Consumer Rights Act and VW

BiscuitLion

Evening all, first time poster looking for a bit of advice (as everybody seems to be!). I bought a Volkswagen Golf a few months ago, but sadly it is blighted by a flaw with the engine (1.5 EVO) that causes the car to judder, bounce and the power to fluctuate. Having checked with the dealer before ordering that this wasn't an issue, I took receipt of the vehicle and within a few days it became apparent the vehicle was indeed affected. I issued the dealer and VW with a letter of rejection within 2 weeks, and as required, gave them an opportunity to carry out software updates which have proven ineffective. After several months, I have now been issued an offer to buy the car back at a price equivalent to 75% of the amount that I paid, and I must pay the gap in equity to clear the finance.


A bit of background, VW have acknowledged that there is an issue with this engine across the entire VW range (Seat, VW, Skoda, Audi), and the dealership haven't quibbled about the fact the vehicle has a fault.



Is anybody able to confirm whether having issued them with the rejection within 14 days as required by the Consumer Rights Act, and having given them the option to repair the vehicle, I am entitled to a full refund for the vehicle given that I was sold a car with a recognised fault that they can't fix? It seems a bit unfair that I've been sold a knowingly faulty vehicle and I have to pay yet more to have it returned!

Fosterdog

The problem you are going to have is that you didn't actually reject the vehicle, you offered them the chance to repair it, you can't say I'm rejecting it but giving you the chance to repair it first. It should be either outright rejection or one chance to repair and then rejection. Once that repair had failed you should have then immediately rejected it, stopped using it and returned it to them (or made it available for them to collect).

As it has gone on for several months I assume you still have the car? And that you have still been using it? In which case you have been devaluing the car.

How long exactly have you had the car? You say you bought it a few months ago but also say that you've been offered the buyout several months later.
At what point after the repair attempt did you inform them it was still faulty and you were rejecting it?
Cars are treated differently to most goods in that the refund can be reduced even in the first six months to allow for the usage you've had of it. How many miles have you done in it?

BiscuitLion

Thank you for the reply FosterDog.



The vehicle was bought 3 and half months ago, the rejection was sent to them around 15 days later when they told me there was no known resolution to the fault, but they said one was due out in mid-September that may have fixed it so I waited for that to be attempted as their one try.



After this failed, their proposed solution was to sell me a new car when I met them in the first week of October to discuss the rejection, but by this point my other half flat out refused to accept another VW as she doesn't feel the car is safe to drive as a family car. VW's Executive Office issued the dealer with details on how they could supported on October 11th, but it took them until yesterday to inform me of their offer, so a delay of almost 6 weeks which they've said is because the sales manager has been on holiday and nobody else could assist.



To date it has competed 4,600 juddery and bouncy miles which have worsened as the cold weather has set in. This has been while I've been saving for a replacement which I'm hoping to pick up next week.

DoaM

They've had their one chance to repair ... you can now exercise your Final Right To Reject. Normally you'd get a full refund if it's within 6 months from purchase ... there's an exception for vehicles wherein they're allowed to reduce the refund to account for loss of value by your ownership - 25% deduction is taking the p***.

How did you pay? Some form of finance? If yes, and the seller won't budge, raise a Section 75 claim with the finance provider for the FULL amount.

Manxman_in_exile

Just for my benefit and curiosity, should the OP have insisted on rejecting the car after two weeks, and not been persuaded by VW saying a "fix" was in the pipeline?

pulliptears

Fosterdog wrote: »

The problem you are going to have is that you didn't actually reject the vehicle, you offered them the chance to repair it

I was always under the impression that giving them the chance to fix was exactly the right thing to do before a final rejection? Would like some clarification on this point myself.

I rejected a car a few years ago and gave the dealer several chances to fix it before finally rejecting after 8 weeks. The dealer issued a full refund.

BiscuitLion

Thanks DoAM. I'll look into that. I called their Head Office today and they've said there's a big discrepancy between what they instructed them to offer and what they've actually offered, so I think they are chancing that I'll give up or pay up. It's on finance, with a chunk on a credit card to get some extra cover through that.

My biggest frustration is that having become aware of the issue with the engine more generally, I gave them the opportunity to tell me it was a problem, but I foolishly believed them when they said it wasn't. I still have the video message of the salesman saying "That's nothing we've come across" even though it later transpired that VW had made public that they have a fault that they can't fix several months earlier.
Manxman, in hindsight I think you're probably right, but I (perhaps wrongly) assumed that it would be deemed unreasonable not to wait a few weeks to give them that chance as the Consumer Rights Act says.