The country’s high courts, the National Consumer Tribunal and the Supreme Court of Appeal all fought for the rights of consumers in terms of the Consumer Protection Act last year, getting millions back for consumers.
The cherry on top was the recent ground-breaking judgment by the Supreme Court of Appeal against WesBank, where the court ruled that a bank is not only a creditor but also a supplier that is subject to the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) if it finances your car.
The bank would never be in the picture otherwise, but the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) did not agree with this and ruled that the bank is also a supplier and must therefore take responsibility for the defective car.
Consumer attorney Trudie Broekmann, who represented the consumer in this case, says this “ground-breaking judgment is a victory for consumers and a wake-up call for banks”. She says it is a game-changer for consumers, banks and dealerships and will compel banks to repay consumers who bought a defective vehicle it financed.
The SCA ruled against WesBank and upheld the consumer, Alta Van Niekerk’s, appeal with costs against an earlier order of the Mahikeng High Court. In addition, the SCA ordered the bank to repay Van Niekerk R170 023 for the defective Ford Ranger it financed.
“Where a consumer would previously have returned his vehicle to the dealership if it turned out to be a lemon, from now on, the financier has to carry the can. This has huge risk and commercial implications for the banks.”
The 31 consumers complained to the NCC that WeBuyCars did not adhere to the CPA that gives consumers the right to return a used car that is defective within the first six months and choose to have a refund, repairs or an exchange for another car without defects.
After investigating the complaint, the NCC reached an agreement with WeBuyCars and referred the matter to the National Consumer Tribunal (NCT) to be confirmed and made an order of the court.
Consumer Tribunal fines used car dealer R146 000 for refusing free repairs on used car
The NCT ordered a used car dealer from Kempton Park to refund a consumer R146 000 for a defective used car that it failed to repair after the consumer complained. When the consumer then decided to cancel the transaction, the dealer refused.
After telling the dealer that she does not want to buy an accident-damaged vehicle, the consumer bought a used 2013 Audi A4 from Nolly Motors in April 2022 for R146 000, but two days after she collected the car, she noticed it had defects.
Consumer Tribunal fines woman R250 000 for dream wedding reality series that did not become reality
The NCT fined a trustee of Droom Troue, a reality television show, R250 000 for contravening the CPA and ordered her to refund a total of R265 550 to seven participants who filed complaints.
Section 4(5)(b) of the CPA states that in any dealings with the consumer in the ordinary course of business, nobody is allowed to engage in any conduct that is unconscionable, misleading, deceptive, or likely to mislead or deceive.
The tribunal found that the conduct of De Jager and Droom Troue was intended to intentionally mislead and deceive multiple consumers, displaying little or no regard for the spirit and purpose of the CPA.
High Courts get involved
The country’s High Courts are now also getting involved in enforcing the CPA. Companies that are unsatisfied with the findings of the NCT can take the matters on review to a high court, and so far it seems that the Tribunal did not make any mistakes, with the High Courts reviewing the cases and finding in favour of the consumers as well.
High Court confirms used car dealer must refund consumer R568 000
The High Court in Cape Town confirmed a decision of the NCT that a used car dealer in the city must refund a consumer for selling him a “hot hatchback” for his son for R568 000. The dealer must also pay a fine of R50 000 for contravening the CPA.
The consumer first took his complaint to the Consumer Tribunal, where Wingfield Motors, trading as Best Price For My Car, was fined R50 000 and ordered to refund the consumer for the 2017 Ford Focus RS 2.3 EcoBoost. Best Price For My Car then turned to the High Court to appeal and set aside the decision.
However, Judge Lister Nuku and Judge Stanley O’Brien agreed with the Consumer Tribunal and dismissed the appeal and application with costs.
The High Court in Pretoria dismissed with costs a used car dealer’s appeal against an NCT finding that it did not comply with the CPA and fined it R100 000 for non-compliance and ordered that it had to refund the consumer the R459 900 that he paid for the car.
Sandton Repo Cars, the used car dealer, appealed the NCT’s ruling, which was handed down in June 2024, in favour of the NCC, which acted on behalf of the consumer.
In October 2020, the consumer took the car to Volkswagen in the Western Cape, where she was informed that it had been involved in an accident and told that it was unsafe to drive. The consumer then informed Sandton Repo through her lawyers that she was exercising her rights to cancel the transaction for a full refund under section 56(2)(b) of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA).
However, Sandton Repo Cars refused to collect the car and demanded that it be delivered so that the dealer could inspect it to determine the cost of usage before agreeing to cancel the transaction.
High Court confirms fine of R100 000 for disregarding consumer’s rights
The High Court in Pretoria agreed with the ruling of the Consumer Tribunal in January that a used car dealer must refund a consumer and pay an administrative fine of R100 000 for disregarding a consumer’s rights and selling him a used car that had a defect.
The Consumer Tribunal also ruled that Avura Motors, trading as Avura Executive Auto, must repay the consumer and his insurance company R106 000 for repairs to the used 2014 Mazda the consumer bought for R288 577.50.
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