Bargain used car online? Read the odometer twice, because the Victorian government is coming for dodgy used car traders.
More Victorians are shopping for second-hand cars over the internet, and unlicensed operators have been cashing in on the shift. Consumer Affairs Victoria research found nearly a third of sampled used cars advertised online had their odometers wound back by at least 25,000 kilometres, meaning buyers were paying for vehicles that had covered far more distance than the dashboard let on.
Investigators also found unlicensed traders snapping up cars in bulk at auction, then reselling them at a markup through social media listings.
Victoria’s used car crackdown
- More powers for Consumer Affairs Victoria to investigate, fine and prosecute odometer tampering
- Traders required to check a car’s odometer before any sale
- A single point of contact for Victorians who’ve been ripped off
- Tighter rules on auction houses
- A stronger safety net for buyers left out of pocket
- A statewide public education campaign and compliance blitz on unlicensed traders
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.
A new set of laws will give Consumer Affairs Victoria more power to go after the operators behind the practice. The reforms make it easier to investigate, fine and prosecute odometer tampering, and traders will now be required to check a vehicle’s reading before any sale can proceed. That single requirement shifts responsibility onto the seller rather than the person handing over the cash.
Buyers who end up out of pocket also get a stronger safety net, sitting alongside a single point of contact for anyone who suspects they’ve been done over. Fresh rules tighten how auction houses operate, closing off one of the channels unlicensed sellers have leaned on to move stock quickly and quietly.
Consumer Affairs Victoria will run a statewide crackdown as well, pairing a public education campaign with a targeted compliance blitz aimed at unlicensed traders. The full research is laid out in the Unlicensed Motor Car Trading in Victoria report, published by the department.
For more information, head here.
