Legality of offering 'mileage correction' services.

KazDub

I found an ad on an online sales site offering 'mileage correction'. It specified all makes and models covered and asked for PMs with the year and model.
I figured that it was offering odometer tampering but wondered how an ad could stay on the site for so long if it wasn't legal. I reported it twice to the site via their app without any response, so sent them a tweet inquiring about the legality.
They responded to say that although it's illegal to knowingly sell a car with a tampered odometer, it is not illegal to offer the service. So, the ad stays up and they get their money from any sales this guy makes.

Surely that can't be right, can it?

FishOnABike

There are legitimate reasons for correcting an odometer e.g. replacing a faulty instrument panel / speedometer with a new one or one from a breakers. The mileage on the replacement odometer should be corrected to read the same as the one it is replacing. I wouldn't expect this to be a high volume business though ;-)

coylemj

What they told you is correct. The act of turning back the clock is not illegal. Selling it knowing that the odometer is showing a false reading is.

R.O.R

KazDub wrote: »

I found an ad on an online sales site offering 'mileage correction'. It specified all makes and models covered and asked for PMs with the year and model.
I figured that it was offering odometer tampering but wondered how an ad could stay on the site for so long if it wasn't legal. I reported it twice to the site via their app without any response, so sent them a tweet inquiring about the legality.
They responded to say that although it's illegal to knowingly sell a car with a tampered odometer, it is not illegal to offer the service. So, the ad stays up and they get their money from any sales this guy makes.

Surely that can't be right, can it?

That used to be the law, but was changed in the past few years.

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2014/act/3/section/14/enacted/en/html

A person shall not interfere or attempt to interfere with the odometer of a mechanically propelled vehicle.

A person who contravenes, or who procures another person to contravene, subsection (1) commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a class C fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months, or to both.

KazDub

Thanks for clearing that up. Who knows, maybe the guy isn't as shady as this all appears. :rolleyes:

Just saw R.O.R's post after my last one. So the 'service' is illegal then? The site has suggested I contact their support team regarding any ads where I 'think cars are being illegally clocked'. Basically putting the onus on me to prove the intent of the clocking, which obviously I can't do.

coylemj

R.O.R wrote: »

A person shall not interfere or attempt to interfere with the odometer of a mechanically propelled vehicle.

But subsection 4 gives some latitude .........

Where a person is charged with an offence under this section it shall be a defence to show that at the time of the alleged offence the person was acting in good faith in order to test, repair or replace the odometer of the mechanically propelled vehicle.

R.O.R

coylemj wrote: »

But subsection 4 gives some latitude .........

Where a person is charged with an offence under this section it shall be a defence to show that at the time of the alleged offence the person was acting in good faith in order to test, repair or replace the odometer of the mechanically propelled vehicle.

Seems like there is an allowance, but that's on when someone has been charged with the offence that they get to to try to explain the reasoning behind it, which could be a valid reason.