50 and 501.8

    Dated: July 11, 2002.
William H. Walsh,
Associate Administrator for Plans and Policy.
[FR Doc. 02-17891 Filed 7-15-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-M