Misrepresentation

1.Mandy is talking to Lee, who buys and sells horses. Mandy is thinking about purchasing a three year old stallion called Challenge from Lee. Certain statements are made by Lee in the course of their conversation. Decide whether any of the statements amount to legally actionable misrepresentations, and if so what kind.

Lee says...

a."This horse has been certified healthy by a vet (true) and I have even polished the nails in his shoes! (false)"

b."This horse is as fast as a rocket."

c."This horse has won all its races."

(Actually Lee knows for certain the horse has only won one of the four races it has entered.)

d."This horse received advanced training at the Drumbrae Riding School in Scotland."

(Actually the horse was not trained at Drumbrae, but a mistake by his secretary has led him to believe that it was.)

e."This horse is of Spanish stock."

(Mandy nods, but does not believe Lee, because she is an expert on horse stock and knows that Challenge is of Arabian stock.)

f."This horse was owned by Jackie Chong, the famous actor."

(Lee heard a rumour about this but it is in fact false. However Mandy has not heard of Jackie Chong and she does not care whether he owned the animal.

g."Challenge will need his teeth checked soon"

(This is false. In fact Challenge had his teeth checked last month and they do not need further attention in the near future)

and Mandy asks...

h."Is Challenge a very calm animal?"

(Lee does not say anything but nods his head in agreement and gives a thumbs up sign to signify that the horse is calm. In fact, Challenge is the most nervous horse in the stables: his nickname is 'Psycho'.

i."So Challenge is a good jumper then?"

(Lee thinks about his response but before he answers their conversation is interrupted by his mobile phone ringing. Later, Mandy wrongly assumes that Challenge is a good jumper.)