UAE car buyers can recover deposit if dealer fails to meet commitments: ministry

Consumers in the UAE can recover funds deposited for purchase of cars within three months if car dealer fails to meet his commitment about delivery, said a senior official of the UAE Ministry of Economy.

Dr Hashim Al Nuaimi, director of the Consumer Protection Department at the ministry, said the customer can also recover his deposit if the dealer breaches the agreement about the vehicle’s specifications.

Al Nuaimi said the ministry added an article with regard to the deposit and its recovery after a meeting with automobile dealers in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

He told the Al Khaleej Arabic newspaper  that the consumer can also recover the deposit in case of death, bank’s refusal to finance the vehicle and relocation of his office as all these are not his own decisions but imposed on him.

Al Nuaimi asked consumers to purchase vehicles after  a careful and complete study about  specifications of the car he is seeking to buy.

He said the ministry agreed with dealers not to account for depreciation of  a car because of manufacturing defects which are beyond repair and instead give the consumer a new car.

Five per cent is deducted from the car's value every three months and 20 per cent per year as depreciation.

Dr Al Nuaimi said it had been agreed with the dealers to give clients two types of guarantees. One is the factory guarantee for two years and the dealership guarantee for three years. This includes key parts such as engine and speed transmission gear.

He pointed out that brakes are not among the main parts covered in the warranty.

He revealed that the ministry plans to add the year of manufacture to the model of the car in the unified contract so that  buyers are not misled by dealers.

He said the year of manufacture could be different from the model as some consumers buy the car on the basis that it was manufactured in 2012 while the model is of the previous year, a difference that may not be noticed by some.

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