RIYADH, 22 August — Commerce Ministry officials in Taif have confiscated nearly 500 used tires from an Afghani trader, who had apparently bought them in Riyadh’s Al-Gharabi district and was trying to resell them to clients in Taif and the surrounding areas.
The ministry banned the resale of used tires on the recommendation of a committee that studied traffic accidents, and now treats the activity as commercial fraud.
Another Saudi car dealer in Riyadh was recently fined SR50,000 for reselling used tires.
Ministry officials raided the shop in Taif after receiving a tip-off from police, who reported that expatriates were involved in reselling used tires at car repair centers.
The Afghani dealer himself admitted that he had bought the tires from car repair centers and then resold them to the same garages — after they had been retreaded.
Dr. Abdul Aali Al-Abdul Aali, director of the department for combating commercial fraud at the ministry, said his department would soon launch a campaign to seize used tires being sold as though they were new.
The ministry has also instructed the chambers of commerce and industry to prevent their import.
In a related development, the Jeddah Municipality has picked up more than 400 vehicles abandoned in various areas of the city.
The municipality has put stickers on 40,000 vehicles during the past two years that tell their owners either to move them or risk having them towed away.
