HC Deb 26 February 1991 vol 186 cc809-10

'.—(1) Section 75 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (vehicles not to be sold in unroadworthy condition or altered so as to be unroadworthy) shall be amended as follows.

(2) In subsection (3), sub-paragraph (iii) of paragraph (a) shall be omitted and for paragraph (b) there shall be substituted— (b) it is in such a condition that its use on a road would involve a danger of injury to any person".

(3) In subsection (4), after the words "that condition" there shall be inserted— (a)", and at the end there shall be added the words "or (b) would involve a danger of injury to any person.

(4) In subsection (6), paragraph (c) shall be omitted.

(5) After subsection (6) there shall be inserted— (6A) Paragraph (b) of subsection (6) above shall not apply in relation to a person who, in the course of a trade or business—

  1. (a) exposes a vehicle or trailer for sale, unless he also proves that he took all reasonable steps to ensure that any prospective purchaser would be aware that its use in its current condition on a road in Great Britain would be unlawful, or
  2. (b) offers to sell a vehicle or trailer, unless he also proves that he took all reasonable steps to ensure that the person to whom the offer was made was aware of that fact.".'.

Brought up, and read the First time.

4.15 pm
The Minister for Roads and Traffic (Mr. Christopher Chope)

I beg to move, That the clause be read a second time.

Mr. Speaker

With this, it will be convenient to take Government amendments Nos. 37 and 38.

Mr. Chope

The new clause arises out of concerns expressed in Committee by my hon. Friend the Member for Keighley (Mr. Waller) about the sale of unroadworthy vehicles. At present, the existing provisions which are designed to prevent the sale of unroadworthy vehicles do not operate satisfactorily because when confronted with the fact that a vehicle on the forecourt is unroadworthy traders often claim that they would have repaired the vehicle or warned the customer about its condition before a sale was made. That is clearly unsatisfactory, and I believe that the new clause will help to remedy that problem.

The new clause provides that, where an unroadworthy vehicle is exposed for sale—for example, on a garage forecourt—the trader must prove that he has taken all reasonable steps to make potential purchasers aware that its use in its current condition on a road in Great Britain would be unlawful. One way of doing that would be for the trader to put warnings, in the form of notices, on each vehicle. However, we do not intend to prescribe exactly how that requirement should be satisfied; it will be for the courts to determine on the facts of each case.

In the case of an offer for sale, which is directed at an individual rather than at the world at large, the trader would have to prove that he has taken all reasonable steps to make that person aware of the facts. The new requirements will apply only to those who deal in vehicles in the course of a trade or business, which is where the major problem lies.

Ms. Joan Ruddock (Lewisham, Deptford)

As with much of the Bill, Opposition Members are happy to support the Government in introducing measures that are clearly designed to help with the safety of people driving on our roads and the standard of vehicles.

Question put and agreed to.

Clause read a Second time, and added to the Bill.

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