Aubrey from Augrabies wrote to SuperSpark to ask him about Dealer rights when buying at an auction.

She writes

Dear SuperSpark,

I often buy from auctions and was wondering what Dealers’ rights are when obtaining stock this way?

SuperSpark replies

Dear Aubrey,

Thank you for asking this question, as it covers important information from which we can all benefit.

In South Africa the rights of the buyer are protected through legislation aptly named the Consumer Protection Act.

Therefore, a first step for any vehicle buyer would be to ensure that the auction centre is compliant with the Consumer Protection Act.

This Act requires from the auction centre to fulfill certain obligations including:

• Clearly displaying - in writing - any faults the vehicle may have. This includes faults such as a noisy engine.
• Prohibiting an auctioneer from knowingly misrepresenting the value, composition, structure, character, quality or manufacturer of the goods put up for sale at an auction.
• Affording customers a reasonable period of time and opportunity to inspect the goods on offer prior to the commencement of an auction. (No fee may be charged for such opportunity.)

So, what does this all mean? Let’s look at a practical example of how the Act can protect you, the Dealer.

Say Table Mountain Auto Dealership bought a Mercedes-Benz from an auction house in Cape Town. The auctioneer declared that the airbag indicator showed an airbag malfunction.

The auctioneer also declared (and it was displayed on the windscreen) that the vehicle was still covered by a motor plan for a certain period. After the dealer bought the vehicle it transpired that the airbags were removed and the cost involved to reinstall the airbags would amount to R60 000. Mercedes-Benz SA had also cancelled the motor plan and would only reinstate the plan once the airbags were replaced.

The bid was cancelled due to the fact that the motor plan was not active although so stipulated by the auctioneer.

So, while buying from an auction is still a bit risky, at least we have some protection under the Consumer Protection Act.

Aubrey, I hope this gives you some peace of mind on the matter.

Gotta fly now!

Best, until next time! 

SuperSpark