SINGAPORE: Amid a rising number of complaints about cars with defects, the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) has developed a checklist to help consumers and car dealers thoroughly inspect and evaluate used cars before purchases.
The consumer watchdog said in a media release on Thursday (Mar 16) that the motorcar industry has seen the highest number of complaints among all industries since 2012.
The complaints were primarily relating to pre-owned cars with defects, CASE said, and 7 in 10 were from consumers who did not obtain a professional evaluation report including condition and function checks when they bought these cars.
CASE noted that disputes about pre-owned cars with defects could be difficult to resolve due to the difficulty of establishing the condition of the vehicle at the point of purchase.
The new Standard and Functional Evaluation (SAFE) checklist will state the basic functional and visual checks that a car dealer should go through with the consumer while inspecting a pre-owned car before a sale, as well as help consumers better understand the minimum checks performed by a professional evaluation centre.
The consumer watchdog recommends that consumers request for the pre-owned car to be sent for inspection at a professional evaluation centre so that they can make a more informed choice on the condition versus the purchase price of the car, it said in the media release.
A copy of the checklist will be available on the CASE website from Friday.
