A motor vehicle repairer has been banned from holding a licence for three years, fined $3,000 and reprimanded by the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) after he admitted being involved in corrupt activities related to vehicle examinations.

Peter William Horn of Bibra Lake had breached the Motor Vehicle Repairers Act by engaging in conduct which renders him unfit to be a licensee both as an individual motor vehicle repairer and as a business operator.

The Corruption and Crime Commission and Department of Transport conducted a joint investigation which, in a report released in January 2017, found several men associated with a Spearwood motor vehicle repair business had passed vehicles as suitable to be licensed without conducting inspections and, in some cases, in exchange for bribes.

Mr Horn admitted to arranging for ten vehicles to be passed without safety inspections between May 2014 and August 2014.

In ordering the penalty on 19 December 2018, the SAT took into consideration that Mr Horn had no previous disciplinary history, did not profit from his involvement in the corruption and, although he knowingly participated in it, he did not initiate it.

Commissioner for Consumer Protection David Hillyard said the actions of Mr Horn undermined the vehicle inspection system and jeopardised road safety.

“Allowing potentially unroadworthy vehicles onto the road without a proper inspection was serious misconduct on Mr Horn’s part and his corrupt actions put the lives of road users in WA at risk,” Mr Hillyard said.

Consumers can check whether a motor vehicle dealer or repairer is licensed by doing a search on the Consumer Protection website: www.consumerprotection.wa.gov.au. Unlicensed dealers or repairers can be reported by emailing consumer@dmirs.wa.gov.au or by calling 1300 30 40 54.

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Media Contact: Alan Hynd, (08) 6552 9248 / 0429 078 791 / alan.hynd@dmirs.wa.gov.au