REPRESENTATIVES of two used car dealerships have broken ranks with the president of the association which represents them about the negative impact a new warranty policy introduced by the Trade Board will have on their operations.

Lynvalle Hamilton, president of the Jamaica Used Car Dealers Association and owner of Auto Channel Limited, has gone to court to challenge the authority of the Trade Board to introduce a new mandatory warranty policy for the sector.

He told the Jamaica Observer that it is important for him to try to prevent the policy from taking effect any further as it causes big setbacks to players in the sector.

According to Hamilton, other used car dealers are afraid of losing their licence and as a result, they adhere to the policy which he and his attorney Hugh Wildman contend is not contained within the Sale of Goods Act and, therefore, is illegal.

But when the Sunday Observer contacted Solid Impact Motors Limited to inquire about any negative effects the policy has on that business, a representative declared that the company does not have a problem with it.

“At the end of the day, even if we decide that we have an issue with it, we still have to work with it. They give a list of things that you have to put in your warranty. What we buy from overseas is what we get, and some of the time, even the [overseas] representatives who you are buying from, they don’t even know the vehicle. They don’t see it,” said the representative who asked not to be named.

Explaining how the warranty system works at Solid Impact, he said when someone comes to purchase a motor vehicle, the company gives them a note upon delivery that they are entitled to warranty.

“So you would know that you have three or six months or whatever. What I normally do is, depending on…like, for instance, if I’m selling a car for $2 million, let’s put it like that, and a customer comes to me and says they like the vehicle and whatever, and they’re willing to pay cash to buy the vehicle, we would give them an option. You can buy it without warranty and take off X amount, or take the warranty and you pay that fee.

“You can be flexible with it. Like I said, at the end of the day, if you want to do your imports, and you want to continue your business, what are you going to do?” the representative said, explaining that it is easier to work with the policy than to challenge it.

The Sunday Observer also contacted Majestic Auto Sales in Mandeville, Manchester, where a representative of that company said the warranty policy poses no problems because customers rarely come back with complaints during the period that the warranty covers.

“If it’s a case where the vehicle has problems or whatever is there, they will come back, but in our case, we try to sort that out before we sell the vehicle. They hardly come back to us during the warranty period, hardly,” the representative explained.

Hamilton had complained, during a recent interview with the Sunday Observer, that the policy which the Trade Board uses to compel used car dealers to give a warranty was not consistent with Sale of Goods Act.

“This clearly gives us the right to choose the warranty that we want to give to the customer,” argued 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,” Hamilton said.

Last Friday, chairman of the Trade Board Sean Azan refused to comment on the matter as he pointed out that it is now before the court and as such he did not wish to prejudice the case.

The Jamaica Gazette of April 1, 2014 outlines the warranty policy on motor vehicle imports. The document states that all certified motor vehicle dealers must ensure 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, the 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 reading 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.