Abu Dhabi court tells luxury car seller to return buyer's Dh670,000

Abu Dhabi: The Abu Dhabi Court for Family, Civil, and Administrative Cases has annulled the sale of a luxury vehicle bought for Dh670,000 after finding that the car suffered from major hidden mechanical, electronic, and structural defects that affected its safety and usability, Emarat Al Youm reported. 

The court ordered the seller to refund the buyer and in addition pay him Dh50,000 in damages for the material and emotional distress caused by the deception.

According to court filings, the buyer said he found the car through a social-media advertisement in which the seller described it as “in excellent condition, accident-free, and maintained by the official dealer.” Convinced by the claims, the young man completed the purchase.

However, the buyer soon began experiencing repeated breakdowns. Suspicious, he ran the vehicle’s history through US automotive-record websites and discovered that it had been involved in four previous accidents.

He accused the seller of fraud and misrepresentation, submitting screenshots of the online ad, inspection reports from multiple workshops, and WhatsApp messages as evidence.

The seller denied wrongdoing and urged the court to dismiss the case, arguing that the buyer had inspected the car before purchase.

An independent technical expert appointed by the court concluded that the vehicle had severe and concealed defects compromising its mechanical and structural integrity, directly affecting its operational safety and market value. 

The report found that the car’s chassis had undergone repairs that violated manufacturer standards, creating an “irreparable structural flaw.”

In its ruling, the court said the expert’s report was credible and had adhered to professional standards. It held that the seller’s failure to disclose the vehicle’s hidden defects constituted fraudulent concealment, establishing his legal liability.

The court further noted that the buyer had suffered both financial loss and emotional distress from being deprived of the use of the vehicle and the amount paid.

Accordingly, the court rescinded the sale contract, ordered the seller to repay Dh670,000, retrieve the vehicle, transfer ownership back to his name with the traffic authority, and compensate the buyer with Dh50,000 for damages, along with covering court fees and expenses.