Car sales firm denies two charges

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32783, 7 December 1971, Page 20

Car sales firm denies two charges

A Christchurch car sales fon was charged with false pretences and forgery in the Magistrate’s Court before Mr M. C. Astley, S.M., yesterday. Euan Anthony Anderson appeared on behalf of the defendant company, Tuam Motors, Ltd, as its chief shareholder. The company pleaded not guilty to the charge of obtaining a $2OO cheque from Credit Service Investments, Ltd, by means of false pretences, and not guilty to the charge of forging a hire-purchase agreement. , After the hearing of evidence from eight prosecution witnesses and two defence witnesses, both charges were adjourned until today. Senior-Sergeant F. G. Mulcare is prosecuting and Mr B. J. Drake is representing the defendant company. ‘. -Mbs Medly Eddlena Nehring, the complainant, said that she and a friend went to the car sales firm of 'Tuam Motors, Ltd, on April S to purchase a car. They agreed to buy the car, which she said had a full price

of $240 painted on the windscreen. She paid the car salesman $BO and a translator radio Worth *4O as deposit. When the car salesman was writing up the agreement he wrote *360 on the form, which she queried. He assured her that she need not worry because she was paying only *240. The man said thathe couldn't work the agreement oat but would “fix it up” the next day. She had known the car' salesman since Christmas and presumed that he would make aura that everything was correct, she said. When later she received the hire-purchase agreement card she noticed that it bad a figure of *306 as total repayment. She thought it "pretty high" but thought it Included insurance and finance Interest. On Juna 17 aha went to the Department of Industriea and Commerce “to have the thing straightened out” eaid Miss NeEring. The ■ car was re possessed in August, she said. The car sales clerk, Reginald George Htate. came to see her and wanted to give bar a cheque for the money ahe had paid for the car. A note said that he would refund the money without prejudice. Credit prupeMl Cross-examined br Mr Drake. Mias Nebring said that she did not read the hire-purchase agreement at all. She said tbat ahe saw the car salesman, Leslie John suck, write $2OO somewhere on the hire-purchase agreement. Michael William Denny, a car

salesman for Excelsior Car Sales, said that he bought the car in ? question on August 14 last year or |lBO and later traded it in at Tuam Motors. Ltd, the allowance being 1185. . Robert Jack, manager of Credit Service Investments, a finance company, said that the company issued a $2OO cheque to Tuam Motors, Ltd. The credit proposal was made to the head office In Wellington on April 7, he said. David James Irishman, an in* vestlgating officer with the Department of Industries and Commerce, said that as a result of a complaint from Miss Nehring he spoke to Mr Anderson and asked if he could examine the company's records. Mr Anderson said that as far as he was concerned the price of the car which Miss Nehring bought was $4OO and that she had paid two deposits of $BO and one of $4O to make the half deposit. He s*M that Mr Stack was no longer employed at the firm.

Full price Mr Leishman said that when he interviewed Mr Stack the tatter said Miss Nehring put down 180 and a transistor at >4O security. He thought she had brought another $BO to the firm on the Monday when he was not there. Mr Stack claimed that the full price of the car was >395 said Mr Leishman. Mr Stack told him that there was no price on the car as it had come in only the day before and he had not had time to put it on. Mr Leishman said that when he looked through the company’s records he could not find a receipt for the >BO which was alleged to have been paid by Miss Nehring on the Monday. Messrs Anderson and Hintz could give no explanation for this. They said they must have forgotten to record it, or words to that effect, said Mr Leishman. _ Detective Serveant J. G. Howell said that when interviewed Mr Hintz said that Miss Nehring paid the second >BO on the Monday and that he had not considered it necessary to give her a receipt because the $2OO figure on the hire purchase agreement served as a receipt. When asked why Miss Nehring had not received a copy of the agreement he said that it was available 1f

Asked why Mr Stack had considered it necessary to issue a receipt for the first depoUt money, Mr Hintz said that Mr Stack probably did not realise the agreement served as a ftceplt, said Detective Sergeant Howell. In evidence for the defence, Mr Stack, a car wrecker, said that he had written ">IW deposit* on the car. It was normal practice to have the figure end In a figure nine, he said.