12:33 pm, August 12, 2021
Two car dealers have been ordered to pay out thousands of pounds over dodgy vehicles that they sold.
Edward Hyland, trading as Number 1 Car Sales in High Lane, Stockport, and Widnes-based second-hand car dealer Lee Holian both pleaded guilty to various offences at separate cases heard by Stockport magistrates.
After receiving a complaint in 2019 from a customer about a vehicle bought from Number 1 Car Sales for £2,400, Stockport council trading standards officers investigated and found it had been sold in an unroadworthy condition.
Hyland didn’t check its roadworthiness first, showed a lack of professional diligence, and failed to make the business’s name clear on the customer’s invoice, the court was told.
The customer made a successful claim in the civil court and got full compensation for the car, though, with Hyland buying it back and paying full, unspecified costs as well.
He was fined £5,000 after admitting offences under the Road Traffic Act, Companies Act, and Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations.
Meanwhile, in May this year Holian admitted four offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations relating to a clocked vehicle he sold in October 2019.
The customer complained to tradings standards at Stockport council, and a separate investigation to the one into Number 1 Car Sales found that the vehicle had false mileage readings on the odometer and ‘for sale’ sign in the windscreen.
However, Holian didn’t disclose the discrepancy and carried on quoting the false mileage during conversations with the customer.
The service book he gave the customer had false entries and stamps as well, and Holian even tried to mislead the buyer over their consumer rights by putting ‘sold as seen’ on the vehicle’s sales invoice.
He was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £2,000 costs plus £990 compensation.
Details of both cases have only been made public now. Stockport council didn’t say when Hyland appeared in court.
Afterwards, Cllr Sheila Bailey, cabinet member for Sustainable Stockport, said: ‘Some unscrupulous traders dealing in the second-hand car trade are taking advantage of customers who rely on them when deciding on the best vehicle to buy for themselves and their families, within their available budget.
‘Second-hand or not, buying a car is an expensive outlay for most people and everyone has the right to expect a safe and reliable vehicle, regardless of the cost.
‘Dishonest and unsafe sales are unacceptable, and Stockport trading standards will continue to respond robustly.’
