Sold an unroadworthy vehicle. Faulty Airbags

deadleg22

So coming up to a month ago I purchased a Cat D car. The car was made Cat D in 2011 and had been repaired, run and had passed MOT's/service each year since, so I wasn't too worried about purchasing.

Upon getting home I took it for a diagnostic and found the airbag system had a fault. I got a quote of £1 - 1.5k to repair. The person had removed the airbag light to allow it to pass the MOTs. There was no mention of this in his ad.

Have I a case to take them to small claims? By deception I believe the car to be unroadworthy, I'm also infuriated the guy had the nerve to send me on my merry way with my kids in the car.

verityboo

How long had the previous owner had the car (they might not have realized?)

davidwood123

How do you know the previous owner knew about the fault?

deadleg22

verityboo wrote: »

How long had the previous owner had the car (they might not have realized?)

They had it for a month. So I assume they found out the problem and got rid asap.

NBLondon

You assume... It might have been the owner before last who fudged the light and the guy who sold it to you had a genuine reason to sell on quickly. Did you ask why they sold on? You must have done to know it was only a month - so what did they say?

Can you prove they knew there was a fault? Almost certainly not.

Are you talking about a small dealer? A private seller? A small dealer pretending to be a private seller? That may make a difference whether you can claim they should have known/checked?

Herzlos

deadleg22 wrote: »

The person had removed the airbag light to allow it to pass the MOTs.

I was under the impression the light had to come on and then go out, in order to pass the MOT.

deadleg22

NBLondon wrote: »

You assume... It might have been the owner before last who fudged the light and the guy who sold it to you had a genuine reason to sell on quickly. Did you ask why they sold on? You must have done to know it was only a month - so what did they say?

Can you prove they knew there was a fault? Almost certainly not.

Are you talking about a small dealer? A private seller? A small dealer pretending to be a private seller? That may make a difference whether you can claim they should have known/checked?

Privately. I can't prove they knew, and yes perhaps they didn't. There was also a problem with the fuel pump which stopped the car running after 30mins of driving. Luckily was able to nurse it home. This was also not mentioned and the owner surely knew about that. Could I have a case for the fuel pump? £400.

paddyandstumpy

It sounds like you're trying to claim for whatever you can, buyers remorse on the purchase of a lemon?

Did you ask why the previous seller sold it after a month? That would be a massive red flag to a lot of people.

Again, can you prove the seller knew about the fuel pump?
They could claim they only ever used the car for short, local stints, so were unaware...

AdrianC

davidwood123 wrote: »

How do you know the previous owner knew about the fault?

Surely any driver would notice the instant they turned the key on...? The light was removed. The light would not come on for self-test, like every airbag light does.

But this does NOT make the car unroadworthy...
As described, it would pass the MOT. The airbag is not obviously missing, and the (lack of) light does not indicate a fault.
https://www.mot-testing.service.gov.uk/documents/manuals/m4s05000401.htm

As a private purchase, you have no come-back unless you can prove they actively misled you. Since any claim that "they knew" is based on the exact same thing that you didn't pick up on before purchase, the missing self-test, that's not going to stand up.

davidwood123

AdrianC wrote: »

Surely any driver would notice the instant they turned the key on...? The light was removed. The light would not come on for self-test, like every airbag light does.

But this does NOT make the car unroadworthy...
As described, it would pass the MOT. The airbag is not obviously missing, and the (lack of) light does not indicate a fault.
https://www.mot-testing.service.gov.uk/documents/manuals/m4s05000401.htm

As a private purchase, you have no come-back unless you can prove they actively misled you. Since any claim that "they knew" is based on the exact same thing that you didn't pick up on before purchase, the missing self-test, that's not going to stand up.

The OP didn't

What is the car OP and what did you pay for it?

khcomp

Private sale, it's 'buyer beware'. Some MOT testers will (wrongly) say that if there's no visible airbag light, they'll pass it, as per the manual. However, the failure to come on as a self test SHOULD indicate a fault. Many drivers would genuinely not realise what lights should illuminate on the dashboard (many people proudly admit that they have never seen or read their car's handbook), but you'd expect dealers, garages and MOT testers to be more aware.
Personally, I can't see what could cost so much to replace or repair the airbag system: It's unusual for a car with deployed airbags to get a cat D rating, as main dealer replacement costs are prohibitively expensive. Most decent independent garages should have the ability to diagnose & replace individual components at much lower cost: Do you know exactly what you've been quoted for?