A second-hand car sales company and its director have been fined by magistrates after it sold a car without telling the buyer that its air bags had been deployed.
In October 2012, Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Trading Standards team received a complaint from a resident who had purchased a Fiat 500 from WD Cars Limited of Crosskeys in September 2012 for £4,700.
The buyer of the car told Trading Standards that the vehicle’s air bags had been deployed but had not been told.
After an investigation by Trading Standards, the case was heard at Newport Magistrates Court on January 17.
The company pleaded guilty to giving a consumer an invoice that indicated that they had fewer rights than they actually did, and for failing to disclose that the air bags had been deployed and needed replacing. As a director of WD Cars Limited, Davies pleaded guilty to the same offences.
Davies was fined a total of £1,400 (£700 for each offence), ordered to pay costs to the council of £562, a victim surcharge of £70 and £1,300 compensation to the car buyer.
The compensation covered the cost of obtaining and fitting new air bags to the vehicle. The company was also fined a total of £100.
Speaking after the case, Cllr David Poole, Cabinet Member for Community and Leisure Services, said: “Our Trading Standards team work tirelessly to ensure that consumers and businesses alike are treated fairly and receive what they are entitled to.
“In this instance, the consumer could potentially have been placed in a very dangerous situation with the air bags on the vehicle in need of replacement when the car was purchased. It is pleasing to see the court has emphasised the serious nature of this case in the fines imposed”.