UAE: Dh100,000 fine for selling defective cars; buyers can take legal action

Question: I recently bought a secondhand car listed on a website. However, multiple technical issues have developed. My mechanic says the seller likely hid the problems before selling the car to me. The seller was not a dealer, but someone who owned the vehicle. I called him, but he said it was not his problem. What are my legal options in this case?

Answer: It is assumed that the seller who sold you the secondhand car has provided you with a warranty for a certain period from the date of purchase.

In the UAE, a seller is required to provide the right description of a product to a consumer and should not mislead the consumer while selling a product. This is under Article 17 of the Federal Law No. 15 of 2020 on Consumer Protection amended by Federal Decree-Law No. 5 of 2023 and Article 8 of the Cabinet Decision No. 66 of 2023 Concerning the Executive Regulation of the Federal Law No. 15 of 2020 Concerning Consumer Protection. The provisions of the law as mentioned earlier are as below:

Article 17 of the UAE Consumer Law says: “The Advertiser, the Supplier and the commercial agent are prohibited from describing the good or service in a manner that contains incorrect data and from making any misleading advertisement in connection therewith.”

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Article 8 of the Cabinet Decision No. 66 of 2023 says: “A description, advertisement or offering of a commodity or a service shall be deemed deceptive, if the same contains a misleading claim whenever it may directly or indirectly create false or misleading impression to the consumer, in particular if the claim includes one or more of the following elements:

1. Nature, composition, substantial description, constituent elements, quantity, shape or appearance of commodity.

2. Source, individuality, authenticity, way of manufacture, production date, expiry date, terms of use, warnings of use, weight, size, number, quantity, measurement, calibration, capacity, benchmark or any other standards.

3. Country of origin, country of export or the commodity producer.

4. Terms and procedures of contracting including after-sale service, warranty, and price and way of payment.

5. Awards, certification or quality marks.

6. Trademarks, statements or logos.

7. Characters of commodity or service and the expected results of their use."

Furthermore, while a seller is selling a secondhand product, he or she needs to mention the condition of the said product and the advertisement should not be misleading to a consumer.

This is by Article 7 of the Cabinet Decision No. 66 of 2023, which states: “The supplier offering used, renovated or defective commodities that do not result in any harm to health or safety of the consumer, shall apparently advertise the condition of the commodity on the commodity, as well as at the place where the supplier's activity is practised, in a way that shall not create a false or misleading impression to the consumer. The condition of the commodity shall be described in the concluded contract or the issued invoice.”

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