Car dealers have sometimes ‘embellished’ the truth, do I have to be brutally honest when describing a vehicle or can I describe it in a better light?

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and people will place different values upon the same things because they view them in different ways. However there is a significant difference in focussing on the good areas of a vehicle and providing an honest description, and making untruthful and false claims.

Any vehicle descriptions you make such as, Full Service History, One Owner, Good Condition, Never Been in an Accident etc. should always be true, and you should be able to demonstrate that these statements are true when questioned. If you are unable to objectively substantiate your description then you may be found to be misleading customers and not treating them fairly.

You are legally required to treat a customer fairly and that duty extends not just to what you say to the customer but also what you choose not to reveal. If you have information about the vehicle, such as it is a ‘write off’ then this information should be revealed to the customer otherwise it could be a misleading omission.

If you use a ‘standard’ advert to advertise all your vehicles, then the advert is likely to be untrue for a percentage of the vehicles you advertise, and therefore you will be ‘making false claims’ about some vehicles which exposes you to risk of prosecution.

Just this month a car dealer was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay compensation of £1,375 after he admitted making false claims about a second-hand vehicle he sold.
Bradley Bailey, who traded at Stonebridge Warwickshire, said the Vauxhall Corsa he sold to a customer in August 2014 came with an RAC warranty, had been finance checked and had been regularly serviced.

But all of the claims were untrue and the car broke down within 20 miles after being purchased and hasn’t been used since.

The purchaser complained to Dudley Council's Trading Standards when he was unable to resolve the problem with Bailey, and it was revealed the car was still subject to outstanding finance when it was sold.

Bailey, of Crabmill Close in Knowle, pleaded guilty to seven offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 when he appeared at Dudley Magistrates Court.

As well as being fined £1,000 and ordered to pay compensation of £1,375, he was also responsible for paying prosecution costs of £2,065 and a £40 victim surcharge.

Trading Standards officers are responsible for investigating complaints where second-hand vehicles are not described fully or accurately. It is important that consumers receive accurate information to enable them to make informed choices about whether to purchase a vehicle.

Trading Standards will take action against Dealers who are unable to justify the descriptions they apply to vehicles so Dealers should ensure that they do not make misleading comments or omissions which may deceive the customer.