Problem with 2nd hand car bought Saturday!

foxwales

You have no consumer recourse as this was a private purchase; and therefore bought as sold; unless you were wrongly decieved through false advertising or misrepresentation, there is nothing under consumer law which protects you on this purchase.

Also an independent garage is not necessarily a solid opinion on the diagnostic of the car, black smoke could be cause by a number of different issues, something simple as dirty oil requiring a simple oil change, to possible signs of engine failure.

As it's a Ford, either take it into a Ford service station or find an independent that specifically specialises in Fords, this will provide a more accurate fault diagnostic and potential cost evaluation.

You could pursue this through a civil court for recompense, but you would need evidence that the car was knowingly sold to you as faulty which is almost impossible to prove.

colino

I know times are hard but someone with a pitch hiding as a driveway dealer? Seems to be a bit strange to lose his reputation (if he has one) over a cheap Focus. Go back and ask politely for your money back. He can't now extricate himself from his own mess. He told you it was a trade-in, either that's a lie or it will be on his books. It's irrelevant if he paid a £1 for it or not, it's now part of his business and is obligated to repair, replace or refund. Either way he should be more concerned about HMRC than giving you your cash back.

shellonabeach

WOW a mixed bag of opinions

Consumer direct have told me I am covered under the SOGA as he is a trader. He made no secret of the fact he was a dealer, advert states trade and trade part of log book was given to the previous owner.

He never hid the fact he was a trader but didn't tell us which forecourt he owned either, however the phone number for the Focus and his garage are the same so I have the business details.

Going to have another go at calling him this lunchtime and politely asking to return it, if no joy then the rejection letter is ready to be posted special delivery.

Yes we paid cash (and got a reduction accordingly) so it would be interesting to see whether it went through the books should it go so far as having to get trading standards involved.

fivetide

Let us know how you get on.

BTW cash isn't as good as credit for a reduction most of the time. simply because the dealer can get a bit of commission from the finance firm for giving them the business! It's well cheeky!

5t.

Strider590

colino wrote: »

I know times are hard but someone with a pitch hiding as a driveway dealer?

It's not uncommon....

The owner of a Toyota dealership locally has a separate 2nd hand car dealership just down the road. It basically sells part-ex's from the main dealership.
Many 2nd hand car dealers will sell older harder to shift stock from a separate location (their own home), especially if their main business sells newer "prestige" motors.

My car was from such a dealer and it was an "honest motor", paint wasn't perfect, interior wasn't perfect, nothing had been "covered up", just as i'd expect of a 6 year old car.
Let's face it, it's not nice lifting the rear bench in an otherwise clean car, to find half eaten burgers, baby sick, sweet wrappers and dog hair. Better to see a car that's not been messed with.....

verityboo

shellonabeach wrote: »

Car was bought from a trader

foxwales wrote: »

You have no consumer recourse as this was a private purchase

If it was a trader then the above is rubbish and you do have rights but as others have said, the age and mileage of the car have to be taken into account.

I would go with the advice of dumping it on the driveway and pressing for a full refund

colino

Strider, the two-pitch system is one practised throughout the trade (if you have the pockets for it) otherwise you use the auction to filter stock.
What is strange is someone so far down the barrel that they have the overheads of a pitch but take the chances (home address to all and sundry, obvious duplicitous trading to HMRC et al) of acting as a driveway dealer. Hopefully the OP will get their cash back before the seller cries bankrupt.

fred7777

shellonabeach wrote: »

Took it to a small independent garage today who have said that it is burning oil, various small clips etc weren't done up like the radiator hose clips and his opinion was that the engine was on its way out and we should return it to the dealer from where we bought it.

I'm not quite sure where to go from here!

Take it back to the dealer and tell him you are rejecting the car.

There is some good advice on the Which website here:
http://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/sale-of-goods/your-rights-buying-second-hand-cars/second-hand-cars-your-rights/

Fortunately you bought it from a dealer so you have more rights than a private sale. If it gets to the small claims court the fact the seller is a trader will mean he will almost certainly be viewed as a trader rather than a private seller no matter what is on the receipt.

Please don't sell it on and give someone else the problem or leave your self open to some aggrieved buyer chasing you.

Finally please never again buy a car that the seller says needs a service. If there was no problem the seller would have serviced it already in order to get a better price.

s_b

i wonder if shell on the beach actually listens to our whispers?
i see shell on a beach also whooped the traders whatsit down in price ,not a good idea because it implies youve inspected approved and are reducing the price for these ailments
ie in this case buying a torry canyon

food for thought you private punters who think you can beat the system for the sake of of the price of a bag of spuds spuds

shellonabeach

s_b wrote: »

i wonder if shell on the beach actually listens to our whispers?
i see shell on a beach also whooped the traders whatsit down in price ,not a good idea because it implies youve inspected approved and are reducing the price for these ailments
ie in this case buying a torry canyon

food for thought you private punters who think you can beat the system for the sake of of the price of a bag of spuds spuds

I can assure you shellonabeach is indeed reading every post and listening to every bit of advice given. I always ask for a reduction when buying cars, usually 10%. The reduction in price was just a cheeky ask which I didn't think would be accepted.

For information I bought myself a 2006 Golf 2 years ago from a private seller at a very good price (plus £500 reduction I negotiated) mainly because it had higher than average miles and this has been a very good car, as was the car before it which I also bought privately and kept for 9 years. This Focus is the first car I have ever bought from a trader!

Car buying is a stressful business and when there is only a small amount of money to replace a car which was stolen we have struggled to find anything decent. Of course the car which was stolen wasn't worth anything on paper but was a decent reliable car which never gave us any trouble.

Thank you to all of those who have offered advice and I will update this post to let people know how I get on