Dodgy dealer gets suspended jail for knocking tens of thousands of miles off cars' clocks while falsely posing as private seller

Dunmurry 46-year-old Brendan Huston was acting as what’s described as a “hidden dealer”, falsely presenting himself as a private seller of an individual vehicle when he was actually trading in autos he bought at auction.

Huston, of Glenbawn Park in the suburban area to the south-west of Belfast, pleaded guilty to four offences under the Fraud Act.

According to a statement from officials in the Trading Standards Service, which probed the case, the dodgy dealer knocked between 56,000 and 94,000 miles off the clocks of four cars he sold online using Gumtree and Facebook Marketplace.

He posed as different private sellers, using false identities including the names ‘Sean’ and ‘Gerard Uistin’. Officials said this was to conceal his trading activities and avoid the legal responsibilities of a motor trader.

Huston repeatedly failed to show up to interviews with Trading Standards, said officials, and none of the four customers taken in were aware that the mileage readings on their vehicles were false until investigators contacted them.

Said Philip McLean of Trading Standards: “Consumers rely on accurate information when making significant purchases such as buying a vehicle. Deliberately reducing a vehicle’s mileage is dishonest and can result in consumers paying more than the vehicle is worth.

“Motor traders have a legal responsibility to ensure that information provided to consumers is accurate and complete. Those who attempt to avoid these responsibilities by posing as private sellers or using false identities should expect us to investigate and, where appropriate, prosecute.”