Unlawful repair of odometer; rules; civil action; penalty

(1) A person commits the offense of unlawful repair of an odometer if the person services, repairs or replaces the odometer on any vehicle and the person does not comply with all of the following: (a) Whenever possible, the person shall perform the work on the odometer without changing the mileage reading from that shown on the odometer before the work is performed. (b) If it is not possible to perform the work without changing the mileage reading, the person must do all of the following: (A) Adjust the odometer reading to zero. (B) Place a notice on the left door frame of the vehicle specifying the mileage reading prior to the work and the date the work was performed. A notice required under this subparagraph must be in writing and must be in a form established by the Department of Transportation by rule. (C) Make an odometer disclosure in a form required by the department by rule and submit the disclosure to the department within 10 days of completing the work. (2) The owner or any subsequent purchaser of a vehicle may bring an action in an appropriate court of this state against any person who violates this section and may recover from the person an amount of $500 or twice the actual damages caused by the violation, whichever is greater. Only a single recovery is permitted under this subsection for any single violation of this section. The court may award reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing party in an action under this section. (3) A person is not subject to the requirements for work performed on vehicles that are exempt from odometer disclosure requirements under ORS 803.102. (4) The offense described in this section, unlawful repair of an odometer, is a Class C misdemeanor.