Sold Car not fit for road?

just1_2

Hi All,

Sorry my first post is related to a car dealer problem.

I bought a second hand car on Friday 30/12/11.

The advert clearly said
'Fully prepared and ready to drive away'

Now to be fair the MOT and Tax was short March 2012.

I was given a 30 day warranty so booked the car in for a full safety inspection/ check by VW on Wednesday 04/01/12 as that was the earliest due to New Year.

I have driven the car around 100 miles, taking it home etc.

VW have stated it is illegal to be on the road due to 2 tyres being 1mm (on the inside) and highlighted a number of other problems (Turbo, 2x Shock absorbers,Front Brakes, CV Boot).

I tried speaking to the dealer but apparently boss is away till sometime next week.

Now forgetting the other problems I am very concerned that a dealer allowed me to even test drive an illegal car let alone buy it.

What are my options?

Thanks in advance

wealdroam

Did the dealer allow you to inspect the vehicle before you bought it?

Hintza

How old is this car? Is it a banger? Why did you not have it inspected before you bought it.

I'm just wondering why you would buy a car with less than 3 months MOT.

Optimist

Hopefully the VW dealership put all this in writing

I would suggest getting back onto this dealer telling them that you intend reporting them to trading standards on Monday unless they collect and reimburse you.

Remind them of something they should know, in that it is a criminal offence under the Road Traffic Act to sell a unroadworthy car for use on a public road. Obviously if they are a fly by night dealer this is hardly likely to bother them too much, but a reputable dealer will want to avoid this even if the boss is away.

arcon5

Optimist wrote: »

Hopefully the VW dealership put all this in writing

I would suggest getting back onto this dealer telling them that you intend reporting them to trading standards on Monday unless they collect and reimburse you.

Remind them of something they should know, in that it is a criminal offence under the Road Traffic Act to sell a unroadworthy car for use on a public road. Obviously if they are a fly by night dealer this is hardly likely to bother them too much, but a reputable dealer will want to avoid this even if the boss is away.

Not strictly correct.

You cann sell an unroadworthy car if the buyer is aware of this ie you have grounds to believe the buyer will recover the vehicle before using on roads.

(6)A person shall not be convicted of an offence under this section in respect of the supply or alteration of a motor vehicle or trailer if he proves—

(a)that it was supplied or altered, as the case may be, for export from Great Britain, or

(b)that he had reasonable cause to believe that the vehicle or trailer would not be used on a road in Great Britain, or would not be so used until it had been put into a condition in which it might lawfully be so used,

With regards to ops case, I would usually say it is down to the buyer to inspect the current condition before committing to the purchase - however the advert stating "ready to drive away" is the key point here (so worh screenshotting the advert or getting evidence of this) so the trader could be guilty of S.75 of the Road Traffic Act 1998.

The tyres are illegal, however the other points op makes mention off, do these make the car unroadworthy or simply in disrepair? If the latter, I don't think op has a case with these issues unless they perhaps fail prematurely or develop a fault. As op had the opportunity to inspect/have inspected the current condition of the vehicle before purchasing.

just1_2

Hintza wrote: »

How old is this car? Is it a banger? Why did you not have it inspected before you bought it.

I'm just wondering why you would buy a car with less than 3 months MOT.

I did inspect it but I am not a mechanic so would not have seen turbo,shocks,brakes,cv boot.
The tyres are worn on the inside so was difficult to see.

It is a 2007 Car that I paid £4500 for.

The MOT is for the middle of March with a Full VW service history and 1 previous owner.

just1_2

Optimist wrote: »

Hopefully the VW dealership put all this in writing

They did give me a full report which I have sent on to the dealer

arcon5

I've gotta be honest but i'm not sure i'd be parting with £4.5k of my hard earned money without having a professional inspect it. Companies like the AA offer these inspections.

Optimist

arcon5 wrote: »

Not strictly correct.

You cann sell an unroadworthy car if the buyer is aware of this ie you have grounds to believe the buyer will recover the vehicle before using on roads.



With regards to ops case, I would usually say it is down to the buyer to inspect the current condition before committing to the purchase - however the advert stating "ready to drive away" is the key point here (so worh screenshotting the advert or getting evidence of this) so the trader could be guilty of S.75 of the Road Traffic Act 1998.

The tyres are illegal, however the other points op makes mention off, do these make the car unroadworthy or simply in disrepair?

The dealer broke the law by allowing the OP to take a test drive in a unroadworthy car. He also allowed the OP to drive the car away..Doesn't seem "recovering" the car was ever on the agenda.

Optimist

just1 wrote: »

They did give me a full report which I have sent on to the dealer

I hope that was a copy.

just1_2

arcon5 wrote: »

With regards to ops case, I would usually say it is down to the buyer to inspect the current condition before committing to the purchase - however the advert stating "ready to drive away" is the key point here (so worh screenshotting the advert or getting evidence of this) so the trader could be guilty of S.75 of the Road Traffic Act 1998.

As a newbie I can't post links but it was also advertised on ebay.

Item number: 230709103570

If anyone would like to see the advert