§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what action she has undertaken since 1 May 1997 to improve consumer protection in respect of the sale of used cars; [51204]
(2) what plans she has to extend the powers of trading standards officers to enable them to carry out forecourt inspections of motor dealers. [51205]
§ Dr. HowellsIn response to the Director General of Fair Trading's report on selling second-hand cars, I shall shortly issue guidance to clarify the powers which we believe Trading Standards officers already have under the General Product Safety Regulations 1994 to enable them to carry out garage forecourt inspections of motor vehicles offered for sale.
In addition, the Department is commissioning research on the current law on the use of mileage information disclaimers and how it is being interpreted, prior to consideration of further action. It has also indicated its support for consideration to be given by the Director General of Fair Trading of the extent to which indiscriminate use of mileage information disclaimers could be cited as an unfair business practice in the context of licensing action under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.
The Advertising Standards Authority has been contacted to establish whether it could act under its own powers against advertisements offering mileage correction/ alteration services. The Department is also in consultation with the Department of the Environment, Transport, and the Regions regarding those recommendations in the Director General's report which come within its responsibilities.
The Office of Fair Trading recently published a booklet on how to get the best deal when buying a used car. This includes information for consumers about what to do if things go wrong. The Department has also recently published a more general consumer information leaflet on unsatisfactory goods and consumer rights which covers issues such as sale-of-goods rights, manufacturers' guarantees and extended warranties.