Faulty Car

Aylesbury_Duck

It's possible that OP replaced the tyres because they were approaching or were at the legal limit.  That seems to be the common practice.  If that's the case, then the car was still roadworthy (if it was only the matter of the tyres that called roadworthiness into question).

tightauldgit

Alderbank said:

The AA say:

Buying a used car privately
The only legal terms that cover a private sale contract are:

• The seller must have the right to sell the car.
• The vehicle should match the description given by the seller.
• The car must be roadworthy – it is a criminal offence to sell an unroadworthy car and an MOT certificate from a test several months ago is no guarantee that the car is roadworthy today.

...but again without quoting legislation

Digging around the legislation is Section 75 of the Road Traffic Act ...

75Vehicles not to be sold in unroadworthy condition or altered so as to be unroadworthy.

(1)Subject to the provisions of this section no person shall supply a motor vehicle or trailer in an unroadworthy condition.

(2)In this section references to supply include—

(a)sell,

(b)offer to sell or supply, and

(c)expose for sale.

(3)For the purposes of subsection (1) above a motor vehicle or trailer is in an unroadworthy condition if—

(a)it is in such a condition that the use of it on a road in that condition would be unlawful by virtue of any provision made by regulations under section 41 of this Act as respects—

(i)brakes, steering gear or tyres, or

(ii)the construction, weight or equipment of vehicles,. . .

F1(iii). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[F2(b)it is in such a condition that its use on a road would involve a danger of injury to any person]

DullGreyGuy

Ironically for this website... appears to be Section 75, but of the RTA rather than CCA

Alderbank

It's the 1988 Road Traffic Act.
s75: Vehicles not to be sold in unroadworthy condition or altered so as to be unroadworthy.

As DullGreyGuy suggests there is an exemption where the contract of sale makes it clear the vehicle will not be used on UK roads in its present condition (eg it is for export, breaking for parts or for repair and MOT).

The OP's 'friend' who sold him the car does not have this exemption.

sheramber

But then

https://www.daslaw.co.uk/blog/selling-a-car-rights-and-responsibilities

Selling an unroadworthy car is a criminal offence unless the buyer is fully aware of this fact, so it would be wise to make this very clear from the moment you advertise the car.

Did the OP know it needed two tyres when he bought it?

SpudGunPaul

DullGreyGuy said:

Alderbank said:

you have few rights when buying from a private seller but the car must be roadworthy, ie it must meet the legal requirements for being driven on public roads. Was the car legal to drive when you agreed the sale?

Which law states a private sale car must be roadworthy?

Clearly if its described as such then it should, but even that would be only to the extent Jo(e) Public can reasonable assess it to be, but never heard of a law saying a private seller cannot sell a non-runner etc

Section 75 of the Road Traffic Act. 

A non runner is different to being unroadworthy. If you sell and unroadworthy vehicle and they drive it away you commit the offence.

MalMonroe

Hi, I just have to ask, what kind of friend is this? And also, will they be a friend for much longer? If it were me, they wouldn't be.

Is there any reason you cannot go back to your friend and say 'you sold me a load of junk and I've had to spend a lot of money on it already and it's still not roadworthy so I want all my money back ('please' is optional) and you can have the car.'

If you are wanting to buy a used car in the future, it might be worth just having a look at what Citizens Advice advises -

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

That kind of 'friend' you can do without.

lincroft1710

Aylesbury_Duck said:

It's possible that OP replaced the tyres because they were approaching or were at the legal limit.  That seems to be the common practice.  If that's the case, then the car was still roadworthy (if it was only the matter of the tyres that called roadworthiness into question).

As the OP said they had to get the 2 rear tyres replaced after a week, which does suggest they could have been just legal at point of sale. 


Although there has been a debate about whether or not the car was roadworthy, if the OP didn't keep the old tyres, there is no proof of the state of them at even the point of change

RubyI

tightauldgit said:

I believe that if you sell a car that's not roadworthy you have to legally declare it as such and it can only be sold as for spares or repairs. I think it might even be a criminal offence to sell a non-roadworthy car without informing the buyer of the condition. To what extent a private seller is supposed to know if a car is roadworthy or not when selling it I have no idea.  

The car was mot’d before I bought it, they noticed the oil was low and just topped it up

HampshireH

RubyI said:

tightauldgit said:

I believe that if you sell a car that's not roadworthy you have to legally declare it as such and it can only be sold as for spares or repairs. I think it might even be a criminal offence to sell a non-roadworthy car without informing the buyer of the condition. To what extent a private seller is supposed to know if a car is roadworthy or not when selling it I have no idea.  

The car was mot’d before I bought it, they noticed the oil was low and just topped it up

Then if the tyres were not legal they should have failed the MOT. If nearing the end of their life but legal it should have been an advisory.

What did they say?

Just looking at the tyres you'd have seen if they were legal or not.