URA slashes car auction prices to clear parking yard

Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) revisited the prices for motor vehicles, motorcycles and other items that are being sold in a public auction today. 

About 250 motor vehicles, 40 motorcycles and a consignment of assorted items are being disposed of in a grand auction at URA headquarters in Nakawa. 

Fiona Nyamurungi, the URA manager for warehousing and the supervisor for items on auction, said this was an extraordinary exercise to clear all vehicles in the parking yard. 

"We unearthed the tricks unscrupulous car dealers use to fail other clients through bidding highly but fail to pay for the cars at the end of the auction," said Nyamurungi. 

Vehicles set for public auction are those that stayed beyond the 270 days in customs bonded warehouses and those that were impounded for transporting contraband. 

Others were seized for having foreign registration number plates from neighbouring countries and the owners failed to prove ownership and how they entered the country.

Other foreign-registered cars stayed beyond the maximum period of three months. 

Nyamurungi said the 2005 East African Community Custom Management Act empowers them to seize cars with foreign registration number plates that are illegally in the country. 

What bidders for auctioned vehicles have to do?

Nyamurungi said it is always advisable to first inspect the vehicles set for public auction and write down the lot number for the particular vehicles you are interest in. 

On the auction day, one pays a non-refundable fee of sh10,000 for participation and when you emerge as the best bidder for a particular car, you deposit 25% of the car value and pay the rest within 48 hours. 

In addition, the successful bidder has to pay a registration fee, ranging from sh900,000 to sh1.7m depending on the engine capacity and tonnage of the vehicle. 

To ensure success, avoid bidding for popular cars such as Toyotas Rav4, Spacio, Premio, Noah or Wish.

Because of competition for such cars, the speculative bidders, especially car dealers, force their prices up above the real value.

Remember, that these cars have stayed in the open for so long that you will need to do some repairs. Some need a new coat of paint, others need new tyres, while others may need a major overhaul.