Car buyers be warned of dealers who sell vehicles that have been involved in accidents. The vehicles are repaired and sold as new. Banks and other financial institutions are also defrauded in the process.
Car buyers be warned of dealers who sell vehicles that have been involved in accidents. The vehicles are repaired and sold as new. Banks and other financial institutions are also defrauded in the process.
Since publishing Vanessa Kgoabane's complaint last month, Consumer Line has been inundated with similar complaints.
Absa Bank is investigating Kgoabane's complaint and hopes to recover her vehicle from a third party who has been using her car.
l William Phakela is another victim.
In October 2008, he bought a Geely sedan from Tiger Car Sales in Roodepoort. He found it was defective.
Phakela suspected that the car had been involved in an accident and took it to Automobile Association for an assessment. The AA report confirmed his suspicions, he said.
Tiger Car Sales denied they sold Phakela a car that had been involved in an accident, but admitted it had defects. They said they could not assist any further as the importers of Geely were winding up their business.
l Linye Mnisi is another victim.
Last November she bought a CMC Amandla 2.2 D/Cab from Intra Autolink CC in Northcliff, Johannesburg.
She said when she got the car it had clocked 42km, there were no mats, the carpet was very dirty, there was no service book, there were scratches on the window and a switch was loose.
She complained to Intra's Clinton Munsamy. He said the vehicle did not come with mats or service book, but they would order them.
"They offered to fix the defects," said Mnisi.
Three days later the wipers stopped working and a few days later the radio and air conditioner went dead. Intra blamed the company that had installed the tracker, said Mnisi.
She took the car to the AA and was told it would be suicidal to continue driving it.
The dealer promised to take it back to the manufacturer for an assessment.
Intra's Herman Kloppers said the vehicle was new. He said Mnisi may have damaged it before going to the AA.
"If you read the AA report properly you would see that it was done after Mnisi had travelled 5537km. What happened during that time is anybody's guess."
He said there was also a disclaimer exonerating them from liability should Mnisi install a tracking device from a company not recommended by them.
Kloppers admitted that the provisions of a disclaimer were not pointed out to Mnisi and that they did not make this suggestion to her. "But she should not have used an unauthorised agent to install her tracker," he said.
The Gauteng Office of Consumer Affairs is investigating the matter.
Beware, your brand new car might just be a repaired dud
Car buyers be warned of dealers who sell vehicles that have been involved in accidents. The vehicles are repaired and sold as new. Banks and other financial institutions are also defrauded in the process.
Car buyers be warned of dealers who sell vehicles that have been involved in accidents. The vehicles are repaired and sold as new. Banks and other financial institutions are also defrauded in the process.
Since publishing Vanessa Kgoabane's complaint last month, Consumer Line has been inundated with similar complaints.
Absa Bank is investigating Kgoabane's complaint and hopes to recover her vehicle from a third party who has been using her car.
l William Phakela is another victim.
In October 2008, he bought a Geely sedan from Tiger Car Sales in Roodepoort. He found it was defective.
Phakela suspected that the car had been involved in an accident and took it to Automobile Association for an assessment. The AA report confirmed his suspicions, he said.
Tiger Car Sales denied they sold Phakela a car that had been involved in an accident, but admitted it had defects. They said they could not assist any further as the importers of Geely were winding up their business.
l Linye Mnisi is another victim.
Last November she bought a CMC Amandla 2.2 D/Cab from Intra Autolink CC in Northcliff, Johannesburg.
She said when she got the car it had clocked 42km, there were no mats, the carpet was very dirty, there was no service book, there were scratches on the window and a switch was loose.
She complained to Intra's Clinton Munsamy. He said the vehicle did not come with mats or service book, but they would order them.
"They offered to fix the defects," said Mnisi.
Three days later the wipers stopped working and a few days later the radio and air conditioner went dead. Intra blamed the company that had installed the tracker, said Mnisi.
She took the car to the AA and was told it would be suicidal to continue driving it.
The dealer promised to take it back to the manufacturer for an assessment.
Intra's Herman Kloppers said the vehicle was new. He said Mnisi may have damaged it before going to the AA.
"If you read the AA report properly you would see that it was done after Mnisi had travelled 5537km. What happened during that time is anybody's guess."
He said there was also a disclaimer exonerating them from liability should Mnisi install a tracking device from a company not recommended by them.
Kloppers admitted that the provisions of a disclaimer were not pointed out to Mnisi and that they did not make this suggestion to her. "But she should not have used an unauthorised agent to install her tracker," he said.
The Gauteng Office of Consumer Affairs is investigating the matter.
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