I got stung by a dodgy car dealer - with qcat fees &car
Donation protected
I'm only doing this to tell my story and a couple of friends asked how they could help.
Backstory
My names Trin I live in rural Queensland....22kms from town (no public transport) I got done in by a dodgy car
dealer and a story of unfortunate events
In November of last year our region was having unseasonable copious amounts of rain,as a consequence of the rain I broke my car -I was driving down our country road at night , the runoff had made a trench in the road unbeknownst to me. I hit it at 30kms an hour in my Citreon it broke a bottom motor mount that then caused the transmission to twist and leak trans fluid out of the transfer case. It was cost prohibitive to fix and parts weren't available so I decided to save and buy a car.
On the 10th of January I discovered an ad on Facebook advertising a car through a car dealership. There was approximately 15-20 cars advertised.
I went to have a look on the 11th of January 2025 as I wanted to go through a dealer and not get ripped on Facebook or have no comeback if something went wrong... More fool me.
I agreed to purchase a 2010 Kia Rio with aprox 102000kms for $5650 from Carwoo/Mezin Hadad at an actual physical car yard. Thought I was safe.,Thought I was covered with warranty , thought I had purchased from a licenced motor vehicle dealer. He even had his dealer # plastered in the window.
Things were going great-until they weren't.
On March 2nd 2025 the transmission failed, a mere 50 days after purchase.
I advised the dealer and this is where the fun began - he advised me to disconnect the battery and reconnect after an hour.
Okay it seemed to work for awhile.
It was a temporary fix- I booked a transmission service that occurred 27th March 2025. It didn't fix it.
The car has not left my driveway since the 27th March 2025 as it can't be driven.
Back and forth with the car yard ensued I got frustrated and googled the dealership and this is where the ride begins.
I found out that the dealer has been permanently banned from selling cars in Queensland for LIFE!!
He should not have been operating,advertising or selling cars at all.
He's also appeared on A CURRENT AFFAIR 3 times.
Had I known this I would NEVER purchased a car from him!
I contact the Office of Fair Trading and they basically said 'we're already pursuing Mr Hadad for operating unlicensed ' so too bad so sad you'll have to go through QCAT.
On the 8th of May I had Emmerson Mechanical out to diagnose. And Chris found that there was an Electrical issue within the TCM in the transmission and recommended replacement.
I believe Maz knew there was an issue prior to purchase as he immediately told me to disconnect the battery and reset the computer and reconnect after an hour.
'I promise you this will fix it ' never queried discussed or even thought about a mechanical issue just jumped straight to electrical/ computer issue.
Now the only way to pursue him is via section 54 consumer guarantees act and section 260 Australian consumer law.
(Never mind that he's unlicensed and it should be an invalid sale/contact) Basically
'The goods did not live up to expectations, warranties, there is a significant defect and would not have been purchased had I known, cannot easily be fixed remedied,
and Mr Hadad had failed to comply with guarantees'.
- I can't fix it as the qcat case wouldn't stand up to - cannot be easily remedied.
- He/they still own it as he hasn't even transferred it to me,
- Based on quotes it will cost $3000 to do so.
- QCAT may order him to take it back and refund, therefore I cannot even sell it to recoup costs at this point.
- I know you get what you pay for- but I expected more than 50 days
I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place my only option is to file a case and wait.
Costs will be approx $200 in filing fees, paperwork etc and possibly $1200 court ordered mechanic report.
In the meantime I've been without a car 22 kilometres out of town since the 2nd March 2025. I am currently saving for one- but I need transport. I don't want luxury, I just want something to last more than 2 months.
There is no public transport option. And a taxi from town to my place is approximately $80 ONE WAY
How he gets away with it time and time again and can't be charged for fraud, obtaining by deception or any other offence is beyond me.
As it is illegal act as a Licenced Motor Vehicle Dealer if you don't have a licence.
If I manage to get to qcat theres no guarantee I'll get my $$$ back either, even if I get a judgement in my favour.
But Im not going to let him get away with this - move on, or do nothing.
He needs to be stopped!
I'm usually the helper not the one that needs help. Hence why I feel bad having to ask for help - I'm an adult I should be able to handle my business.
If you want to help then please do, if you have any questions -fire away I'll answer them. I have all the screenshots/legislation/rulings/photos and supporting evidence.
Thankyou for reading
Trin
Organizer
Trinity Stockdale
Organizer
Bullcamp, QLD