By CRM staff
Toronto, Ontario — December 14, 2018 — The owners of Euro Premium Auto in Markham have been caught with selling high mileage vehicles as unlicensed dealers.
The Ontario Motors Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC) believe the owners, Arif Adnan Syed and Hafsa Nasser are curbsiders – a term for unlicensed car sellers.
Just as curbsiders commonly misrepresent themselves—often posing as private sellers—they frequently misrepresent the vehicles they sell; with many being accident-damaged, rebuilt write-offs or odometer-tampered. Many of these offenders sell from small automotive-related businesses like repair centres or body shops.
But in this case, Syed and Nasser were allegedly purchasing high mileage vehicles then posing as private sellers, offering them for sale on Kijiji. They rolled back the odometers on many of the vehicles they sold; sometimes as much as 200,000 to 300,000 kilometers.
“We believe Syed, Nasser and Euro Premium Auto Ltd. have sold at least 26 cars in 2018, and from the cars lining their driveway, they appear to have more to sell,” explained OMVIC CEO and registrar, John Carmichael.
In November, it is believed that Nasser had purchased a vehicle from a dealer with an odometer reading 295,807. Four days later he put the 2007 Toyota Camry up for sale on Kijiji for $5,000, with the odometer reading 166,000 km.
In another instance, a young woman had purchased a 2006 Honda from Syed. The vehicle was advertised with only have 165,000 km. But little did this woman know, the vehicle had been originally purchased by Euro Premium Auto Ltd, back in May with over 420,000 km.
“Each of the victims interviewed by OMVIC indicated the sellers did not provide the required Used Vehicle Information Package (UVIP) that could have disclosed historical odometer information”, explained Carmichael.
According to OMVIC, these alleged curbsiders arrange for potential buyers to meet them at the Unionville Home Society or nearby plazas.
“The purchasers think they’re buying a relatively low mileage vehicle from a genuine private seller but end up with a vehicle that may be near end-of-life or require unexpected and expensive repairs due to the actual mileage.”
However, this wasn’t the first time Syed has been caught with this offense. In 2015, he was previously convicted and fined $5,000 for curbsiding. He also operated Desi Auto Body, Used Parts Ltd., and 1715130 Ontario Inc., where he was caught again for curbsiding and committing unfair business practices in contravention of the Consumer Protection Act. He was fined $12,500 for each offense.
