CONSUMER WARNING - Smiths Falls Car Dealer Suspended by Regulator

TORONTO, Feb. 15, 2019 /CNW/ - OMVIC, Ontario's vehicle sales regulator, has ordered the IMMEDIATE SUSPENSION of 519224 Ontario LTD. o/a Tom Pirie Motor Sales, 190 Lombard Street, Smiths Falls, and of Thomas Pirie, officer and director of Tom Pirie Motor Sales. As a result, Pirie and Tom Pirie Motor Sales may not legally sell, lease, buy or consign motor vehicles.

Pirie also operates 2318231 Ontario LTD. o/a RV Kemptville, 2651 Country Road 43, Kemptville. RV Kemptville's registration was terminated after lapsing on February 10, 2019. Therefore, RV Kemptville may not legally sell, lease, buy or consign motor vehicles.

In conjunction with the Suspension Order, OMVIC also issued a Proposal to Revoke the Registrations of Thomas Pirie and Tom Pirie Motor Sales.

According to OMVIC CEO and Registrar John Carmichael, Immediate Suspension orders are only issued when the regulator believes a "dealer's conduct may place the car-buying public at risk." The immediate suspension of Tom Pirie Motor Sales was triggered after consumer complaints and an OMVIC inspection. The dealer allegedly:

• did not remove liens from vehicles traded in, leaving consumers responsible for the debts
  
  
• sold 46 vehicles without first discharging liens registered against the vehicles
  
  
• failed to remit payments to an extended warranty company for 24 warranties putting customers at risk of not having coverage
  
  
• obstructed an inspection
  
  
• failed to provide records to the Registrar as required

In one instance, OMVIC alleges a consumer purchased a vehicle from the dealer: the contract included the customer's trade-in and set out the dealer's responsibility to pay off the loan on the trade. The dealer failed to do so leaving the customer responsible for the debt.

In another similar case, the dealer allegedly took six months to pay off the loan on a trade-in resulting in the consumer making 13 additional loan payments on a vehicle she no longer owned.

Consumer Warning
Consumers are warned not to buy or lease motor vehicles from, or sell or consign motor vehicles to, Tom Pirie Motor Sales, RV Kemptville or Thomas Pirie while the dealer's registration is suspended/terminated; consumers who trade with an unregistered business or individual are not protected by the Motor Vehicle Dealers Compensation Fund. Note: within 15 days of the issuance of an Immediate Suspension Order a hearing will be held before the Licence Appeal Tribunal. The Tribunal will determine if the order should be extended until a final determination is made regarding the associated Proposal(s) to Revoke Registration.

Consumers with questions or concerns should contact OMVIC's Complaints and Inquiries Team at 1-800-943-6002 x3942.

About OMVIC Registration
Ontario's Motor Vehicle Dealers Act (MVDA) requires all dealers and salespeople be registered with OMVIC. Unregistered selling (curbsiding) is a serious offence. Individuals convicted of curbsiding can be fined up to $50,000 and/or be jailed for up to two years less a day.

About OMVIC
OMVIC (Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council) administers and enforces the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act (MVDA) on behalf of the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services. OMVIC maintains a fair and informed vehicle sales marketplace by regulating dealers and salespersons, regularly inspecting Ontario's 8,000 dealerships and 29,000 salespeople, maintaining a complaint line for consumers and conducting investigations and prosecutions (or discipline proceedings) of industry misconduct and illegal sales (curbsiding). OMVIC also administers the Motor Vehicle Dealers Compensation Fund on behalf of its Board of Trustees.

About the Motor Vehicle Dealers Compensation Fund
The Motor Vehicle Dealers Compensation Fund is financed by Ontario's registered motor vehicle dealers and provides compensation to consumers who have a valid claim against an Ontario-registered dealer. Qualifying consumers may be eligible to receive up to $45,000 for each valid claim to the Compensation Fund. Since its inception on July 1, 1986, the Compensation Fund has reimbursed consumers more than $6 million.

SOURCE Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC)