NCA secures compensation for consumer in Galway car clocking case
7 February 2012
The National Consumer Agency (NCA) has today secured a compensation order under the Consumer Protection Act 2007 on behalf of a consumer in Galway who had purchased a clocked car.
The application was granted in Galway District Court following the December 2011 conviction of Mr Oleksandr Tabachuk, a former car salesman trading as Sasha Auto Sales and Repairs, Ballybane Industrial Estate, Tuam Road, Galway at Galway District Court.
Mr Tabachuk was convicted of breaches of the Consumer Protection Act 2007: misleading a consumer by providing false information in relation to a vehicle's prior history, namely a false mileage reading on the vehicle's odometer, and also providing an NCT Cert with the false mileage reading on it.
A consumer had purchased a second hand vehicle for €4,000 from Mr Tabachuk after being misled as to its true mileage. Mr Tabachuk was today fined €1,200 and a compensation order was granted to the value of €4,000.
Commenting on today's proceedings, the Chief Executive of the National Consumer Agency, Ann Fitzgerald, said: "The NCA takes the practice of clocking and the sale of clocked cars very seriously as it deceives consumers and can cause serious financial loss to them.
"The granting of the compensation order is very significant as it requires Mr Tabachuk to return the money paid by the consumer when they purchased the vehicle. This sends the message to traders that misleading practices such as this will be robustly dealt with by the Agency.
"Buying a car is a major investment for most consumers and car dealers owe a duty of care to consumers and must act in good faith and take the necessary steps to ensure that the odometer readings are accurate and that consumers are not misled about the vehicles they purchase.
"Consumers should take care when buying second hand cars and inform themselves about what precautions to take to avoid being ripped off. There is information available on our website, www.nca.ie, in relation to buying a second-hand car, including a second-hand car toolkit for consumers and a consumer booklet called 'A Guide to Buying a Car'."