A motor trader has been prosecuted for the sale of unsafe cars from his car garage in Pontllanfraith.
Phillip Tyrone Taylor, 37, who until the end of November 2008 traded as both Blackwood Van Hire and PT Cars from Belmont Garage in Pontllanfraith, pleaded guilty to four charges under Consumer Protection Legislation at Caerphilly Magistrates Court recently, and was sent to Newport Crown Court for sentencing on Friday 4th December.
Some of the charges related to the sale of a Ford Transit Van, which was sold with a mileage of 60,000 miles, when it had in fact travelled in excess of 120,000 miles. This vehicle was also mis-described as having a 12-month MOT when it only had 8 months remaining.
The other charges related to the sale of a Vauxhall Corsa, during which Taylor neglected to inform the purchaser that the vehicle had been an insurance write off. The car had not been repaired to an acceptable standard and was dangerous to drive. Taylor sold the car to a learner driver. The vehicle was also described as having had two previous owners, when it had in fact had three.
At Newport Crown Court, Phillip Tyrone Taylor of Cwmbran was sentenced to 32 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, in relation to the sale of the two motor vehicles.
Taylor was also ordered to undertake 100 hours of unpaid work, was given a 12-month supervision order and ordered to pay compensation to the purchasers of the two vehicles totalling £1,413.15, and prosecution costs to Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Trading Standards of £1,410.39.
Cllr Lyn Ackerman, cabinet member for the environment said, “This successful prosecution is testament to the hard work of our Trading Standards officers, who work tirelessly to protect our residents from issues such as this.
There are also strict regulations and laws in place to protect consumers, which we do not hesitate to enforce should the need arise, as with this case.
I hope this prosecution sends out a clear message that attempting to ‘rip off’ our residents in any form will not be tolerated, and strong action will be taken where necessary”.
