Buying a second hand van with dodgy MOT

Herzlos

lozzaj83 wrote: »

Thanks - so either way, its going to end up costing us more money.

No more than just getting it fixed, which you'd need to do anyway to be safe/legal.

Will a failed DVSA check be enough to take the private seller to small claims court?

Definitely. Something like an AA/RAC report would too, but that'd cost you to get done.

lozzaj83

Herzlos wrote: »

No more than just getting it fixed, which you'd need to do anyway to be safe/legal.

Definitely. Something like an AA/RAC report would too, but that'd cost you to get done.

Great thanks - we always knew the perils of buying a second hand vehicle, and my husband is very savvy in terms of what to look for when driving etc, however there are things that keep coming up that wasn't described to us and now the worry that it isn't road legal.
We understood that it would need a small amount of work to keep my husband busy - this is now looking like it will cost the same value of the van again! There are things that you can't check when buying - but the engine was so full of oil and diesel that had sprayed out from a split injector - just another thing we would never had known without looking into the engine when buying!! you live and learn.
We will get it booked in the with the DVSA. thanks all.

forgotmyname

lozzaj83 wrote: »

Thanks - so either way, its going to end up costing us more money.
Will a failed DVSA check be enough to take the private seller to small claims court?

It maybe enough to take them to court but may not be enough for you to actually win.

They just need to put reasonable doubt on the why the part failed so soon. And that maybe easier than you think.

Why is it dodgy? whats failed? define failed? Did something failed completely and have massive play that can only happen over time or is it something that can fail instantly?

eg. I had a suspension spring snap once, i was parked and just moved the wheel slightly and i heard the twang.

Joe_Horner

A successful inverted appeal to DVSA will go a long way in court - the criteria that the inspector uses is whether the item / s concerned should have failed at the time of the test.

So, if the appeal is successful then they're issuing an expert opinion that the van was already unroadworthy at the time you bought it. The seller dragging some random tester or mechanic in to refute that (assuming they can find one willing) won't count for much against a DVSA report seeing as they're the authority on such matters.

They're also very unlikely to issue a prohibition unless the van's in a state that you really don't want to be driving it anyway - in which case you're better off knowing!

Curiously, if you appeal against an MOT pass and DVSA agree, once you've had the repairs done you don't need to have it tested again (assuming they don't put a prohibition on it) because the (dodgy) MOT is still legally valid until its expiry date!

jimjames

lozzaj83 wrote: »

It looks like it - I think we are going to get another MOT first before VOSA.

You've not said what the failures are. It could be entirely possible to pass an MOT with parts in one condition and then fail another if the parts are swapped or replaced - for example tyres. Dodgy - but not the fault of the MOT tester.

It's also possible to pass and then fail later - it's only condition on the day.

forgotmyname wrote: »

eg. I had a suspension spring snap once, i was parked and just moved the wheel slightly and i heard the twang.

Same here. Viewed a car, all was fine. Drove it away and spring broke on journey home but was fine at time of purchase

forgotmyname

Curious as to what it failed on, not mentioned the replacement of these parts because they fitted used parts?

Marktheshark

VOSA are not a consumer rights association.
If they agree the MOT should not have been issued.
They can issue a prohibition notice, as it is a commercial vehicle, it is immediate VOR notice .

You have until 4PM that day to remove the vehicle by trailer or they will place it in to storage and charge £225 + vat for removal and £35 a day + vat for storage.

They will not discuss or disclose the MOT investigation.


Not a very wise or money saving idea.

jimjames

Marktheshark wrote: »

VOSA are not a consumer rights association.
If they agree the MOT should not have been issued.
They can issue a prohibition notice, as it is a commercial vehicle, it is immediate VOR notice .

Curious to know how they do that assessment. Say for example a tyre was bald so is MOT failure, how do they know that the tyre was in that condition at time of MOT and that the tyre hasn't been replaced since?

Joe_Horner

Marktheshark wrote: »

VOSA are not a consumer rights association.
If they agree the MOT should not have been issued.
They can issue a prohibition notice, as it is a commercial vehicle, it is immediate VOR notice .

You have until 4PM that day to remove the vehicle by trailer or they will place it in to storage and charge £225 + vat for removal and £35 a day + vat for storage.

They will not discuss or disclose the MOT investigation.


Not a very wise or money saving idea.

Are you a dodgy MOt tester by any chance?

VOSA are exactly the place to go with this if you believe the pass has been issued wrongly. It doesn't cost anything (so far more money-saving than paying for an opinion elsewhere) and they will disclose the result of their test (it'd be a pretty odd situation if they didn't!) which is all you need as evidence for a claim. What they do (or not) about the tester is immaterial.

They're also not going to issue an immediate prohibition unless the vehicle really is so bad that driving it home would be immediately dangerous - in which case personally I'd like to know, wouldn't you?

In fact, the only people who could possibly have valid reason to discourage the reporting of possibly dodgy tests are the people who make money out of dodgy tests - hence my initial question :beer:

Nobbie1967

OP,

Might be an idea to approach the seller and tell them you are going to appeal the dodgy MOT. If they have a "close" relationship with the MOT tester, they may well sort the van out rather than drop them in it. Bear in mind the clock is ticking on the appeal so don't accept any delaying tactics.