The 2025 regulations repeal the 2010 regulations and introduce several new provisions. The new regulations come into effect on September 1, 2025 with a six (6) month transition period related to the use of the prescribed forms.
These changes are in addition to the increased penalties for offences under the Act, in effect since 1 July 2025.
Key Changes:
- New Vehicle Categories: The 2025 regulations introduce new definitions for “prescribed electric vehicle” and “prescribed hybrid vehicle” for the purposes of sections 3(2) and 23 of the Act. These vehicles are defined by their use of electricity as a fuel source for propulsion, with hybrid vehicles also being partly powered by an internal combustion engine or hydrogen. The 2010 regulations do not contain these definitions.
- Duty to Repair for Electric and Hybrid Vehicles: The 2025 regulations incorporate a change in the Act that expands the dealer’s duty to repair to include the main propulsion batteries in electric and hybrid vehicles. A new section in Schedule 3 that addresses defects in “Non-propulsion batteries in prescribed electric vehicles and prescribed hybrid vehicles”, outlines that dealers are not under a duty to repair these specific batteries.
- Fax communication: Section 18B of the Act will be amended to remove the option of fax communication for purchasers providing written notice to a dealer of their intention to rescind a sale contract during the cooling-off period. Section 51 will also be amended to remove the option of fax communication for service of documents under the Act.
- Amendment of section 17—Form of contract: An addition after subsection 1 will allow dealers to add information in the contract for the sale of a second-hand vehicle as the dealer thinks fit. The information required to be included by this section of the act in the prescribed forms must be retained.
- Waiver of rights: An amendment to the old Regulation 23 removes the ability for the purchaser to waive their right to the duty to repair (other than relating to a defect that is present in the vehicle at the time of sale specified in a correctly executed Form 17).
- Waiver of Cooling-Off Rights: A purchaser is still able to waive their rights to a cooling-off period. The form of the waiver is now in Schedule 5, “Waiver of cooling-off rights”. There is a minor change to the waiver that possibly will require templates to be updated.
- Updates to Forms and Schedules: There have been some re-numbering and changes to the forms and schedules. The 2025 regulations refer to forms in Schedule 1, while the 2010 regulations refer to them in Schedule 2. Below is a summary of changes to the prescribed forms and will require the use of new forms and/or update of templates with your DMS/Software providers:
- Form 1, 2, 11, 12 & 16: Now includes a field for VIN, removes the statement regarding the vehicles uses as a taxi-cab, rental car or hire car by the last owner. The section relating to the details of the previous owner have changed substantially now providing for the insertion of the statement in Forms 1 & 5 that “the name and address of the last owner of this vehicle are available from the dealer on request” The MTA successfully argued to keep a defence in place of not being able to comply if the dealer can prove they made reasonable enquiry to obtain these details. This also applies to hire car history.
- Form 3 & 9: Changes to the statement in Part 2 pertaining to the dealer’s duty to repair and the removal of the statement that a purchaser can waive their rights to repair.
- Form 4 & 10: Additional text added to the “Important Information” with respect to the purchaser’s rights under the Australian Consumer Law.
- Form 5 & 6: Addition of a section to complete the purchaser’s information. More detail added to the “Ownership and odometer declaration” made in relation to a trade-in. Other changes made to the cooling-off rights section.
- Form 7 & 8: These forms for the sale of a vehicle at auction have similar changes to those in forms 1 & 2.
- New Form 17 – Notice of defects: This allows the exclusion of specified defects from the Dealer’s duty of repair provided the purchaser acknowledge receipt of this information by signing the form. The defects excluded in the notice cannot include those reasonably expected to affect the ability of the vehicle to be driven safely on a road.
To reflect the above changes, the MTA SA/NT has updated several templated forms:
- New: Form 17 – Notice of Defects
- New: Waiver of Cooling-off Rights
- Updated: Form 5 – Sale of Second-hand Vehicle
- Updated: Form 6 – Sale of Second-hand Motorcycle
Updated template forms can be accessed HERE.
Transitional provisions (Schedule 6, Part2):
- The Waiver of Rights signed before the date of operation will continue to apply
- As noted, there is a 6-month prescribed period set to allow the use of forms set out in Schedule 2 of the Second-hand Vehicle Dealers Regulations 2010. The period ends 28th February 2026. This is to allow Dealers time to run down stocks of the old forms and transition software packages to the new forms. Either form is able to be used however the MTA recommends not to mix and match forms from the two sets of regulations.
If you have any questions about these updates, please reach out to the Workplace Relations department by emailing wr@mtasant.com.au or by phoning (08) 8291 2000.
