Paid deposit for car & Garage sold it to someone else

Cesc1

I bought a seconhand car from a dealer this morning, paid my deposit (£1,000) & received the signed order form. Got home & garage call me to say sorry but they had sold the same car to someone else last night.

Garage is very apologetic but that's the postion & they will return my deposit.

My issue is I want the car - is there anything I can do?

italiastar

Cesc1 wrote: »

I bought a seconhand car from a dealer this morning, paid my deposit (£1,000) & received the signed order form. Got home & garage call me to say sorry but they had sold the same car to someone else last night.

Garage is very apologetic but that's the postion & they will return my deposit.

My issue is I want the car - is there anything I can do?

Mmmm I went to a dealer once who took me out on a test drive on a car which they had sold that morning. They first said that they couldn't sell it to me as it was sold - I was actually surprised they let me test drive, but it was the only one of the type I was looking for. At the end of the test drive they said that if I was interested I could buy it and they'd tell the original purchaser that they'd made a mistake. Can't say this happened to you, but I don't trust car dealers. As for what you can do - probably not a lot. Save yourself the stress and take the money back and admit that you are back where you were this morning. Was it a main dealer ?

Cesc1

It wasn't a main dealer but it is a large company and reputable. At the end of the day I just want the car and don't want to let them off the hook.

McKneff

Nothing you can do Im afraid, exept write to the MD expressing your displeasure.
As an aside, what did you expect you could do. They cant really take the car back off the purchaser,

Just take your money back and buy elsewhere, and tell all your friends, that'll larn 'em.

davemorton

Would be a different matter if you had decided to not buy the car, totally one sided!!

italiastar

Cesc1 wrote: »

It wasn't a main dealer but it is a large company and reputable. At the end of the day I just want the car and don't want to let them off the hook.

Unfortunately, based on my experience, reputable and car dealer (main, large or not) do not go hand in hand. The one who tried it with me sounds like one similar to me - it reminds me of the story when a main dealer damaged my brake drums whilst servicing them - they swapped them with a used car with lower mileage they had for sale, adding the person who buys that wont know - I didn't use them again, and before anyone says I could have had my brakes drums renewed with new, but sometimes there is more to life.

Take your money, save the stress and don't use this retailer - you've lost nothing apart from you time.

pinkshoes

Ask/Tell them to source you an identical spec car for the same price?

How long between paying deposit and being told it was actually sold?

Cesc1

About an hour. Apparently the other sale was last night over dinner when the MD's friend "gave him a cheque". I paid by card so date and time stamped.

Same spec is going to be difficult as this is highest spec I have seen to date hence why I went for this one.

Car wont be ready until next Saturday as service light is on and they need to do do their bits............

hartcjhart

which part of 'move on' do you not get

Sambucus_Nigra

Cesc1 wrote: »

I bought a seconhand car from a dealer this morning, paid my deposit (£1,000) & received the signed order form. Got home & garage call me to say sorry but they had sold the same car to someone else last night.

Garage is very apologetic but that's the postion & they will return my deposit.

My issue is I want the car - is there anything I can do?

Well, you could go round the new owner's house and steal it?

Or just let it go.....they might look out a different car and give you a discount for the inconvenience but you aren't going to get that particular car are you?

tealady

The way I see it is this
Garage made a mistake by accepting your deposit on car that was already sold
They have apologised to you and will refund in full
Thats life, sometimes youre the lamp post, sometimes the dog.