Silvestro v Marshalls Sydney Pty Ltd T/As MERCEDES-BENZ PARRAMATTA

In the District Court of New South Wales, the plaintiff, Silvestro, brought proceedings against the defendant, Marshalls Sydney Pty Ltd trading as Mercedes-Benz Parramatta. The dispute concerned allegations of misleading and deceptive conduct and breach of warranty in relation to the sale of a motor vehicle.

The court was required to determine whether the defendant engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct in contravention of the *Trade Practices Act 1974* (Cth) (now the *Australian Consumer Law*) and whether a warranty implied by law had been breached. Specifically, the plaintiff alleged that representations made about the vehicle's condition and history were false, and that the vehicle was not of merchantable quality.

Judge Barnes found that the defendant had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct by representing the vehicle as having a full service history and being in excellent condition, when in fact it had a history of significant mechanical issues and had not been serviced by the defendant. The court applied the principles of consumer protection law, focusing on the ordinary meaning of the representations made and the reasonable expectations of a consumer. The court also found that the vehicle was not of merchantable quality, as it suffered from defects that would not have been apparent upon reasonable inspection and rendered it unfit for its ordinary purpose.

The court ordered that the defendant pay damages to the plaintiff in the sum of $25,000, representing the difference between the price paid for the vehicle and its actual value, along with an order for costs.