Woman rejected from real estate job because her car is “too old”

A woman says she was rejected from a real estate job after being told her car was “too old,” after being filtered out at the application stage.

The applicant, 18-year-old Alanah Thompson French, said she had been rejected from the hiring process due to the personal vehicle she drove, a 2014 Citroen C1, which had less than 40,000 miles on the clock at the time of the application.

Applicant told vehicle failed company requirement

Thompson French told the BBC the issue arose during the application process, where candidates were asked to confirm whether their car met the requirement that their personal vehicle was less than 10 years old.

Because she selected “no,” her application was refused, and Thompson French was informed of the reason.

Speaking about the rejection, she described it as “a bit of a kick in the teeth,” questioning how younger applicants are expected to afford newer cars while trying to enter the workforce.

Thompson French said her car had no mechanical issues preventing it from being usable for work.

Her car, which she bought for around £2,800 ($3,700), had fewer than 40,000 miles and no reported mechanical issues. The realtor behind the listing defended its policy, saying employees needed reliable vehicles for safety purposes.

“It’s extremely important that people who work for us use reliable vehicles for their own personal safety, particularly where they travel many miles each day and often work alone,” the realtor said in a statement.

In the UK, a car is considered to be roadworthy and meet the minimum standards of road safety if it passes an annual Ministry of Transport (MOT) test.