Man shocked after purchasing used car with odometer rolled back by 200,000 kilometers in Ontario

With higher prices for both new and used cars due to supply chain issues, you might want to try and save money by buying a vehicle privately.

However, if you do, you have to be careful you don't end up with one that has a rolled back odometer.

"I just wish it was over, it’s been kind of a nightmare," said Ryan Fowler-Palmer of Oshawa, Ont.

Fowler-Palmer was searching for a used car about year ago and found one for sale on the classified website Kijiji. It was a 2013 Subaru Imprezza with an odometer reading of 89,000 kilometers.

Earlier this year, when he was driving the car, the transmission failed.

“I was driving and pulled out of a parking lot and I could only go about 10 kilometers an hour and there was just no power,” Fowler-Palmer said.

He was pleasantly surprised at first to find out that Subaru had a special extended warranty on the transmission and since the car had less than 100,000 kilometers it would be repaired at no cost.

"They called me (a Subaru dealership) and said your car is here and we had it scanned and it's covered and we will replace the transmission for free," Fowler-Palmer said.

Fowler-Palmer picked up the car, but a week later, the dealership called and said when they tried to submit the warranty claim they found out the odometer had been rolled back and the car actually had more than 300,000 kilometers.

“According to Subaru it was rolled back about 200,000 kilometers and they said I was now responsible for paying the transmission repair bill which was $10,490,” said Fowler-Palmer.

According to the Ontario Motor Vehicle industry Council (OMVIC) odometer fraud is a growing problem and thieves are able to change the mileage on vehicles within minutes.

"With technology today there are now devices that can be used by those who are unscrupulous and dishonest that can make those odometers rollback," said John Carmichael, the CEO of OMVIC.

OMVIV recommends getting a Carfax car history report, a used vehicle information package (UVIP) from Service Ontario and to take a vehicle to a mechanic for an inspection before buying a vehicle.

OMVIC also said if a consumer buys a vehicle from a registered OMVIC Ontario car dealer, they are entitled to money from OMVIC’s compensation fund if there is a problem.

“The compensation fund is there to help a consumer if a deal goes bad and odometer fraud is a clear indication of that," said Carmichael.

After CTV News Toronto contacted the Subaru dealer about Fowler-Palmer’s situation, a spokesperson said they agreed to work with him and said, “We have dealt with this at length with the customer to their satisfaction.”

The person who sold Fowler-Palmer the vehicle with the rolled back odometer is now under investigation by OMVIC and has been convicted before of deceptive practices when selling vehicles.

When buying a car privately, one should ask for the maintenance records which will also show odometer readings and make sure the name on the ownership and the name of the person selling the vehicle match because if they don't you could be dealing with an illegal curbsider.