THE
National Consumer Commission had fined the Ford Motor Company in South Africa!
This was after it found that the company has engaged in banned conducts by contributing the Ford Kuga 1.6 Eco Boost as some of them caught fire.
Ford South Africa was fined R35 million for selling problematic Kugas.
Acting head of the Commission, Thezi Mabuza, said the commission and Ford reached a settlement agreement for the 160 complainants.
According to the Mabuza the complainants will have three options.
She said the first option is a settlement of R50 000 which will be a full and final settlement.
"This is the refund, repair or replacement of the vehicle, which Ford has already paid.
However, if the complainant feels the damages incurred by the vehicle combusting is more they can enter an arbitration process.
The Commission says it will be up to the complainant to prove that the damages incurred were more than R50 000.
She said between 2016 and 2017 at least 56 Ford Kugas which are 1.6 Eco-Boost vehicles caught fire.
According to the commission they have received 160 complaints from consumers which is a disturbing number of complaints in a short time from one company.
She said the amount spent by Ford was considered when determining R35 million the fine.
"We conducted an investigation and found a failure in the cooling system of the particular model which was manufactured in Spain specifically for South Africa and that was the cause of the fire.”
She said Ford engaged in prohibited conduct by distributing vehicles that failed.
"The investigation did reveal that there was no negligence," she said.