UAE: Expat sells company car at the end of job contract, told to pay Dh80,000

The Abu Dhabi Court of First Instance ordered an expat to pay Dh80,000 to his former employer for selling a company car without approval at the end of his work contract.

Official court documents stated that the company had registered the car in the employee's name and handed it over to him to perform company duties.

The man was to hand over the car to the management after the end of his contract. But instead, he just sold out the car without the company's knowledge and consent.

After receiving information that the employer sold out the car without the management's approval, the employer filed a lawsuit demanding Dh110,000 in compensation for the vehicle.

A report by an engineering expert specialised in cars, who was assigned by Court, showed that the relationship between the two litigants was a working relationship until February 2020 when the defendant's work contract ended.

The report said the vehicle in question was bought by the plaintiff from a car dealer using a cheque and then registered it in the employee's names. The employee used the car to execute the employer's duties, but he didn't own the vehicle.

The defendant did not provide any evidence that he had paid the car's value to the plaintiff or otherwise.

The report also said that the car's market value by the time the employee sold was Dh80,000.

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After hearing from all parties, the Court issued a ruling ordering the defendant to pay the car's present value to the plaintiff in compensation and a 4 per cent interest from the date of the judgement until he completes the payment.

The man will also pay for the employer's legal expenses.

ismail@khaleejtimes.com

• Abu Dhabi