UAE: Buyer loses Dh125,000 lawsuit against dealer for selling him camels unfit for racing

An Al Ain businessman who sued an animal dealer demanding that he refunds his Dh125,000 for selling him five camels unfit for racing has had his lawsuit dismissed on appeal.

The Al Ain Court of Appeal upheld an earlier ruling by the Court of First Instance, which rejected the man’s lawsuit based on an expert report.

The man had filed a lawsuit in which he demanded the court terminate their sales agreement. He also insisted the camel dealer refund the Dh125,000 he paid him for selling him his camels.

The businessman said in his lawsuit that the camel merchant had claimed that he owned several camels on his farm that had been designated for racing. The man said the dealer sold him five racing camels at a price of Dh125,000.

He said the dealer also borrowed Dh5,000 from him, after which he denied the amount and claimed that it was part of the expenses for selling him the camels.

According to the plaintiff, after buying the camels, he later realised that they were not worth the purchase price because they were not suitable for racing.

The man said experts in the camel racing field said the animals were unfit to compete in races because their age had exceeded the preparation stage.

A report by an expert committee specialised in general estimation issues the court assigned said that the transaction had already taken place and the buyer had already received the camels. The report added that the buyer placed the complaint over nine months after the sale. It also found the buyer had nor right to cancel the sales agreement and return the camels.