The Car Importers Association of Kenya (CIAK) said used vehicle importers are being discriminated against since formal dealers and other importers of new cars are allowed to register their vehicles at point-of-sale.
Their rivals, who are allowed to keep their imports at the bonded warehouses, are also not required to pay customs and excise duty before the vehicles are sold.
Used car dealers say the requirement has put them at a disadvantage if they take months or years to sell their vehicles in a market where buyers prefer the latest number plates.
Importers of used cars have lost a court bid to stop a requirement that their vehicles be assigned registration number plates at the point of clearance and not when selling them at their yards.
The High Court has dismissed their petition in which they sought to be allowed to register their vehicles outside clearance points like the port of Mombasa or the private Container Freight Stations (CFS).
The Car Importers Association of Kenya (CIAK) said used vehicle importers are being discriminated against since formal dealers and other importers of new cars are allowed to register their vehicles at point-of-sale.
Their rivals, who are allowed to keep their imports at the bonded warehouses, are also not required to pay customs and excise duty before the vehicles are sold.
Used car dealers say the requirement has put them at a disadvantage if they take months or years to sell their vehicles in a market where buyers prefer the latest number plates.
This, they say, forces them to offer discounts — which can amount to losing their entire margins of Sh50,000 to Sh200,000 per unit — on vehicles that may not be older but were imported earlier and do not bear the latest number plates.
The High Court dismissed CIAK's request for declarations that the Kenya Revenue Authority and National Transport and Safety Authority violated the Constitution by requiring its members to install number plates upon clearance of the vehicles.
Justice John Mativo noted that the categories of vehicles imported by CIAK members and new cars are different.
“The two categories are totally distinct, they are regulated by different provisions of the law and taxes payable are different, founded on enabling statutes and regulations,” said Justice Mativo.
