Private car purchase-unknown s cat and insafe

The_Rainmaker

Herzlos said:

This is why you need to run an HPI check, but it's too late for that.

When was it MOTd?
Is she genuinely a private seller? They dont normally buy damaged and repair them.

I buy and repair but never sell.

But the important point of Herzlos' post is are they a private seller?  I suspect not. 

Also a scratch on the door would not make the car a Cat S and would in all probability not make it a Cat N.

I think I can safely say the seller was out to deceive.

The question is how much cheaper was it than similar cars for sale at that time?

fred246

The car was described as in perfect condition. The seller obviously knew it wasn't. I have a barrister who lives near me. He is very entertaining to talk to. Lawyers can tell very quickly who is telling the truth. If you got the buyer and seller in a court you would know exactly that the seller knew that this was a dodgy car.

Mutton_Geoff

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/buying-or-repairing-a-car/problems-with-a-used-car/

452

fred246 said:

The car was described as in perfect condition. The seller obviously knew it wasn't. I have a barrister who lives near me. He is very entertaining to talk to. Lawyers can tell very quickly who is telling the truth. If you got the buyer and seller in a court you would know exactly that the seller knew that this was a dodgy car.

But could you prove it?

The_Rainmaker

452 said:

fred246 said:

The car was described as in perfect condition. The seller obviously knew it wasn't. I have a barrister who lives near me. He is very entertaining to talk to. Lawyers can tell very quickly who is telling the truth. If you got the buyer and seller in a court you would know exactly that the seller knew that this was a dodgy car.

But could you prove it?

Perhaps not but the threat of reporting them as trader and/or with a wee chat with HMRC usually gets folk to sit up and think.

Mercdriver

452 said:

fred246 said:

The car was described as in perfect condition. The seller obviously knew it wasn't. I have a barrister who lives near me. He is very entertaining to talk to. Lawyers can tell very quickly who is telling the truth. If you got the buyer and seller in a court you would know exactly that the seller knew that this was a dodgy car.

But could you prove it?

You won't find Fred (either of them) being prepared to put his money where his mouth is.

fred246

I have used the small claims court a lot. It's always a bit of a gamble. If the OP doesn't do anything they are stuck with an awful car you would have to spend money on to have fixed. I say fixed but I am not convinced many of these cars are ever truly fixed. You could get an engineer's report and then have to pay a court fee. A cheap gamble is just to pay the court fee and hope you are lucky.

DoaM

The cheapest gamble (costs no more than the price of a stamp) is to send a Letter Before Action ... this often yields a positive result without having to resort to actual court action. (The civil procedure rules recommend an LBA to be issued to try and resolve matters, as court should be an act of last resort).

fred246

Oh yes. Always send a letter before action. The problem with that is that people don't think it's serious. People think that you have to engage a solicitor whereas in reality you just go on money claim online, fill in a few details and pay the fee.

Scrapit

452 said:

fred246 said:

The car was described as in perfect condition. The seller obviously knew it wasn't. I have a barrister who lives near me. He is very entertaining to talk to. Lawyers can tell very quickly who is telling the truth. If you got the buyer and seller in a court you would know exactly that the seller knew that this was a dodgy car.

But could you prove it?

Car ad and a report saying it's cat s would sort that quite quickly.