A Gold Coast businessman has been ripping off tourists in an "unscrupulous, unfair, fraudulent" and "well-rehearsed" scam, the Queensland Parliament has been told.

The LNP member for Clayfield, Tim Nicholls, told parliament in the early hours of Saturday he wanted to make it aware of the activities of Vitali Roesch, who operates Australian 4WD Hire, which is headquartered at Surfers Paradise.

Mr Nicholls said the scam involved the company unreasonably charging clients when the vehicles broke down, and threatening them with legal action if they did not pay up.

"[This was] affecting many Australians and foreign tourists as well as damaging Queensland's and Australia's reputation as a friendly, safe and honest destination for holidays," Mr Nicholls said.

He described Australian 4WD Hire as carrying out "a relentless, systemic and well-rehearsed fraud" on 4WD vehicle hirers.

Documents tabled by Mr Nicholls in State Parliament showed the company started legal proceedings in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on 10 occasions between 2016 and 2018 against clients, for claims ranging from $3,000 to $66,000.

Mr Roesch was declared bankrupt in February 2016 and is yet to be discharged. ( Facebook: Vitali Roesch )

The claims said damage to vehicles ranged from 4WDs being submerged in water, to customers putting contaminated fuel into the vehicles, and vehicles being damaged when bogged.

Defences filed by customers said they had not caused the damage, some damage had been pre-existing, expert mechanical evidence had proven the customer was not at fault, and the business had indicated in its quotes and on its website that the vehicles were comprehensively insured.

The company also wrote to customers threatening legal action if they published negative reviews of their experiences.

Mr Roesch made headlines over 2016 assault

Mr Roesch, who was believed to have moved to Australia in the 1990s, was declared bankrupt in February 2016, and was yet to be discharged.

Mr Nicholls told parliament Mr Roesch appeared to still be controlling the company despite handing over the directorship to his wife Maryna Kosukhina in 2015, and later transferred his sole shareholding to her in 2017.

Mr Roesch made headlines in March 2016 when he faced court on the Gold Coast, charged with the protracted assault of his wife, Ms Kosukhina.

The magistrate said Mr Roesch had "given her a fairly decent flogging by the time she decided to escape".

Roesch was sentenced to 18 months in jail but was immediately released on parole.

Mr Roesch deemed 'a risk to public safety' over gun licence

Documents tabled by Mr Nicholls also included media articles reporting that Mr Roesch was named during the 2010 trial of two Romanians caught stealing by using credit card skimmers, as the owner of a car the pair was driving.

Tim Nicholls is calling for Queensland's Attorney-General to take action. ( AAP: Dave Hunt - file photo )

They also included extracts from a 2013 QCAT hearing where Mr Roesch appealed a decision by Queensland Police to revoke his firearms licence and applied for a concealable weapons licence.

The presiding member rejected his application, saying Mr Roesch's prior assault charges and traffic offences deemed him "not a fit and proper person to hold a weapons licence" and "...demonstrates irresponsible and antisocial conduct indicating that he is a risk to public safety."

Mr Nicholls told Queensland Parliament there were numerous complaints to the Department of Fair Trading about Australian 4WD Hire not achieving outcomes for clients, and he wanted Queensland's Attorney-General to take action.

"Many customers feel intimidated by Mr Roesch's threatening and aggressive behaviour, but I will not let this rip off go on," Mr Nicholls said.

"I will be taking this matter up further with the federal authorities and I call on the Attorney to also investigate and take action," he said.

"In the meantime a warning — stay away from Australian 4WD hire and Vitali Roesch."

Vitali Roesch welcomes an investigation

Mr Roesch told the ABC he welcomed any investigation.

He said the company had been operating for nearly five years and had "served 9,000 happy customers".

"I would say 99 per cent of people is [sic] actually honourable. They don't have any problems," he said.

Mr Roesch said the matters going to court were "actually gross negligence".

"If it's mechanical breakdown, we don't even charge people for that but … we are talking here in these specific cases [of] gross misuse of vehicles and negligence," he said.

"That's why you end up in trouble."

He said he was surprised to hear the issue had been raised in State Parliament.

"The only way we're in a court, it's not because someone sues us, it's because we're suing someone," he said.