The Porto Court of Appeal has determined that João Cruz, creator of the “Mechanical on Wheels” channel, is prohibited from publishing declarations considered defamatory or insulting against Dekra SA, Auto Inspection Company.
This decision, made on February 6 and consulted and disclosed by Jornal de Notícias, reverses a previous sentence of the Court of Santa Maria da Feira, giving the company reason and imposing large fines on Youtuber and another individual involved in the case.
Both were sentenced to the payment of 1500 euros for each new publication on social networks with content considered harmful to Dekra’s reputation, plus 50 euros for each offensive comment or republication. According to the judges, the continuity of these accusations could cause irreparable damage to the company, leading to the loss of customers and damage to their image.
The case originated in a video published in January 2024, in which João Cruz and the owner of a vehicle failed at an inspection accused Dekra of corruption. The video, titled “A History of Corruption at the highest level !!!”, was eventually removed after the company’s complaint, but Youtuber promised to republish it and even suggested performing demonstrations in front of Dekra’s facilities.
Video removed by defamation
The company maintained that all inspections followed legal procedures and that the allegations made on social networks were unfounded and harmful to their business. Joao Cruz and the owner of the car argued that the failure of the vehicle was unfair, because a subsequent analysis of the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT) concluded that the installed shock absorbers were only parts of replacement and did not compromise safety. YouTuber also claimed that an inspector would have admitted to receive “direct orders” to fail the vehicle, information that was released on his channel.
Dekra decided to appeal to court, claiming that her reputation was being undermined unjustly. The Court of Appeal eventually gave him reason, preventing João Cruz from continuing to address the issue publicly and imposing sanctions in case of non -compliance.
