Car dealer sold dangerous ‘cut and shut’ vehicle

A car dealer who sold a dangerous ‘cut and shut’ vehicle - two cars welded together - has been ordered to pay more than £7,000 following an investigation by West Sussex Trading Standards.

Darren Van de Wegg, director of DK Garage and Classics based in Wiggonholt, near Pulborough, pleaded guilty to selling the unsafe Ford Escort and was fined £923 and ordered to pay £5,435 in compensation, costs of £1,409 and a £92 victim surcharge.

West Sussex Trading Standards say they were first alerted by the person who bought the car.

After arranging for some restoration work to be undertaken, the customer discovered it was a cut and shut vehicle.

A trading standards spokesman said: “The car was then inspected by a Driver and Vehicle Standards

Agency officer who said it was ‘probably in the worst condition I have ever seen in my 20 years in the job’ and ‘the structural integrity of the vehicle was totally compromised by a series of extremely insufficient structural welding repairs, rending the vehicle, if it were able to be used, dangerous to be used on the highway’.”

West Sussex Trading Standards team manager Peter Aston said: “Selling an unsafe car was incredibly irresponsible. It is fortunate the car’s faults were discovered before a serious crash occurred.”

Deborah Urquhart, West Sussex County Council cabinet member for environment, said: “This was a deliberate attempt by the company to deceive an unsuspecting customer for financial gain. I hope the outcome of this case will deter others from committing similar crimes.”