UAE Court orders seller to refund Dh500,000 for fraudulent car sale

A civil Court in Al Ain has ruled to terminate a vehicle sale contract and ordered the seller to refund the full purchase price of Dh500,000 to the buyer, in addition to covering the cost of repairs, Emarat Al Youm reported.

The Al Ain Court for Civil, Commercial and Administrative Claims found that the seller had deceived the buyer by tampering with the vehicle’s chassis number and model year — defects that amounted to a hidden flaw the buyer could not have discovered at the time of purchase.

According to case documents, a young man filed a lawsuit against the seller, requesting the annulment of the sale due to fraud and misrepresentation. He sought the return of Dh500,000, the price he paid for the vehicle, as well as Dh20,500 spent on repairs, plus Dh100,000 in compensation for material, moral and emotional damages, along with legal fees and court costs.

The claimant told the court that he had purchased the vehicle from the defendant under the belief that it was manufactured in 2016 and free of any restrictions or liabilities. After completing the purchase and taking possession of the car, he discovered it had in fact been manufactured in 2013, that the chassis number had been altered, and that the vehicle was the subject of a security alert. When he requested a refund and reimbursement for repairs, the seller refused.

According to a technical expert appointed by the court, the defendant sold the car under a formal sale contract, received full payment, and transferred ownership to the buyer. However, he concealed the true manufacturing year, which directly affects the validity of the contract, and had manipulated the chassis number in a way that did not match the official records of the vehicle’s authorised agency.

The expert further noted that the buyer had spent Dh20,500 on repairs after the purchase for defects that existed at the time of sale but resulted from use, rather than as inherent mechanical faults. The report concluded that the falsified chassis and model data constituted deception, not a minor defect.

In its ruling, the court confirmed that it found the expert’s report credible, thorough and well-founded. Based on the findings, it ruled that the vehicle contained a hidden defect that could not have been detected by the buyer at the time of purchase, establishing a breach of the seller’s contractual obligations. As a result, the court ordered the contract to be rescinded and the parties returned to their original positions: the seller must take back the vehicle and return the sums paid, including the repair costs.

The court rejected the buyer’s claim for Dh100,000 in compensation, noting that he failed to demonstrate actual damages suffered, and that he had used the car for eight months and had been involved in an accident with it. The court therefore found no legal basis for the claimed compensation.

The ruling annulled the contract, required the seller to reimburse the buyer for the car and repair costs as detailed in the judgment, and ordered him to pay the appropriate portion of the legal expenses. All other claims were dismissed.