were does my brother stand re bike deposit

jonnyboy82

hi all..well right basically my brother has a few depression and mental illness problems and basically this is were this starts.
he recently got £2000.00 inheritance from our nanna who passed away.

he went to a local motorbike dealership and placed a £1800 deposit on a motorbike without me knowing and has basically just called me to tell me about this and was in tears knowing he has done the wrong thing and doesnt know why he did it.

so i called the dealer who knew exactly who i was talking about and wasnt helpful at all and insisted a sale is a sale,i did say sorry but he has mental health issues and once again apologised.

he really wasnt much help i said the reciept does not state all reciepts are non refundable and what is the policy on this,he said i want to speak to the customer i refused and said we will be both coming down to see you.

i even said i appreciate you might have incured costs and we are willing to pay these and for your time,maybe a couple of hundred pound??..so basically were do we stand legally etc,he paid a 1800 pound deposit with the rest on collection and has not taken delivery of it.

any help is gratefully recieved thanks guys:o

bryanb

MrCEO wrote: »

A deposit is never non refundable

So what is the point of a deposit please?

jonnyboy82

thanks for your reply.

yes i totally understand he has inconvinienced the dealer,i accept this and if it was my self being the dealer i would be angry and want compensatin for my losses.

however the attitude of him was bad and was implying he doesnt have a leg to stand on re getting his deposit back.

should i get legal advice and can the dealer by law keep the deposit thanks again...

bryanb

MrCEO wrote: »

A deposit is there to secure a sale/order. Deposits can be retained if an actual loss occurs as a breach of contract. If the OP hadnt left a deposit even if they did breach the contract and cause losses the seller would likely never recover these; in this case they can.

CAB guidance on the subject appears to contradict you. It states that a deposit on a motor vehicle can be refunded if the dealer has said the deposit is refundable. Where can we find info to support your opinion?

jonnyboy82

the thing is the dealer hasnt said anything about deposit being refundable or non refundable,it says nothing on the reciept or anywere.

so a guy has got 1800 pounds and there is no written contract only a reciept for the deposit paid and whats owing on collection etc

somethingcorporate

MrCEO wrote: »

No and No. There is no point in wasting money for straight forward legal situations like this. As detailed above the dealer has no leg to stand on at the moment. Go ahead and cancel immediately (as in now) to minimise losses and ensure you have proof of this. I would do so by e-mail now; hand deliver a letter (and ask for proof of receipt) and send a letter by registered delivery. This way they cant hold you liable for anymore than they should by deliberately slowing the cancellation and let production/purchase of stock begin etc.

This is good advice but just for absolute clarity it is your [OPs] brother that needs to sign / send all documentation. You (OP) as a 3rd party have no rights whatsoever within the contract.

Takoda

What bike was it?

Which dealer?

Equaliser123

Nearly right MrCEO. The forfeiture of the deposit is required to be a "genuine pre-estimate of the loss likely to be suffered by not proceeding with the contract". The test is at the time of the contract to determine whether the forfeiture would be reasonable rather than looking at what losses have been incurred.

And if it is not a genuine pre-estimate, then the entire deposit is required to be refunded, not just part.

bryanb

MrCEO wrote: »

the CAB guidance you refer to relates to where it specifically states its refundable and points out the obvious thing that a refundable deposit is refundable. Shock.

I'm not disagreeing with you, just pointing out what the CAB advice says in adviceguide.org.uk Under the heading Deposits. I Quote verbatim.
"If you put a deposit on a vehicle and later decide not to buy it, you will not be able to get the money back unless the seller agreed that the deposit was returnable if you changed your mind, for example................"
A little different to your wording above.
I don't know how to post links, sorry.

Equaliser123

bryanb wrote: »

I'm not disagreeing with you, just pointing out what the CAB advice says in adviceguide.org.uk Under the heading Deposits. I Quote verbatim.
"If you put a deposit on a vehicle and later decide not to buy it, you will not be able to get the money back unless the seller agreed that the deposit was returnable if you changed your mind, for example................"
A little different to your wording above.
I don't know how to post links, sorry.

To be honest, it wouldn't be the first time that CAB / Consumer Direct / Trading Standards are wrong.

pinkshoes

Could you not just pay the rest and sell it on?