Emily Olle | Legal private car sale black hole leaving South Aussies vulnerable

Desperate mums, dads and young people are being preyed on by a ridiculous policy failing – and having their lives put at risk, writes Emily Olle.

There are certain times in life when I’m grateful for my car-loving dad. Having been gifted the entire DVD box sets of Top Gear seasons 1-6 every childhood Christmas, for one.

But more practically, having someone on the other end of the phone who knows their stuff should I find myself in need of motor vehicle advice.

I’m in the boat of – dare I say – most young people when it comes my mental chasm in car-buying know-how.

And don’t private sellers know it.

According to the Motor Trade Association, there were 151,000 private purchases of used cars compared to 55,000 dealer used sales last year in SA.

The bulk of those private purchases occurred over social media, such as Facebook Marketplace.

Yet, South Australia remains one of just two states without safeguards to make sure privately sold vehicles are roadworthy – or, as 19-year-old Hajar Yassini learnt earlier this month, won’t burst into flames on a busy highway.

A teenager was forced to leap from her car moments before it burst into flames on the Salisbury Highway. She had only had the second-hand Mazda for 15 minutes. Picture: Supplied

Once a car is purchased privately, there is no recourse and no warranties – it’s one of the few remaining areas of consumer law that remain unprotected.

In SA, there is also no requirement to conduct a mandatory vehicle inspection when purchasing or transferring registration from interstate.

More often than not, it’s those most vulnerable to a lemon-sale scam that are most likely to go down the private sale route.

Not everyone has a Top Gear-loving dad, mum, sibling or friend to help give them the advice they need, and not everyone knows to seek a mechanic’s advice before purchasing.

Ms Yassini lost her dad when she was young. She believed the best in the mechanic who sold her a lemon right up until it exploded on the Salisbury Hwy.

Motor Trade Association CEO Darrell Jacobs has called for SA to catch up with the rest of the country when it comes to private car sales. Picture: MTA

“It’s such a common thing that happens among teenagers, because a lot of us just want to buy a first car and not all of us have like enough money to buy it first-hand,” Ms Yassini said.

“I feel like I was taken advantage of because I know nothing about cars. If a mechanic says your car is fine, you’re going to trust them.”

Motor Trade Association CEO Darrell Jacobs put it right when he said dodgy private sellers were currently preying on those who could least afford it.

Used car buyer Rosalie Bifulco purchased a second-hand car privately for $12,000, only to learn it required $6,000 in mechanical repairs – a cost she simply couldn’t afford.

The MTA has launched a major push to introduce a Vehicle Inspection Scheme reminiscent of other states, where a privately sold car cannot be registered to drive unless it has a roadworthy certificate.

As more and more desperate South Australians are pushed into the private car sale market, it’s baffling these safeguards don’t already exist.