Paid deposit and now they're cancelling the contract??

cx6

The OP does not have to force them to sell them the car - it already belongs to them.

The garage put the car up for sale at a price. They cannot be forced to sell at that price as we all know - it is an 'invitation to treat' just like any other shop price ticket.

However, once the OP offered the price and the garage agreed and money was paid then legal title of the car transfers to the OP at that point.

Edit: just check the sale contract as of course it may say 'legal title does not transfer to then purchaser unless / until .....'. It's been a while since I bought a car. You may be wise to get legal advice.

cx6

There is a lot of talk on these for about contract 'mistakes'. The bar is pretty high for a contract mistake to be accepted, and a professional dealer wanting to get a bit more money after a sale is not likely to be viewed as one.

An example of a valid contract mistake is that you pay for a car, walk out of the showroom to drive it away, and the car is a completely different one from the one you though you were buying - there has been a genuine misunderstanding between you and the garage salesman about which car you were buying.

alidai

cx6 said:

The OP does not have to force them to sell them the car - it already belongs to them.

The garage put the car up for sale at a price. They cannot be forced to sell at that price as we all know - it is an 'invitation to treat' just like any other shop price ticket.

However, once the OP offered the price and the garage agreed and money was paid then legal title of the car transfers to the OP at that point.

Edit: just check the sale contract as of course it may say 'legal title does not transfer to then purchaser unless / until .....'. It's been a while since I bought a car. You may be wise to get legal advice.

Utterly utterly wrong.

the car does not belong to them, and I’d hazard a guess too that they don’t have a contract of sale having only paid a deposit to “reserve” the car

molerat

The bigger picture is that maybe the op could force the sale.  But that would only be through the courts and a roll of the dice.  And are they willing to wait at least a year for that to happen.

cx6

The transfer of ownership (or property in legal terminology) is important as it determines who owns the goods at a particular point during the contract. The main reason why this is important is from the point of view of risk, for example, who has responsibility for the goods when they are in transit to the buyer,

In a contract of sale, ownership transfers from the supplier to the buyer as follows:

• specific goods ie goods that are identified and agreed 
  - the buyer takes ownership when the contract is made, irrespective of payment or delivery

The_Fat_Controller

All speculation until the OP shows exactly what they have in writing.

cx6

Exactly right - the sales documentation may say a contract is specifically not formed until ...

If there is no such documentation, the car belongs to the OP.

The garage may have a lien on it until eg the rest of the purchase price has been paid.

user1977

cx6 said:

However, once the OP offered the price and the garage agreed and money was paid then legal title of the car transfers to the OP at that point.

Why on earth would legal title transfer before the full price has been paid? You're barking up the wrong tree here.

Ergates

cx6 said:

The transfer of ownership (or property in legal terminology) is important as it determines who owns the goods at a particular point during the contract. The main reason why this is important is from the point of view of risk, for example, who has responsibility for the goods when they are in transit to the buyer,

In a contract of sale, ownership transfers from the supplier to the buyer as follows:

• specific goods ie goods that are identified and agreed 
  - the buyer takes ownership when the contract is made, irrespective of payment or delivery

Which, for the sale of a car, *doesn't* take place when the deposit it put down.

Ditzy_Mitzy

There's also the question of how the car is to be paid for.  If money is to be borrowed via the dealer, and the dealer refuses to play ball and lend, the whole thing is somewhat academic.