Returning a car - Section 75

cwhaley1

Hello all hoping for some help with a problem I have trying to return a vehicle I bought 18 days ago...

I purchased a used car from a trader on 21st October 2019. I have all receipts and paperwork for this transaction. The car has a comprehensive service history and is in visually good condition. II did everything in my reasonable power to inspect the vehicle before purchase and after negotiating a price, agreed to buy for the price of £1,750. This payment was made on my Barclaycard Creditcard. I taxed and insured the vehicle on site and drove it home the same day. Within a few days of purchasing the car, it started emitting large amounts of blue smoke when started. Concerned, I took the vehicle to a diesel specialist purely for investigative works. The specialist concluded that the vehicle has had its Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) disconnected (internally smashed up) and the car has been electronically remapped to ignore any warnings as a result – there was no way I could have been expected to discover this when viewing. My chosen garage has produced a report for me with photographs to explain the problem with the car, stating it is in an illegal state. This has cost me £220 for which I have an invoice. I was not made aware of this fault at purchase and its condition is totally different to its original description. It is illegal to remove a DPF and the car has been sold to me in a dangerous state. On 8th November I contacted the trader to return the vehicle, but they stated I have had the vehicle “too long” to return it and do not want to take it back. I feel having had the car only 18 days (as of 8th November) that is a reasonable amount of time in which to return the vehicle. I hope that under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act I have some protection.

I have started the claim process and I'm currently awaiting my claim form.

Does the trader have a leg to stand on in denying a return? Is it possible to attempt to claim for the £220 costs to be refunded?

penners324

Nothing to do with S75. Your claim will get rejected.
However, under the Consumer Rights act a car can be returned within 30 days for repair or a full refund to the dealer it was purchased from.

eskbanker

cwhaley1 wrote: »

On 8th November I contacted the trader to return the vehicle, but they stated I have had the vehicle “too long” to return it and do not want to take it back. I feel having had the car only 18 days (as of 8th November) that is a reasonable amount of time in which to return the vehicle. I hope that under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act I have some protection.

I have started the claim process and I'm currently awaiting my claim form.

Does the trader have a leg to stand on in denying a return? Is it possible to attempt to claim for the £220 costs to be refunded?

The trader doesn't have a leg to stand on in terms of timescale, because section 22 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 gives you a period of 30 days within which you're entitled to reject faulty goods so you're still within that window.

It probably won't do your case any harm to write a letter to the trader, using recorded delivery, advising them that the car is faulty and that you're looking to exercise your right to return it for a refund, just to ensure that there's a record of the date as a starting point for the dispute.

If you choose to pursue Barclaycard instead, under s75, then you can include the cost of the independent report in your claim.

cwhaley1

Thanks both. So just to be clear, can I go via Section 75 of the Credit Act or should I be doing something different? The claim is logged with Barclaycard but penners324 -- you're saying it won't be accepted?

The dealer has said specifically it "has been too long" for returning the car. What can I possibly do to get him to take it back? He'll just keep saying no and the clock is ticking on the 30 day timer.

eskbanker

cwhaley1 wrote: »

Thanks both. So just to be clear, can I go via Section 75 of the Credit Act or should I be doing something different? The claim is logged with Barclaycard but penners324 -- you're saying it won't be accepted?

Perhaps penners324 will return to explain their assertion about s75 not applying, but to me this seems like a textbook example of a scenario in which it can and should be invoked, i.e. when dealing with an uncooperative merchant.

cwhaley1 wrote: »

The dealer has said specifically it "has been too long" for returning the car. What can I possibly do to get him to take it back? He'll just keep saying no and the clock is ticking on the 30 day timer.

I'd specifically cite the provisions of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and emphasise that this gives you the right to reject within 30 days. Reiterating this in writing would clarify that you've asserted your rights within the specified timescale.

Read up on https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/consumer-rights-refunds-exchange/ and sites like Which? too, and maybe post on the consumer rights board.

