Further prosecutions of unregistered motor vehicle traders

20 December 2013

Further prosecutions of unregistered motor vehicle traders

The Registrar of Motor Vehicle Traders at MBIE has achieved convictions against six people over the past month.

Under the Motor Vehicles Sales Act 2003 individuals can legally sell six vehicles in a 12 month period without being registered as a Motor Vehicle Trader.

On the 20th of November, a 24 year old man was convicted and fined $4,500 in the Invercargill District Court for selling 10 vehicles without being registered as a Motor Vehicle Trader. On the 29th of November, a 31 year old man was also convicted and fined $4,500 in the same court for selling 15 vehicles.

In the Rotorua District Court on 26 November, a 34 year old man was convicted and fined $6,000 for selling 13 vehicles.

On the 4th of December, a 55 year old man was convicted and fined $6,000 in the Wellington District Court for selling 11 vehicles and five days later, a 48 year old woman appeared in the Christchurch District Court on 9 December and was convicted and fined $3,750 for selling 11 vehicles.

On the 13th of December, a 42 year old man was convicted and fined $7,500 in the Waitakere District Court for selling 12 vehicles.

Karla Flood, Team Leader of the Registry Integrity and Enforcement team within the Companies Office, says these recent prosecutions follow similar prosecutions of a 20 year old Dunedin man in early September and a 24 year old Morrinsville man in late October.

“With Christmas just around the corner, you may be considering purchasing a car as a present for a family member or loved one. Make sure that you buy your vehicle from a registered motor vehicle trader. Unregistered motor vehicle traders are not subject to the checks that apply to those who are registered and consumers may have less protection when something goes wrong.”

The Registrar of Motor Vehicle Traders works with organisations such as Trade Me, New Zealand Customs and Land Transport New Zealand to help identify unregistered traders. The Registrar's aim is to assist the traders to register so they are compliant with the legislation and only if this does not succeed does enforcement action take place.

Since July 2012, the Registrar has investigated 358 unregistered motor vehicle traders. Of those, 279 investigations have been finalised, 61 remain under investigation with the view of achieving compliance and 9 cases are currently before the courts.

Find out more about the Motor Vehicle Traders Register here:
http://www.motortraders.med.govt.nz/cms

ENDS

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