Franchised Vauxhall Dealer sold car which keeps breaking down

emistry

Hi All, I would appreciate any advice on this. I bought a car from a Franchised Vauxhall Dealer in NW London. The car has broken down 4 times since I bought in 2.5 months (2 of the breakdowns have been in the middle of the road). But I have found that the the dealer will not except the car has breached the "Fit for purpose" clause in the contract and that even if I paid for the deposit on my CC, Nationwide says it does not fall within Section 75.
So even if the car breaks down continuously for 12 months, as long as the garage repair the fault, i just have to accept the car and move on. This does not make sense, so does the consumer have no rights to reject the vehicle (admittedly 2nd hand, but bought through Northern Motors in Harrow, official Vauxhall Garage). I think this is a major flaw in the system if a Dealer (Official Vauxhall) is allowed to sell a car which continually breaks downs, as long as they promise to fix it. Any help would be appreciated .. Getting Desperate.

lincroft1710

What was the precise cause of each breakdown? Or is it the same component failing?

emistry

First (within 1 week) : gearbox
Second (within 1 month ) : EGR Valve
Third (7 Weeks) : Battery
Fourth (9 Weeks) : Alternator

& Big Thanks for replying

Hintza

How old is this car?

Of your 4 faults only 2 seem related which makes it a bit trickier. If they were all say electrical related you could argue that they had had four attempts to repair it (which would be more than enough) and failed, which would have put you in a much stronger position.

Hopefully it is now OK but I think you should be writing to them and suggesting that any more (major) faults and you will be taking legal action, unless they come up with a solution (eg an exchange).

frugal_mike

When you buy goods you have a reasonable amount of time to inspect them to ensure they conform to contract. There is no definition of what reasonable means, so it will likely depend on specific circumstances. If within the reasonable period the consumer finds the goods are not conforming to contract then the consumer is entitled to reject them for a full refund.

If the consumer instead decides to let the retailer repair the goods that does not mean they have accepted them, and the consumer does not lose the right to reject them after the repair. In your case it could certainly be argued that acceptance has not yet occurred because your car has not yet lasted a reasonable length of time without requiring a repair.

If your car gets another serious fault in the near future I would be pushing to reject it. Section 75 certainly does apply. In fact there isn't even a requirement that you give the dealer a chance to fix it before claiming against the credit card provider.

JJ_Egan

How old is the car and was it a Vauxhall Network Q vehicle .

kev25v6

Not really big faults though to reject a car for. Battery £100, egr clean £50, alternator £150, gearbox unsure of but then all second hand cars are likely to have some faults.

[Deleted User]

My then partner and I were totally conned with one car, and ever since get a car checked by a mechanic. Said mechanic was able to spot a car we were very interested in had been badly damaged in a crash (wing etc replaced), and had been clocked (done a lot more miles than we were told), was generally in bad condition in ways we hadn't come close to spotting ourselves. Probably saved us a lot of money. A mechanic can't tell you if a gear box will need repair four months down the line etc but he can tell you if the car engine is in good condition for its age and spot a few things that could need repairing in the shorter term. This can save you hundreds of pounds or a bad decision.

Not a lot of use to you now but I'd never buy a car without it being inspected by a reliable mechanic (not all of them are unfortunately).

emistry

Thanks for all the replies.

My CC company says Section 75 does not apply because the garage has repaired it each time as it falls under the Network Q warranty. But it seems such a con that a Franchised Dealer can sell a car which is so flawed and expect the customer just to bring it in for repair each time having paid the money for purchase. Remember each time I bring the car in, I have to make alternative arrangements for work. You're right that the 2009 car will have faults but thats why I went to a Franchised Dealer in the first place.

It seems like a major flaw in the consumer rights of a individual where they cannot reject a car even though is fell so far below my expectations. The CC company and the Dealer said that the clause of the contract "I believe that the vehicle is in roadworthy condition" is not breached by 4 major faults .. I don't get it. Its need someone cleverer than me to explain that one.

I'll never buy Vauxhall again and will attempt to learn all my lessons from this experience .... Fingers crossed Martyn sorts this loophole out in the future because its such a con.

Thanks Again .. Keep up the awesome work

bod1467

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LilElvis

bod1467 wrote: »

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