SECOND-HAND CAR DEALERS

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:22): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Consumer Affairs a question about second-hand car dealers.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA: People buying second-hand cars are often concerned about the way the car is represented by the dealership. I understand that second-hand car dealers are subject to very tight laws about how cars should be advertised and represented; however, there is still consumer concern. My question to the minister is: what is the government doing to protect people buying second-hand cars?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister Assisting the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Energy) (15:23): Today, I would like to advise the chamber of a matter involving a second-hand car dealer illegally tampering with odometers. In the Magistrates Court today, Mr Benjamin Buttigieg was convicted and sentenced for offences involving the winding back of odometers on second-hand cars.

I am advised that, in May 2007, Mr Buttigieg came into possession of a Holden Jackaroo that had an odometer reading of approximately 347,217 kilometres. Mr Buttigieg purchased this vehicle for $3,750. The same vehicle was later offered for sale with an odometer reading of 168,000 kilometres, and was subsequently sold for $8,990. So, clearly, Mr Buttigieg has made quite a profit on the car.

In July 2005, Mr Buttigieg acquired a Holden Berlinar with an odometer reading of 243,847 kilometres and subsequently sold the vehicle with an odometer reading of 55,000-odd kilometres. Today, this dealer was fined $12,000 and ordered to pay $7,570 in associated court costs and levies. This man also faces the prospect of losing his dealership licence.

The decision handed down by the court today is a warning to all second-hand car dealers that dishonesty in the industry will not be tolerated and, if they continue to flout the law, or attempt to flout the law, they will be prosecuted and face the prospect of losing their licence. Those fines are quite severe.

The purchase of a car is often one of the most important and expensive decisions in a person's life, and people have a right to know that their choice of car will be safe and roadworthy. The practice of tampering with odometers can mislead consumers about the roadworthiness of a second-hand vehicle. We know that the distance that a car is shown to have travelled on an odometer affects the roadworthiness of the vehicle. We are concerned that consumers can be lulled into a false sense of safety when they are sold these cars dishonestly.

I understand that this dodgy dealer originally came to the attention of the Office of Consumer and Business Affairs through a tip-off from the public. When an audit was conducted by the office at Mr Buttigieg's premises, another vehicle was detected displaying fewer kilometres than it really had.

A further two vehicles that had been subjected to odometer interference were discovered as a result of complaints made by the public. The office then commenced proceedings against the dealer, leading to his prosecution today and the fines that he now has to pay. The Commissioner for Consumer Affairs will now also pursue disciplinary action in the courts against the man's secondhand dealers' licence. As I said, not only is tampering with an odometer dishonest but it can also affect the safety of road users, and it can obviously inflate the cost of a vehicle in a most dishonest and inappropriate way.