Picture for illustrative purposes only. ARCHIVE

A car buyer in Abu Dhabi has won a legal case after discovering that a vehicle he purchased had hidden defects caused by prior water damage due to flooding. The Abu Dhabi Family, Civil and Administrative Cases Court ordered the seller to refund Dh24,500 after finding that the car had been flooded before it was sold. According to court records, the buyer said he purchased the vehicle after a visual inspection, only for it to break down the following day. A detailed check later revealed that the car had suffered extensive internal damage. The buyer told the court that “all its internal parts were suffering from rust” and that repair costs were estimated at Dh19,000. He said he would not have completed the purchase if the defects had been disclosed, adding that the seller failed to inform him of the car’s condition. After repeated attempts to resolve the issue directly with the seller failed, the buyer filed a lawsuit seeking to cancel the sale and recover his money. The court appointed a technical expert, whose report confirmed that the vehicle had been submerged in floodwater prior to the sale, causing corrosion that could not be detected through standard inspection. The report also noted that the car’s actual value was lower than the price stated in the contract. Based on these findings, the court ruled that the defects were hidden and required specialised expertise to detect. It added that the burden of proof shifted to the seller to show that the buyer was aware of the issue. As the seller failed to provide such proof, the court ruled in favour of the buyer, ordering the cancellation of the contract and a full refund. ICA/Expat Media
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