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Trade Board to resume processing used car applicants
Friday, October 30, 2009
The Trade Board is to resume the processing of new applicants seeking entry into the used car business, following a suspension in April this year when it says that some dealers were conducting their affairs in a manner inimical to the interest of the industry.
Addressing the recent annual general meeting of the Jamaica Used Car Dealers Association, Commerce Minister Karl Samuda said the suspension resulted from "clear abuse of the system" which saw licences to import over-aged vehicles being granted to 533 of 673 applicants, between January to March.
The Trade Board was dissolved in April and new Board appointed on July 1, 2009.
The minister pointed out that in the six-month period April - September the number of applications to import over-aged vehicles dropped dramatically to 47, of which only 11 were granted.
"Clearly this sends a definite message that something was wrong. One does not make that kind of error to import overage vehicles which would distort the whole trading pattern, and place (legitimate) used car dealers at a disadvantage," Samuda asserted.
The minister said preliminary results of an audit conducted by the Consumer Affairs Commission (CAC) found that the majority of dealers are now compliant in a range of areas including taxpayer audit and assessment.
Samuda added that although the CAC audit is not yet completed, "the data collected so far is sufficient to enable (the Trade Board) to resume the processing of new applicants into the used car business."
He noted, however, that there were only now three new applicants, while 17 used car dealers have left the business.
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