Pilar de la Horadada Town Council has ordered the cessation of activity at the non-sedentary market, specialising in second-hand goods and known as the Mercadillo del Toro, for a period of six months. The closure will take effect from 1st November until 25th April 2027, inclusive, alongside a financial penalty of 3000euro.
The market occupies private land of around 14,100 square metres with 40 stalls offering all types of second-hand merchandise on Calle Empresarios, north of the Pilar de la Horadada urban centre and parallel to the N-332. It has been held every Sunday for a decade.
The decision comes following the accumulation of multiple sanctioning files opened as a result of Local Police inspections, which verified serious non-compliance with the regulatory ordinance, according to Pilar de la Horadada Town Council.
The market is promoted by the company Bazamaz Group, SL. According to the municipal dossier, the stalls and traders lack the appropriate conditions to carry out the activity in accordance with local and Valencian regional regulations. In addition to second-hand goods stalls – ranging from furniture to toys, collector items, flowers, and tools, among many others – it offers catering services and live performances. It brings together thousands of people every Sunday morning and attracts a large audience from the British community and Central European residents in the south of Vega Baja.
The current shortcomings do not constitute an isolated event, according to the press release from the Town Council announcing the measure, but rather a repeat practice by the organising company.
In February 2025, a first police inspection took place, resulting in a financial penalty and the closure of the market for one Sunday. In September of the same year, a second inspection by the Local Police led to a new fine and a forced closure for five consecutive Sundays.
Months later, in May 2026, a new police inspection again uncovered the same irregularities and manifest deficiencies on the private land.
Despite the fact that the shortcomings were acknowledged by the promoter and formally notified by the administration through the start of the sanctioning procedure, the firm did not apply the required corrective measures.
The Town Council, the landowner, and the promoter held various meetings to try to resolve these deficiencies and enable the activity to continue, but new inspections again confirmed that they remained.
Faced with this repetition of non-compliance during 2025 and 2026, the Town Council has firmly applied the ordinance, imposing the aforementioned 3000euro fine and the prohibition of activity, which will extend until the spring of 2027.
The deficiencies determining the closure involve the fact that the Local Police have been able to corroborate – as recorded in the files across repeated inspections carried out since 2022 – that a portion of the traders could not prove the origin of some products offered for sale because they lacked invoices and commercial traceability, and in some cases it was verified that the merchandise was stolen.
Other serious deficiencies cited by the Town Council have not been disclosed as they are under judicial investigation. Indeed, the market is also known for these types of incidents, such as farmers who have managed to recover tools by buying them back at the market without wishing to formalise a complaint with the Guardia Civil.
Furthermore, the site features an unlicensed second-hand and classic vehicle sales business that remained open despite repeated municipal files stating that it had to close.
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