Mis sold Car from private seller

NRosie

As a first time driver, I brought a suzuki swift 2008 car from a private seller of auto trader in August 2020 the car had a 3 months warranty on the advertisment. Within the first month the belt snapped, a week later I was driving it and the wheel dislocated. I have been trying to fight this case for a year and a bit as it has caused me a great deal of discomfort, and effected my confidence in driving. I contacted the seller and his response was he doesn't care I should take whatever action I want. I was only given one service history receipt and shown it was taxed and passed MOT. Initially the man was kind and sold it on behalf of his daughter. In November after being told I could check the history online I did, and to my surprise all the work I did was adviced to be done and to top it off the mileage was pushed back.

I need help in what to do next. I followed the steps from citizens advice. 

user1977

What were the terms of the "warranty"?

giraffe69

Generally you have no comeback on a private sale unless the seller has directly lied about the condition of the car. Did you have the car inspected before you purchased it? Clocking the mileage is an offence if you have proof. Don't understand how a private seller can offer a warranty.

Grumpy_chap

NRosie said:

As a first time driver, I brought a suzuki swift 2008 car from a private seller of auto trader in August 2020 the car had a 3 months warranty on the advertisment. Within the first month the belt snapped, a week later I was driving it and the wheel dislocated. I have been trying to fight this case for a year and a bit as it has caused me a great deal of discomfort, and effected my confidence in driving. I contacted the seller and his response was he doesn't care I should take whatever action I want. I was only given one service history receipt and shown it was taxed and passed MOT. Initially the man was kind and sold it on behalf of his daughter. In November after being told I could check the history online I did, and to my surprise all the work I did was adviced to be done and to top it off the mileage was pushed back.

I need help in what to do next. I followed the steps from citizens advice. 

The status of the seller is unclear.

If this was a private seller, then you have very little comeback in any way.  They would have needed to have purposefully deceived, which the possibly incorrect mileage might have been (assuming the seller was aware, which is hard to prove).

How did a private seller offer a warranty?

If this was a trade seller posing as private, then you may have more grounds, but they'll be very hard to enforce.

I assume you paid cash or bank transfer.
How much did you pay for the car?
What mileage did you think it had?
What mileage do you now think it has?
Did you do HPI check or equivalent prior to purchase?

Can you confirm the date of purchase was August 2020 - so over a year ago?  As the passage of time passes, the ability to do anything gets progressively more difficult.

user1977

giraffe69 said:

Don't understand how a private seller can offer a warranty.

Anybody can offer a warranty. Whether it's any use depends on its terms and how easily you can enforce it (or even find the seller...).

JJ_Egan

How can a wheel dislocate ??

Sold August 2020   now over a year down the road .

Jenni_D

JJ_Egan said:

How can a wheel dislocate ??

Sold August 2020   now over a year down the road .

Wow! The wheel is still running down the road? 😁

TELLIT01

If a genuine private sale you have no comeback.  If you can prove they are actually a trader there may be action you can take but a year down the line it will be difficult to prove anything. 

What belt snapped?  What do you mean a wheel dislocated?  If you mean the wheel itself came loose, it's the driver's responsibility to ensure a vehicle is safe before driving it.

mattyprice4004

If you bought from a private seller, who was selling his daughter's car you have zero comeback. 
If you want a warranty, go to a dealer. Any problems after you take the keys and hand over the money are your issue.
You weren't mis-sold, you bought a car that has since broken. That's not the seller's problem, that is your problem - sorry.

MalMonroe

Hi, I'm also a single woman driver and I feel your pain. Sadly, as others have said, there's not a lot you can do when you have bought a vehicle from a private seller. I also learned that lesson the hard way after I passed my driving test. Never - ever - buy private. You don't have any comeback.

You say "I followed the steps from citizens advice." What were those steps?

Now I always use a car dealer. Even a small dealer will give guarantees, warranties and a money back option. Always check that they do and steer clear of the ones that don't. Have you heard that saying, "buy cheap, buy twice"? It's never truer than with car buying.

As others have said, a private seller can't give you a warranty. Or they can but it's meaningless.

Best thing to do with that car is to get rid as soon as possible before it deteriorates any further. Try to sell it for spares to a dealer or use it to trade in for a decent car at a dealer for something better. Sometimes dealers will allow you to use any old pile of junk as a deposit. I wouldn't ever buy a cheap car from anyone now - not even a dealer - because that way disaster lies - also financial ruin. 

But don't feel bad because we all make these mistakes but please don't spend any more money on a car that's going to drain your bank account. Better to feed that money into something more reliable and better. And don't use private sellers because some of them are plain dishonest.

Sandtree

MalMonroe said:
I also learned that lesson the hard way after I passed my driving test. Never - ever - buy private. You don't have any comeback.

Buying from private sellers is cheaper precisely because there is no comeback, minor issues are not fixed pre-sale etc. You also have to question why most people are getting rid of their vehicle, particularly if its more than a few years old.

Say never buy private is OTT as an unqualified statement, you do certainly need to consider your highly limited rights and "kick the tyres" (more than just physically) on the vehicles condition a lot harder as once you've paid they are your problems... this may mean that some who are less confident on assessing vehicles/potentially making moderate fixes should be more cautious but then there are services from the likes of the AA to help identify the worst issues.

Whilst you have more statutory rights against a dealer, actually enforcing those rights can also be very difficult.