Odometer tampering cases on the rise here

TODAYonline.com

Consumer watchdog Case seeing more such complaints as second-hand cars sales soar

by Sumita Sreedharan

Updated 10:01 AM Jun 21, 2012

SINGAPORE - When he first bought a second-hand Toyota Camry last July, he was told by the second-hand car dealer that it had been driven 60,374km. The car was brought to Toyota's authorised dealer Borneo Motors for servicing soon after, where official servicing records indicated the car's mileage was 140,056km instead.

"I was shocked to find out that the car's odometer had been tampered with by as much as 80,000km," said the buyer, who wanted to be known as Mr Aw as the case is pending before the authorities.

While such complaints appear rare compared to others lodged by consumers, more cases concerning odometer tampering have surfaced in recent years, according to consumer watchdog The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case).

Six cases of odometer tampering have surfaced this year, one more than the total number witnessed last year. There were nine such cases in 2010, and two cases in 2009.

With buyers snapping up second-hand cars in record numbers as a tight supply of Certificates of Entitlement makes new cars too expensive, some are concerned that odometer tampering may go undetected.

Accountant Charles Chong, 35, said the authorities should do more to stamp out odometer tampering.

"It is not only unethical for the car dealers to misrepresent the car, it is also a matter of safety," he said.

Mr Aw felt that most people with cars that are three years or older do not usually send their cars to authorised dealers for servicing, which means they would never know if they were cheated or not. The 32-year-old financial consultant has filed a police report against the second-hand car dealer and a police spokesperson said investigations are in progress.

If the dealer is aware that the odometer has been tampered with and fails to disclose, the dealer would be misleading the consumer and thus be in breach of the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act, said Case executive director Seah Seng Choon.

Case advises consumers to protect their interests by insisting that the car dealer produce a technical report on the vehicle from a reputable workshop to certify that the car is in good condition and that the odometer has not been tampered with.

According to Case, some of the common complaints against the motorcar industry include misleading claims, defective goods and unsatisfactory service.

There were 1,258 complaints against the general motorcar industry last year, an increase from the 1,232 in 2010. In the first five months of this year, Case has received some 741 complaints against the motorcar industry.