Changes to the Second-hand Vehicle Dealers Act 1995 are being introduced to parliament to bolster consumer protections while cutting red tape through streamlining of the sales process.
The items detailed in the Second-hand Vehicle Dealers (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2023 follow a review of the Act and feedback from industry on matters including increased penalties for unlicensed dealers and odometer tampering, a dealer’s duty to repair vehicles, simplifying the cooling-off process, recognition of electric and hybrid vehicles as well as administrative changes to forms used in the sales process.
The specific changes include:
- A 15 fold increase of the maximum penalty for odometer tampering to $150,000
- A $150,000 penalty for unlicensed dealing, up from $100,000, and more than doubling for third or subsequent offences to $250,000 or two years imprisonment (or both). The penalty for body corporates (companies) will also double to a maximum fine of half a million dollars
- A new offence for providing false and misleading statements in relation to odometers plus powers to require that altered odometers be rectified
- Including hybrid and electric vehicles’ main propulsion battery in a dealer's duty to repair within the statutory warranty period
- Supporting cost effective pricing by enabling dealers to disclose defects that won’t be subject to the duty to repair, provided that the vehicle is roadworthy
- New practicalities:
- removing the need for a witness signature when a buyer waives their cooling-off period in writing (to collect the vehicle immediately)
- removing the administrative burden of displaying the previous owner’s name and potentially alleviating privacy and safety concerns (still available from the dealer/auctioneer on request)
- removing the need to disclose the name and details of the last person the vehicle was leased to, if it was used as a taxi or hire car (still available from the dealer/auctioneer on request)
- allowing dealers to include additional information in a contract of sale without taking away important information for buyers
- resulting streamlining of the prescribed form for sale of a vehicle or motorcycle.
The government is retaining the statutory warranty period under the Act for cars aged less than 15 years or that have travelled less than 200,000km.
