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Toronto, September 30, 2002 -
Last Thursday, September 26th, a
Brampton court handed down a
stiff $18,000 fine to Thayabaran
Jeyanathan for selling motor
vehicles as an unregistered
dealer, an offense under the
Motor Vehicle Dealers Act.
Jeyanathan, who operates Power
Auto in Toronto’s east end, was
fined a total of $18,000 on six
counts of illegally selling
vehicles. Under the Motor
Vehicle Dealers Act Jeyanathan
was required to register with
the Ontario Motor Vehicle
Industry Council (OMVIC) prior
to selling vehicles. Although
Jeyanathan is now a registered
dealer, his activities prior to
registration were still
punishable. In this case, there
was no evidence of
misrepresentation of the
vehicles.
Individuals selling cars
illegally are referred to as “curbsiders.”
Often posing as private
individuals, they’re actually in
the business of selling vehicles
without being registered to do
so under the Motor Vehicle
Dealers Act.
Carl Compton, Executive Director
and Registrar of OMVIC reminds
consumers to be cautious when
purchasing vehicles privately: “Curbsiders
may be fraud artists selling
stolen, odometer-tampered or
accident-damaged vehicles or
simply people who can't qualify
as a dealer because of their
past record. Whatever they are,
consumers want to do everything
possible to avoid them. You
don't know what you're buying
and by the time you find out,
the curbsider is long gone.”
Unfortunately, studies show that
up to 25% of private classifieds
are placed by curbsiders.
In recognition of just how
serious the curbsider problem
is, provincial consumer
Minister, the Honourable Tim
Hudak, introduced legislation on
September 26th that will
establish a minimum fine of
$2,500 for the offense of
curbsiding, and will even make
it an offense for a registered
dealer to supply vehicles to a
curbsider.
This important piece of
legislation not only recognizes
the dangers of buying from a
curbsider, but the benefits of
buying from a registered dealer:
you know who you are buying your
vehicle from, you know where to
find the seller later on if you
run into problems, you know
dealers have to comply with a
Code of Ethics and Standards of
Business Practice, you have a
consumer protection organization
-- OMVIC -- to assist you if
required, and as a court of last
resort, you can make a claim to
the Motor Vehicle Dealers'
Compensation Fund under specific
circumstances.
Before purchasing vehicles,
consumers are encouraged to
visit the OMVIC website,
www.omvic.on.ca, to check the
list of registered dealers in
Ontario. Suspected curbsiders
should be reported to the OMVIC
hotline: 1-888-NOCURBS.
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