7:44 am, November 11, 2022
A car dealer in the West Midlands has admitted fraud and selling a dangerous vehicle.
Paul Spencer Hale, of Avenue Road, Rowley Regis, who traded as Kool Kustoms in Halesowen and specialised in camper van conversions, appeared at Wolverhampton Crown Court, pictured, on Monday (Nov 7) in a case brought by Dudley Trading Standards.
He pleaded guilty to two charges of fraud as well as one of selling a dangerous vehicle with defective brakes and wheels that could have become detached while it was moving.
Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council said the case came to light after the customer had used the vehicle on a day trip and one of the front tyres had blown.
After taking it to a local garage, they were told the vehicle had major faults.
The case was reported to Dudley Trading Standards, which got an independent vehicle expert to assess how bad the problem was.
The expert said they found it ‘difficult to believe that work of such a low standard was carried out by a professional company specialising in camper van conversions’.
Wheel bolts were too short, making it ‘extremely likely’ that a wheel would become detached while the camper van was moving.
There was excessive corrosion in a large number of areas, a defective horn and an unsecured gas cylinder fitted as part of the conversion.
Hale, 47, admitted fraudulently stating that the vehicle had undergone a professional refurbishment and claiming that the sale was a ‘private sale’ to make a gain for himself and avoid having to refund money to the customer.
He will be sentenced at the crown court on Wednesday, December 21. No details were given regarding arrangements as to bail.
After the case, Cllr Ian Bevan, cabinet member responsible for trading standards, said: ‘This prosecution shows that Dudley Trading Standards will not tolerate traders who evade their responsibilities and risk people’s lives by putting dangerous vehicles on the road.
‘Thanks to the diligence of the garage, the major faults on this vehicle were spotted and thankfully no one was injured.’
According to Companies House, Kool Kustoms was incorporated in September 2020 and dissolved in March 2021.