However, in the real world, it's one thing to have the law on your side and another to be in a position to actually enforce it. Fortunately you have the option of holding the card company equally liable, and by doing so you then also have the ability to escalate via the financial ombudsman service too.

Ultimately there's Trading Standards or small claims court but it would surprise me if you weren't able to get Barclaycard to stump up....

born_again

Agree with above.
But you may find that Barclaycard want you to pursue it further via consumer regulations. Might have to complain if they do.
Even if you do resolve with retailer you could possibly have a claim on the charge to investigate the problem.

cwhaley1

Thanks all -- really appreciate the replies. I've not heard back from the seller at all, whose last words were that it's been too long and he won't take it back. The claim form will arrive by post (sigh...) today so I'll get that sent off.

I have been calm and clear with the seller from the start. Although I've not sent him a letter I have got phone records and also a text just confirming to him that I have raised the dispute with Barclaycard.

eDicky

Is there anything preventing you from writing the formal letter to the dealer that eskbanker has recommended twice, instead of just letting him off the hook by informing him of your proceeding with S75..?

Such a letter also demonstrates to Barclaycard that you have been diligent in persuing the dealer, especially if there's still no response from him.

cwhaley1

eDicky wrote: »

Is there anything preventing you from writing the formal letter to the dealer that eskbanker has recommended twice.

Certainly nothing preventing me sending a letter, however I presumed a phone call, a text and an e-mail (forgot the mention this) direct to him would be sufficient. Not only that, but the claim was logged last week and I did mention that I had made contact. I

eDicky wrote: »

instead of just letting him off the hook by informing him of your proceeding with S75..?

I have tried to sort a return directly with him, but it's a flat "no" every time for reasons stated.

eDicky wrote: »

Such a letter also demonstrates to Barclaycard that you have been diligent in persuing the dealer, especially if there's still no response from him.

I hope my current 3 methods of communication show to Barclaycard my clear intent to claim my money back. I have had a response as stated earlier -- it's just that the response is a "no" to the question of refund.

eskbanker

Just to be clear, the reason I was recommending writing a recorded-delivery letter was to formally establish that you're asserting your rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to reject the vehicle within 30 days of purchase, so that once this window has expired there can be no challenge that you did so.

It's unlikely to make any difference to the trader's response and probably won't affect your s75 claim with Barclaycard, but could come in useful if you ultimately need to pursue either via courts, ombudsmen, trading standards, etc.

It's not so much about demonstrating that you've made contact, but is all about the actual message conveyed - phone logs can show that you called the trader but obviously don't give any indication of exactly what was said, but if your text and/or email stated clearly enough that you're rejecting the vehicle then they might suffice, especially if there's evidence (such as a response) that the trader definitely received them....

cwhaley1

eskbanker wrote: »

Just to be clear, the reason I was recommending writing a recorded-delivery letter was to formally establish that you're asserting your rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to reject the vehicle within 30 days of purchase, so that once this window has expired there can be no challenge that you did so.

It's unlikely to make any difference to the trader's response and probably won't affect your s75 claim with Barclaycard, but could come in useful if you ultimately need to pursue either via courts, ombudsmen, trading standards, etc.

It's not so much about demonstrating that you've made contact, but is all about the actual message conveyed - phone logs can show that you called the trader but obviously don't give any indication of exactly what was said, but if your text and/or email stated clearly enough that you're rejecting the vehicle then they might suffice, especially if there's evidence (such as a response) that the trader definitely received them....

Absolutely -- a phone call shows only that I established a telephone call to him. My lengthy e-mail to him mentions all prior methods of contact, the engineer's report detailing the problem plus my clear knowledge that consumer law gives me 30 days in which to return an item.

In the e-mail I ask if he would re-consider his decision and we sort this maturely and professionally, but if he does not want to re-consider then I will be sending the claim form off as soon as it is received in the post -- expected to be today.

I'll take your advice and send a recorded letter. My next chance to do this is tomorrow.