Money back guarantee - what’s the catch? 26 December 2022 at 4:57PM edited 26 December 2022 at 4:59PM in Motoring 10 replies 602 views

GDB2222

A lot of the online car sales companies offer a money back guarantee. Under this, you can return the car for a full refund during the first X days. For example, Cazoo allows 7 days, with a maximum of 250 miles.  You can return for any reason. The car doesn’t need to be faulty.

But what’s the catch? Effectively, it seems like a week's free car hire?

To some extent, they are just making a virtue out of a necessity, given the DSR?

Aretnap

Why need there be a catch?

Plenty of clothes shops do the same - let can return the clothes within X days. So you don't need to buy a suit for that wedding/job interview/funeral, just get one from M&S and treat it as 2 weeks free suit hire.

Similarly there's no need to buy an expensive camera to take on holiday - just order one online and send it back as soon as you get home.

In reality however very few people do this so M&S still succeed in selling suits and online companies do manage to sell cameras. I imagine most people buying cars online are also actually looking to buy rather than get a weeks free car hire too, so the business model is perfectly viable. And if you did try to take the mickey by "buying" and returning a different car every week for several months, I expect that you would be invited to take your business elsewhere soon enough.

ontheroad1970

GDB2222 said:

A lot of the online car sales companies offer a money back guarantee. Under this, you can return the car for a full refund during the first X days. For example, Cazoo allows 7 days, with a maximum of 250 miles.  You can return for any reason. The car doesn’t need to be faulty.

But what’s the catch? Effectively, it seems like a week's free car hire?

To some extent, they are just making a virtue out of a necessity, given the DSR?

A car sold completely from a distance has to give you 14 days, so Cazoo are giving less than the law allows.

MarvinDay

ontheroad1970 said:

GDB2222 said:

A lot of the online car sales companies offer a money back guarantee. Under this, you can return the car for a full refund during the first X days. For example, Cazoo allows 7 days, with a maximum of 250 miles.  You can return for any reason. The car doesn’t need to be faulty.

But what’s the catch? Effectively, it seems like a week's free car hire?

To some extent, they are just making a virtue out of a necessity, given the DSR?

A car sold completely from a distance has to give you 14 days, so Cazoo are giving less than the law allows.

The 7 day money back guarantee offered by Cazoo is something that is in addition to your 14 day right of cancellation and not instead of it and the T&C's of this 7 day offer go above and beyond what they are legally required to offer.

This is because if you were to return the car under the cancellation period provided by the Consumer contracts regulations, Cazoo could legally reduce the refund if you had made excessive use of the vehicle and driving it 250 miles before cancelling would IMO, be excessive.

GDB2222

I’d be rather surprised if the DSR allowed use at all? I thought that you could examine the goods, but not use them?

MarvinDay

GDB2222 said:

I’d be rather surprised if the DSR allowed use at all? I thought that you could examine the goods, but not use them?

The DSR's (Distance Selling Regulations) no longer apply. It's now covered by the "Consumer contracts (Information, Cancellation and additional charges) regulations."
These regulations do allow consumers to use goods before returning under the right of cancellation provided that the use doesn't go beyond:
"what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods if, in particular, it goes beyond the sort of handling that might reasonably be allowed in a shop."

In the case of a car, the shop would be a vehicle dealership and as these do normally allow prospective buyers to take a test drive so I don't think it would be unreasonable for a consumer to take a short drive to see if they like the car before returning it under the CCR's,

GDB2222

MarvinDay said:

GDB2222 said:

I’d be rather surprised if the DSR allowed use at all? I thought that you could examine the goods, but not use them?

The DSR's (Distance Selling Regulations) no longer apply. It's now covered by the "Consumer contracts (Information, Cancellation and additional charges) regulations."
These regulations do allow consumers to use goods before returning under the right of cancellation provided that the use doesn't go beyond:
"what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods if, in particular, it goes beyond the sort of handling that might reasonably be allowed in a shop."

In the case of a car, the shop would be a vehicle dealership and as these do normally allow prospective buyers to take a test drive so I don't think it would be unreasonable for a consumer to take a short drive to see if they like the car before returning it under the CCR's,

Thanks so much for explaining. For something as expensive as a car, I can see that the dealer might well want to enforce the rules precisely.  After all, simply adding an extra owner to the registration may reduce the value.

A lot of these guarantees have weasel words like “return the car in the same condition”, which could lead to arguments if it has rained and there’s a bit of mud on the bodywork. 

I was wondering whether anyone here has experience of trying to return a car like this, and the answer seems to be no. 

photome

I would like to know if anyone has returned a car to cazoo and the likes without any hassle

powerful_Rogue

GDB2222 said:

MarvinDay said:

GDB2222 said:

I’d be rather surprised if the DSR allowed use at all? I thought that you could examine the goods, but not use them?

The DSR's (Distance Selling Regulations) no longer apply. It's now covered by the "Consumer contracts (Information, Cancellation and additional charges) regulations."
These regulations do allow consumers to use goods before returning under the right of cancellation provided that the use doesn't go beyond:
"what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods if, in particular, it goes beyond the sort of handling that might reasonably be allowed in a shop."

In the case of a car, the shop would be a vehicle dealership and as these do normally allow prospective buyers to take a test drive so I don't think it would be unreasonable for a consumer to take a short drive to see if they like the car before returning it under the CCR's,

Thanks so much for explaining. For something as expensive as a car, I can see that the dealer might well want to enforce the rules precisely.  After all, simply adding an extra owner to the registration may reduce the value.

A lot of these guarantees have weasel words like “return the car in the same condition”, which could lead to arguments if it has rained and there’s a bit of mud on the bodywork. 

I was wondering whether anyone here has experience of trying to return a car like this, and the answer seems to be no. 

I wouldn't call that 'weasel words' - Just give the car a clean before returning it.

uknick

photome said:

I would like to know if anyone has returned a car to cazoo and the likes without any hassle

My neighbour went through a number of cars, I think it was nearly 6, with Cinch & Cazoo in a period of under a year.  We did think he was trading from his drive lol.

He had a bad back and all the cars he tried gave him chronic back ache before the week was up.  Funny enough, after his wife suggested a chiropractor and a few treatments he's found the car he can live with, from Cinch.

The only cost to him was a month's tax, some insurance and on one occasion a little for excess mileage.  

jimjames

GDB2222 said:

But what’s the catch? Effectively, it seems like a week's free car hire?

To some extent, they are just making a virtue out of a necessity, given the DSR?

It won't apply to all of them but certainly some might say that in an advert but not actually comply in practice. A guarantee is only as good as the counterparty honouring it.