PRESIDENT of the Jamaica Used Car Dealers’ Association Lynvalle Hamilton is headed to court to challenge what he says is an unfair and illegal policy being implemented by the Trade Board to govern warranty that players in the sector must give their customers.

Hamilton, who is the owner of Auto Channel Limited, told the Jamaica Observer that it is important for him to seek to block the policy from taking effect any further as it is a big setback for businesses.

According to Hamilton, other players in the industry are running scared and even though they are not happy with the policy, they refuse to join him in protest over fear they may become targets.

“With this policy in particular, the Trade Board compels us to give a certain warranty and that is not consistent with the law, the Sale of Goods Act. This clearly gives us the right to choose the warranty that we want to give to the customer,” said Hamilton.

“The customer can also rely on our expertise to get warranty, but the Trade Board’s policy wants us to give warranty on every occasion and outlines a particular warranty that we are to give, which is totally unfair. That’s unlawful. They are acting as if they are a law unto themselves as is the case with many agencies and entities in Jamaica. This has to be challenged,” added Hamilton.

He charged that because of his refusal to comply with the policy, his certification has been blocked.

“They use the certification as a weapon [and] it is ruining business. This is my livelihood. This is an abuse of power. The other players in the industry are afraid because, listen, not everybody will stand up to the Government in situations like this. You have to stand up for your rights and also get the Government to abide by the law,” he argued.

“The Government can’t make the laws and then want to be a law unto themselves, and that’s what they are doing now. The dealers, although they know it is wrong, they still comply just to keep their business going,” lamented Hamilton, who is being represented by attorney Hugh Wildman.

Wildman, who has filed the challenge in the Supreme Court, told the Observer that the warranty policy has been proving difficult for players in the industry to adhere to and even more than that, it is illegal.

“The Sale of Goods Act is what governs the buying and selling of goods. When they import motor vehicles from abroad and they are going to sell it to the customer, the customer examines the vehicle before to see whether or not they wish to buy it. Whatever warranty is given to them by the dealer, that is it,” argued Wildman.

“They have come up with this motor vehicle policy now, where they will try to impose warranties on the dealers, but that is not contained within the Act. They are saying that they must prescribe what warranty the dealer must give the customer, outside of what the legislation is saying. Mr Hamilton is challenging that policy which affects him,” added Wildman.

He charged that players in the industry are not pleased, especially because those who disagree with the policy and wish not to adhere to it could find themselves without a licence to operate, as is the case with his client.

“If they don’t get with this policy then they will not certify them to import vehicles,” Wildman said as he told the Observer that an application to challenge the policy was filed on Tuesday.

On Friday, the Observer visited Jamaica Trade Board to get a reaction from Chairman Sean Azan. However, he declined to comment, noting that the matter is now before the court and as such he did not wish to prejudice the case. At the same time, he shared a copy a section of the Jamaica Gazette dated April 1, 2014 that outlines the policy on motor vehicle imports.

Under the section that deals with warranty, the document states that all certified motor vehicle dealers must ensure that the warranty provided on motor vehicles imported and sold by them is not materially less than that offered by the manufacturer. According to the document, manufacturer’s warranty on labour, parts, time owned, or distance driven must be passed on to the consumer. This requirement applies to dealers certified as importers of new motor vehicles and those certified as importers of used motor vehicles but who wish to participate in the importation and sale of new motor vehicles.

The gazette also states that all certified used motor vehicle dealers and brokers must provide warranties in accordance with guidelines determined by the vehicles’ age and odometer reading.

Class A warranty is applicable to vehicles manufactured fewer than four years before the sale date with an odometer reading of less than 53,000 kilometres (km)/32,934 miles.

Class B Warranty is applicable to vehicles manufactured more than four years but fewer than seven years before the sale date, with an odometer of less than 106,000km/65,867 miles.

Class C warranty is applicable to commercial vehicles manufactured more than six years but fewer than 11 years before the sale date with an odometer reading of 178,000km/110, 607 miles.

The warranty covers vehicle parts such as the engine, transmission, differential, steering gear, drive chain, front end, major electronic components including computers, air conditioning system, general electric system, and suspension system.