Payless would pay more than $500,000 over document fees under proposed settlement

More than 5,000 Alaskans who bought a car from Payless Used Car Sales would get $100 apiece under a settlement that still needs a judge's approval, over document fees the state says were left out of its advertised online prices.

Acting Attorney General Cori Mills announced the settlement Tuesday. The state estimates Payless will pay more than $500,000 in restitution. Alaska law requires motor vehicle dealers to include all dealer fees in the advertised price of a vehicle.

"Alaska's law on dealer fees is clear," said 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."

Payless's document fees were generally $499. The state said it accepted 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."

The restitution period reaches back to November 4, 2018. That is longer than the state's six-year statute of limitations would normally allow, because Payless and the state agreed to pause the clock while Payless unsuccessfully tried to get an investigative subpoena thrown out. Most of the fees the state calls illegal were charged before 2024.

The Department of Law settled with five Alaska Lithia dealerships in December 2025 for restitution, a $300,000 civil penalty and advertising audits, and with the Swickard dealerships in March for $800,000, plus $200,000 if the conduct continues.

The state's announcement does not quote Payless or say whether it admits wrongdoing. Payless has 90 days from court approval to give the state a final count of people owed money, and 280 days to identify, contact, and mail checks to every affected customer. The Department of Law asks buyers charged a dealer fee that was not in the advertised price to file a consumer complaint.