Being ripped off

nuttyprot

Ok not sure what area I should post this in moto section or genral. I purchased a motorcycle on 01/07/15. Person who sold advertised the bike as a good runner with no repairs needed and sold at £250.

I had no insur/tax and had not passed my CBT at the time so took his word for it being unable to test it for myself. On delivery he showed it running. I was due to do my CBT on the 11th and the bike has been stored in my back
garden under a cover. I inspected the bike and when starting it via kick start I noticed none of the electrics worked so replaced the battery and fuse for new ones. The dashboard then started to work apart from indicator, oil and high beam lights.

I passed my CBT on the 11th and decided to try the bike on the evening after insur n taxing it. I discovered the speedomiter was not working and that the bike stalled every time I stopped at lights if I did not keep revving it and became very hard to restart. Now the bike no longer runs and I have done probably about 20miles on it tops since I got it.

When all the above issues got discovered I informed the seller he said the bike is in perfect order. Today the bike decided that it no longer wants to run and I honestly have had enough this is not what I paid for. So i messaged the seller saying I would like a refund and he said that the bike is fine and he is not giving me the refund.

Only option I see now is small claims. Total £250+£25 fees+£25 parts i got to repair the bike.

I know £300 may not seem like a lot of money but it has taken me over 6months to save this cash up (not easy when you have 5 children).

Is small claims my only options and does anyone have any advice. I have print screened all messags and the initial advert.


Should I consider doing anything else also what does this mean I found it on small claims form

(Quaote) You are required to give details of your claim in the box below. If you wish, you may also send detailed particulars direct to the defendant. If you need to do this, please tick here (End Quote)

arcon5

Is he a dealer or just a private individual selling a car? If the latter then it's pretty much tough luck for not checking over the bike when you got it. Unless you can prove he knew of an underlying fault rather than it just developed a fault after you got it

nuttyprot

Privet seller but I do have screenshots of him saying it needed no repairs

nidO

nuttyprot wrote: »

Privet seller but I do have screenshots of him saying it needed no repairs

The point is, his defence will be that it needed no repairs at the time you bought it and the fact that you accepted the bike to be in satisfactory condition and paid for it is evidence of that, and that any faults it developed after you bought it are nothing to do with him.

You can always try a LBA then follow it up with a MCOL claim, but you could have an uphill fight on your hands as you would appear to have no actual evidence that the bike was faulty when you bought it, just unlucky timing.

arcon5

Get it repaired and move on. You bought a banger privately and got unlucky

AdrianC

Exactly what kind of age bike did you get for £250...? Chinese off-brand, by any chance?
This cover... On grass, trapping moisture inside, with condensation getting into the electrics...?

Oh, and I _think _ you mean CBT rather than CRB... Big difference.

Poopy

Any neighbourhood bikers able to check over your machine? They'd accept payment in beer I'm sure.
At that price I'd expect a lot of fettling needed. Fresh fuel? Clean fuel filter, check, regap spark plug? All the usual really.

forgotmyname

You expected a £250 bike to need absolutely no repairs? More chance of winning the lottery im afraid.

Its not just the court fees to consider, you will need to get the bike inspected and list tha faults them prove the seller knew about the faults and lied about them. You could spend a lot more than the bike cost + the money to fix it.

wiltsguy_2

agree with the others, £250 and private sell, you will probably lose money trying to claim.

My advice is look at repairing the bike, a lot of the electrical issues will be caused by the damp. As you are a learner i presume the bike is a 50/125cc, normally really easy and cheap to fix-im currently doing up an Aprilia RS50 for my son-so simple to work on.

What bike is it? year, make, model etc?

tykesi

Since when do you need a Criminal Reference Bureau check to ride a bike?

MEM62

Sorry to hear about your problems.

Unfortunately, it looks like the seller have taken advantage of your lack of experience here. Anyone more familiar with motorcycles would have checked the bike over properly before agreeing the purchase.

I think you chances of success in court are limited. The first question the court will ask is 'what do you expect for £250?' At that price level you are looking at a wreck or restoration project. You certainly should not expect to get a roadworthy, reliable motorcycle.

Perhaps the threat of court would encourage the seller to refund but I would expect him to stand his ground.

What is the make model & year of the bike?