A couple who thought they were buying a nearly new caravan were in fact buying one which was 12 years old - but by the time they realised it was too late.
Martin and Senga Burke paid £37,500 for the Willerby Vogue static home in November 2018 after being told it was just 12 months old.
After transferring the money to Crown Park Sales, based in Arbroath, Scotland, they became suspicious when the business failed to hand over any official documentation.
When the couple investigated further, they found the caravan was not built in 2017, but in 2006.
Mrs Burke and her husband took Crown Park to Perth Sheriff Court to claim repayment of the £37,500 they were conned into paying for the caravan.
After hearing part of the evidence, Crown Park reached an out-of-court settlement to pay the couple off and bring the action to an end.
Mrs Burke told the court that company director Cresswell Welch, 56, had clearly claimed the caravan was a year old and represented a good deal.
"They told us it was a year old," she said.
"He told us it was in an excellent part of the caravan park with views to St Andrews.
"We specifically mentioned that we were pleased the purchase was going ahead and that the caravan was only a year old."
Welch tried to claim the van was already insured, but when Mrs Burke and her husband made further inquiries after the completed the sale they found out it was in fact 12 years old.
"He said we didn't need to bother, because he had it insured," Mrs Burke said.
"We weren't exactly sure what to expect, but we thought we should have been given more documents than we got."
The couple's writ against the company stated: "He represented to them that the caravan was only one year old.
"The pursuers agreed that the price was an attractive one, given that the caravan was only one year old, and agreed to purchase the caravan at the price of £37,500.
"They paid a deposit of £3,500 by credit card. Later the same day they made a bank transfer of £34,000. There was no documentation to prove the date of manufacture."
"Several attempts by the couple to get the van's full details for insurance purposes were blanked by Crown Park and they resorted to checking the serial number plate.
"They checked the identification plate on the caravan and made further inquiries which revealed that the caravan was not built in 2017, but in 2006.
"The defenders engaged in a prohibited practice. They engaged in an unfair commercial practice by undertaking a misleading action.
"They did so by providing false information which was untruthful which was likely to cause the average consumer to take a transactional decision he would not have taken otherwise.
"They provided false and untruthful information about the main characteristics of the product, namely its date of manufacture.
"The pursuers are entitled to 'unwind' the contract by rejecting the product. The defenders have a duty to give a refund of the price paid."
Crown Park, which had initially denied the claim before reaching a settlement, have been asked for comment.
