State Sen. Rachel Ventura has introduced legislation to make car shopping more transparent by requiring dealers to provide a vehicle history report to buyers as part of the purchase of any used car.

“Buyers deserve to know exactly what they’re getting when they make a purchase, especially for an investment as important as buying a vehicle,” said Ventura, D-Joliet. “This legislation will ensure accountability and transparency in vehicle transactions, ensuring customers don’t end up surprised by serious defects or issues after they’ve already paid a significant amount of money for a new car.”

The proposal, Senate Bill 2787, would “require all licensed Illinois vehicle dealers to provide consumers with a same-day VIN-specific vehicle history report for any used or pre-owned vehicle before completing their purchase, ensuring transparency around title issues, odometer accuracy, recalls, accident history, and other key information,” according to a news release from Ventura’s office.

Additionally, the proposed law would require customers to receive and acknowledge the report in a language they understand.

Dealers who violate these requirements or report mileage or vehicle history inaccurately would be subject to fines, license suspension, or consumer compensation, according to the release.

Car dealers also would be required to retain copies of signed acknowledgements for the purpose of audits, according to the release.

“I’ve been buying cars for a national dealership and one of the saddest parts is when I have to inform a customer that the vehicle they’re are selling to us, has major frame damage, rollback miles or other issues and we can only offer a fraction of what they paid,” said Will County Board member Vince Logan, R-Joliet, who supports the legislation.

“When a dealer withholds a vehicle’s history, information they already possess, they are defrauding the consumer,” he said in the release.

Senate Bill 2787 is currently awaiting committee assignment in the state legislature.