Christine
January 27th, 2006, 07:29 PM
SINGAPORE : Fancy buying a car for only a dollar? An expatriate living in Singapore may just get to do that after responding to an advertisement on the Yahoo! Singapore website.
But he may need some legal help first.
Buying a Subaru WRX for just S$1 sounds impossible in Singapore, where the cost of a car is among the highest in the world.
Earlier in January, a Yahoo! Singapore auction was selling the car for S$1 without a reserve price, and Jenns Hoffman closed that bid.
Lawyers say the Yahoo! auction site works like any other legally binding contract; according to contract law, the seller must now part with the car for S$1.
In the past, computer salesmen have put laptops and printers for sale on the Yahoo! auction site for prices below retail levels too, and to their dismay, they had to honour the contracts.
But when Mr Hoffman turned up at the car dealer's premises in Upper Thomson Road to claim the car, the salesman thought he was joking.
"It's impossible to buy a car at S$1," the salesman said.
"Then you don't put it up for sale for $1. If you put it up for sale, its mine," Mr Hoffman replied.
"We advertised, we never auction for this car," said the salesman.
Another salesman claimed no such ad was placed on the auction site.
"I'm not sure who is putting this ad on the Internet," the salesman said.
The advertised seller declined to comment when contacted by Channel NewsAsia.
But one thing is clear: whoever placed the ad now faces a lawsuit, as Mr Hoffman intends to sue.
Yahoo! told Channel NewsAsia sellers and bidders must adhere to Yahoo! Singapore Terms of Service and Auctions Guidelines on listing and bidding.
The guidelines state that one may not offer any item for sale that one do not have the rights to sell."
Adding that all transactions are between the buyer and seller, Yahoo! says it is not in a position to take sides in disputes between them.
As for this particular case, Yahoo! says a court order is needed before it can assist the relevant parties with the right information, for example, the identity of the seller.
Said Mr Hoffman, "I just got the impression that Singaporeans don't take the Internet very seriously because it has not happened yet that somebody bought a car for S$1 and then sued the seller for the car. It happened in my country; it happened in the US; it happened in the UK and it always came out in a way that the seller had to give the car."
But is there a way out for the seller?
Said lawyer Leonard Loo, "The seller has an option under the law to prove that he actually placed this item for auction under mistake of fact. In order to prove mistake of fact, he has to prove that he has taken steps to ascertain the correct value of the item before he placed it for auction. Perhaps the best thing for him to do is to negotiate with the buyer, offer him a better discount for the car."
A quick search on Yahoo! Singapore shows there are still hundreds of cars going for S$1. - CNA /ct
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/190376/1/.html
But he may need some legal help first.
Buying a Subaru WRX for just S$1 sounds impossible in Singapore, where the cost of a car is among the highest in the world.
Earlier in January, a Yahoo! Singapore auction was selling the car for S$1 without a reserve price, and Jenns Hoffman closed that bid.
Lawyers say the Yahoo! auction site works like any other legally binding contract; according to contract law, the seller must now part with the car for S$1.
In the past, computer salesmen have put laptops and printers for sale on the Yahoo! auction site for prices below retail levels too, and to their dismay, they had to honour the contracts.
But when Mr Hoffman turned up at the car dealer's premises in Upper Thomson Road to claim the car, the salesman thought he was joking.
"It's impossible to buy a car at S$1," the salesman said.
"Then you don't put it up for sale for $1. If you put it up for sale, its mine," Mr Hoffman replied.
"We advertised, we never auction for this car," said the salesman.
Another salesman claimed no such ad was placed on the auction site.
"I'm not sure who is putting this ad on the Internet," the salesman said.
The advertised seller declined to comment when contacted by Channel NewsAsia.
But one thing is clear: whoever placed the ad now faces a lawsuit, as Mr Hoffman intends to sue.
Yahoo! told Channel NewsAsia sellers and bidders must adhere to Yahoo! Singapore Terms of Service and Auctions Guidelines on listing and bidding.
The guidelines state that one may not offer any item for sale that one do not have the rights to sell."
Adding that all transactions are between the buyer and seller, Yahoo! says it is not in a position to take sides in disputes between them.
As for this particular case, Yahoo! says a court order is needed before it can assist the relevant parties with the right information, for example, the identity of the seller.
Said Mr Hoffman, "I just got the impression that Singaporeans don't take the Internet very seriously because it has not happened yet that somebody bought a car for S$1 and then sued the seller for the car. It happened in my country; it happened in the US; it happened in the UK and it always came out in a way that the seller had to give the car."
But is there a way out for the seller?
Said lawyer Leonard Loo, "The seller has an option under the law to prove that he actually placed this item for auction under mistake of fact. In order to prove mistake of fact, he has to prove that he has taken steps to ascertain the correct value of the item before he placed it for auction. Perhaps the best thing for him to do is to negotiate with the buyer, offer him a better discount for the car."
A quick search on Yahoo! Singapore shows there are still hundreds of cars going for S$1. - CNA /ct
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/190376/1/.html