Sold car with different spec

abzilla

Hi there,

I bought a used car yesterday from a used car sales dealership and used a finance company to pay for it.
On the drive home, I realised it did not have heated seats or cruise control but it did say it had this on the advert (on autotrader) which I still have up on my laptop and have taken screenshots.

Ultimately this devalues the car and I wanted to know where I stand with this.
I've seen notions of people returning cars and getting full refunds when specs have not been correct. I would hate to do this as the car is fantastic but I think this may be the only option.

If this is the case, would the finance company get their money back and I would get my deposit back?

I had to take out a new insurance policy for this vehicle as well which included a deposit, could I claim this back from the dealer as I doubt the insurance company would give that back in this situation?

The dealership was quite far away could I get reimbursed for my travelling fees?

Since yesterday I've driven just over 100 miles and don't plan to drive it any further until this is resolved, would those 100 miles play any part in the discussions?

I'd just like to clarify all of this prior so I'm prepared with the dealer - I've already spoken to them this morning to make them aware but they've asked me to call back tomorrow when the chap that was dealing with me will be in the office.

Many thanks for any advice!

chunkytfg

Was it bought sight unseen or did you get to see it before you paid for it?

DoaM

Have you checked the user manual to confirm that those options really are missing?

System

You'll get nothing back from the insurance as you had to have insurance to drive it and you can transfer that insurance to another vehicle. Nothing for travelling fees either, you chose to buy from somewhere that far away.

If you had the opportunity to inspect it before paying for it you may find you're out of luck for a refund too and would be relying on the generosity of the seller. Buying stuff online you get a 14 day period to return it because you don't have the ability to physically inspect it before purchase but that right doesn't apply for in person sales because you do.

laidbackgjr

Also on Autotrader there is the following disclaimer

Please note

The data displayed above details the usual specification of the most recent model of this vehicle. It is not the exact data for the actual vehicle being offered for sale and data for older models may vary slightly. We recommend that you always check the details with the seller prior to purchase.

worried_jim

I once bought a Saab advertised with CC, it didn't have it. I was pressing all the buttons on the steering wheel on the way home. Did have a loud stereo though. At £500 I wasn't too bothered but it was a valuable lesson learnt not to believe everything in the advert and test and investigate everything myself in future.

abzilla

I did look at it yes however, it was late in the day and it was dark - appreciate I should have noticed this but my main concern was how the car drove and looked cosmetically - the rest I counted on the salesman's word (stupid I know).

The salesman even said, enjoy the heated seats on your drive home as he waved me off when I left.

I've looked up where these features should be on the car and had two other people look at it for me as well and nowhere to be seen!

abzilla

Fair point about auto trader's disclaimer however, this was in the description that the dealership would have had to type up themselves.

Also in relation to the insurance, I guess that's a fair point as well and will cross this off my "possible list" :wall:

Is there anyway they could at least credit me back the value of these features?

I've read up cases from the ombudsman where it's either a full refund and return the car back or a refund for the value of the features but would much rather avoid the long process.

AdrianC

It's a used car. How old? What value?

What demonstrable effect on the value do these features have? Not how much were they new, but how much would they affect the value now?

abzilla

It's a 7 year old suv - £15k, I've had one before and when it comes to selling them on, these two features are desirable and I would not have bought the car had I realised they were not included.

Not how much were they new, but how much would they affect the value now?

This is something I would like to find out but don't know how I'd go about it. I've checked to have them added on as extras on a brand new car, it would be around 500-600

DoaM

So on a 7-y-o model the value is probably £100 at best.