Shane Meldon loses bid to be reimbursed over broken down Holden Statesman
A Sunshine Coast truck driver has a “bad taste in his mouth” after claiming a car he bought broke down after just 25km and left him out of pocket nearly $8500.
Police & Courts
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A Sunshine Coast truck driver says he feels “let down by the system” after a civil court dispute over a secondhand car left him with nothing.
Shane Meldon sought to overturn a decision from the Office of Fair Trade to reimburse him $624.25, which paid for six months registration of a 2001 V8 Holden Statesman he bought from Noosa car dealer Robert McKean in November 2021.
QCAT documents state Mr Meldon only owned the car for three days before it broke down shortly after he drove it from the dealership. The car had allegedly only travelled 25km when it stopped.
The documents state Mr Meldon took the car for a test drive on November 20, but it was cut short due to low fuel.
The documents state Mr Meldon paid $8403.20 for the car on November 24, 2021, including the registration; but it was later revealed that the registration had not been transferred to Mr Meldon.
The car was taken to a mechanic shortly after it broke down, but Mr Meldon would never see it again after the mechanic claimed Mr McKean owed him money and stopped working on it.
Mr Meldon claimed in the QCAT documents that he kept following up with Mr McKean on the status of the vehicle, but in February Mr McKean revealed he was facing bankruptcy and would not be reimbursing Mr Meldon over the car.
Mr McKean officially went bankrupt on March 8, 2022.
In April 2022, the Office of Fair Trade told Mr Meldon the statutory warranty for the car would not be honoured after Mr McKean was allegedly told the engine issues were caused by “misuse or negligence”. The documents state there was no evidence to support this claim, which was apparently made months after the vehicle broke down.
Mr Meldon took the matter to QCAT in a bid to get all his money back, but in January 2024 Member Robert Olding ruled not to overturn the OFT’s decision.
Mr Meldon told the Sunshine Coast Daily he felt let down by the system.
He called the outcome “a real kick in the guts” and that it has left “a bad taste in (his) mouth”.
“I didn’t even really own the car,” he said.
He has decided not appeal the decision in a bid to get his money back, after feeling he had exhausted all options.
A Department of Justice and Attorney General spokeswoman said the OFT administers a statutory claim where consumers, in limited circumstances, can be reimbursed if they suffered a loss from certain licensees, including motor dealers.
“The OFT is currently waiting for the QCAT appeal period to expire, and if no appeal is lodged, OFT will provide Mr Meldon with his $624.65,” the spokesperson said.
A standard QCAT appeal period is 28 days.
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