Help required....Re: Sale of goods act and used cars!!!!!

Hosty123

Good morning everyone, this is my very first post and I really hope somebody can assist me with a problem i'm having.

Sorry it's long winded.

Here goes....

In late October 2009, my wife and I purchased a used car from a large 'Trade Centre' in Wales. We part exed our current car and paid the balance in cash.


After purchasing the car, we had to take the car back to the dealer a few times to sort out a few minor problems, which they sorted at their expense.

All was relatively fine until the beginning of April this year. My family and i had drove from Somerset to visit family in Liverpool when the car in question 'died'.

Now, by 'died', I mean required a full new engine as my garage stated that at some point the car had been filled with petrol (car is a diesel) and the metal filings in the fuel tank had eventually been sucked through into the filter and injectors, causing the tip of the injector to heat up, snap off and ruin the engine.

So, in the space of 5 months of owning this car, I have had to replace the engine and injectors and pump and also clean out the fuel system.

This has cost me the princely sum of £3244.75 up to now. Not to mention the £500 spent on a months hire car use!!!

As you can imagine, i'm feeling slightly peeved at the moment!!!

I have never put petrol in my car in the whole time I have owned it and I am furious that I have had to pay for someone else's mistake before I owned it.

I have spoken to trading standards in relation to this matter as I believed that the trader in question should have some sort of responsibility in relation to this matter.

Trading Standards were very helpful and quoted from The Sale of Good's Act 1979:

When you buy goods from a trader, you enter into a legally binding contract governed by the Sale of Goods Act 1979, as amended by the Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994 and the Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002. The law gives buyer and seller rights and responsibilities and applies to the sale of used cars in the same way as to other goods. When you buy from a trader, you have the right to expect the car to be:

• of satisfactory quality;
• fit for its purpose, including any particular purpose made known, and
• as described.

The law defines goods as being of ‘satisfactory quality’ if they meet the standard that a reasonable person would regard as satisfactory – taking the description of the goods into account, the price (if relevant) and all other relevant circumstances. So, when you have bought a used car, you must consider its age, the price you paid, the description which was applied to it and anything else which is relevant when deciding whether it is of satisfactory quality. Your expectations should be different when you are buying a low mileage, two-year-old car than when you are buying a high mileage, ten-year-old one, for example. However, it must still be:

• fit to be used on the road;
• in a condition which reflects its age and price, and
• reasonably reliable.

When you buy as a consumer from a motor trader, your legal rights under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 cannot be taken away or reduced. An example of an attempt to do so is a notice such as ‘sold as seen’. Such phrases are meaningless and cannot alter your rights. If you see a sign of this type, report it to Consumer Direct on 08454 040506. A warranty or guarantee can only be given in addition to your legal rights, not instead of them. You can take legal action under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 for up to six years after the date of the contract, but it is unrealistic to consider legal action for defects on used cars – especially older vehicles – once you have had them in use for a reasonable length of time. Each case is different, so it is best to take advice before you decide what to do.

Also:

The onus is normally on you rather than the trader to prove a claim, i.e. that the car is defective in some way. However, the law now states that if you are claiming replacement, repair, full or partial refund within the first six months of ownership, the onus is on the trader to prove that the goods were acceptable when they were sold. This is called the ‘reversed burden of proof’.

With this in mind, I called the trader and eventually spoke to someone in authority who proceeded to try and shout me down, although I never once raised my voice. I made them aware of the problem, asked them what they were going to do about my problem and that I had taken advice from Trading Standards in relation to the matter. I made them aware that due to the problem occurring before 6 months had passed then the onus was on him to prove that the engine and fuel system was in acceptable condition when it was sold to me.

He immediately lost his temper and began shouting that 6 months and 4 days had already passed!!!
I had great delight in pointing out that 6 months and 4 days had indeed passed since the purchase of the car but it was a shade over 5 months when my car was sadly towed to the garage and had it's insides ripped out!!!

He then vowed to have someone check this out and he would get back to me!!

I am now looking to write him a letter to address the matter officially, but do not really know where to start.

Does anybody have any advice or template letters that I can use?

Sorry it's so long winded, I wanted to give all the details....

Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance,


Hosty123

Mankysteve

You need to a report off your current mechanic to show that damage was there before you got and not fair wear and tear. As you've destroyed the evidence now its been repaired.

I'am not sure where you stand on you have to minimise the losses for the trader and you haven't given him the opportunity to repair replace refund. I'm sure some one else will be along who know this a bit better than me.

Also don't ring them from now. Write by recorded delivery. Stick to the point and don't use any emotive words.

Hosty123

Thanks for that, the only reason they never got a chance to repair it or replace it themselves was that, I was only made aware that it was an underlying problem, i.e. not strictly my fault, on Wednesday when the engine was replaced. They found out the actual cause of the problem, reported back to me and I contacted the trader!

The car had been in the garage for 3 weeks whilst another engine had been sourced. I was unaware that the problem was as severe as it turned out to be.

I am definitely going to write a letter now, once I figure out what to say!!