DEALER SOLD VEHICLE WITH FAULTY BRAKES
AUSED CAR dealer sold a dangerous and unroadworthy Jeep Grand Cherokee with faulty brakes for £2,500 after advertising it online as a “stunning” vehicle.
Evan Courtney, the director of All Sorts Motor Company in Caerphilly, made the misleading sale while he was being investigated by trading standards for a series of similar previous offences.
Speaking at Cardiff Crown Court, prosecutor Kayleigh Simmons said: “[The vehicle] was found to have a long list of extremely worrying defects.”
The court heard Josie Fletcher saw the second-hand Jeep advertised on the Auto Trader website for £2,500 as “a stunning example of a vehicle of this type”.
She travelled from her home in Somerset to the garage in Main Road, Maesycwmmer, with her father on June 5, 2016.
Prosecutors said she agreed to buy the vehicle for the asking price, including a three-month warranty, and paid a £250 deposit, followed by three instalments.
Ms Fletcher collected the Jeep a week later and was given an MoT certificate and V5 document.
The court heard the air conditioning failed as she drove home to Cheddar.
Prosecutors said she then discovered problems with the windscreen wipers, windows, electric mirror controls, boot and lock on the driver’s door.
Ms Simmons said: “There was a burning smell from the bonnet.”
The court heard there was a “scraping” and “screeching” noise when she drove around right-hand corners and a “creaking noise” after she turned off the ignition.
Prosecutors said the vehicle had a number of faults which made it dangerous and not fit for purpose.
Ms Fletcher took the Jeep back to the garage on June 21 and was told it would be repaired the next day.
Prosecutors said she was subsequently told the repairs would take a week, then the company did not contact her or return her calls.
The complainant was told she could collect the vehicle at the beginning of July. Prosecutors said: “It soon became apparent the repairs had not been carried out.”
She decided to take it to another garage, at her own cost, and mechanics found more than a dozen “worrying” defects, including oil leaks and rusty brakes.
An expert inspected the Jeep on August 24 and concluded it was in a “dangerous and unroadworthy condition” due to the braking system.
Courtney, 28, of Hengoed Road in Caerphilly, admitted two counts of engaging in misleading commercial practice.
Andrew Taylor, mitigating, told the court there is now a “huge difference” in how the business is run, as his client pays a specialist company for advice.
Judge Eleri Rees fined him £1,200 and ordered him to pay a £120 victim surcharge, plus £2,616 in compensation and £8,500 in costs.