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Toronto, March 24, 2000 - Irina Shoosterman has been refused
registration as a motor vehicle
dealer due to concerns about the
possible involvement in the
business of her husband, Alex
Shoosterman.
On September 3, 1999 Alex
Shoosterman was convicted of
offences under the Business
Practices Act and the Motor
Vehicle Dealers Act (MVDA) in
relation to his operation of a
dealership known as Seghna Auto
Sales. These convictions arose
out of an incident involving
odometer tampering and
misrepresentation to a consumer.
Mr. Shoosterman had pleaded not
guilty. In finding Mr.
Shoosterman guilty of these
offences the Justice of the
Peace commented that he did not
believe a word Mr. Shoosterman
said concerning the incident
which lead to the charges. A
fine of $3,500 was imposed for
each count. Mrs. Shoosterman
attended court with her husband.
The day before his conviction,
however, Mr. Shoosterman met
with an inspector representing
the Ontario Motor Vehicle
Industry Council (OMVIC), to
discuss his wife’s application
for registration as a dealer
under the corporate name of
Tormont Auto Sales Ltd. OMVIC is
the organization responsible for
registering dealers and
salespeople under the Ontario
Motor Vehicle Dealers Act. It is
OMVIC’s belief that Mr.
Shoosterman initiated his wife’s
application because he knew his
days in the motor vehicle
industry were numbered commented
Mary Jane South, Deputy
Registrar with OMVIC. OMVIC’s
job is to protect consumers, and
given Mr. Shoosterman’s past
record, we refused the new
application for registration.
The Registrar’s refusal of Mrs.
Shoosterman’s application was
appealed to the Commercial
Registration Appeals Tribunal.
At the tribunal hearing, which
was held on February 18, 2000,
Mrs. Shoosterman, whose
occupation on the dealer
application was listed as an
office manager, stated that her
husband would have nothing to do
with the operation of the
dealership. Mr. Shoosterman also
testified that he no longer had
any interest in motor vehicle
sales. In a decision dated
February 23, 2000, the Tribunal
directed the Registrar to carry
out the proposal to refuse
registration to Mrs. Shoosterman
and Tormont Auto Sales Ltd. In
its decision, the Tribunal
stated that the evidence given
by Irina Shoosterman and Alex
Shoosterman regarding the method
of carrying out the business was
not credible.
OMVIC, the industry’s
self-management body, regularly
inspects motor vehicle dealers
to ensure their compliance with
the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act.
In order to maintain their OMVIC
registration, dealers must
conduct themselves with honesty,
integrity, within the law and be
financially responsible, says Ms
South. It is an offence under
the MVDA to be a motor vehicle
salesperson or dealer while not
registered.
Consumers who purchase vehicles
from registered dealers enjoy
the protection of the Motor
Vehicle Dealers Compensation
Fund. Under specific
circumstances, consumers may be
entitled to compensation if they
have dealt with a registered
dealer.
For more information, call OMVIC
at 416-226-4500, 1-800-943-6002
(outside Toronto), or email
registrarmvda@omvic.on.ca.
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