A car dealer in Co Louth has received a three-month suspended sentence after knowingly selling a dangerous car without telling the buyer of the vehicle’s defects.
Ali Fawad, of Pearse Park, Drogheda, appeared before Drogheda District Court on Tuesday, where he was convicted by Judge Eirinn McKiernan. Mr Fawad’s former employer, Greenhill Motors of Boyne Business Park in Drogheda, was also convicted and fined €4,000 by the judge.
The case was brought against Mr Fawad and the car dealership following an investigation carried out by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC). The judge ordered that Greenhill Motors cover the CCPC’s legal costs of €4,500.
The CCPC investigation established that the dangerous car in question, a 2012-registered Mazda 6, was purchased by Greenhill Motors at auction in July 2021, before being sold off one month later.
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After persistent problems, the buyer of the car brought it to a mechanic, who established that the car’s diesel particulate filter was missing, according to the CCPC. The buyer returned the car to Greenhill Motors and received a full refund.
The car was sold again by Greenhill Motors in November 2021, according to the CCPC. The consumer “bought the car following assurances that the car was in perfect condition, that it had not been a taxi and that it had not been crashed”.
When the consumer subsequently brought the car to a mechanic, they were advised that the car would not pass the National Car Test (NCT). The consumer later returned the car to Greenhill Motors for a full refund.
During the CPCC’s investigations, Mr Fawad denied knowledge of the filter and the deficiencies with the vehicle.
Following the conviction, Patrick Kenny of the CCPC stated that it was “illegal for a trader to mislead a consumer as to the condition of a car”.
“This is compounded in this case as the trader also knew the car to be unroadworthy. This put the consumer, their family and other road-users in danger,” Mr Kenny said.
“When buying a car, consumers should be able to rely on accurate information from car dealers on a car’s history, condition and roadworthiness.
“The CCPC is and will continue to be very active in this sector. We encourage any consumer who believes that they have been misled by a motor trader, or indeed any trader, to contact us,” he added.
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