Seller didn’t declare car written off

400ixl

Did you ask if it had been in any accidents or total loss claims? Did the advert make any claims that would be counter to a car that has been a total loss?

If it is officially marked on the V5 then your professional check should have found that. Does it have any insurance for missing such information?

born_again

budget888 said:

Ok thank you.
He only gave me the green slip, new keeper supplement.
I later found an old v5 in the boot which shows it as written off.
he’s a business seller on eBay but not a vehicle dealer. His main business is stationary products.
I appreciate he may not have known (but don’t believe it). But now I’ve told him he must put things right surely?

So is that in the same name as the seller?

Sounds like while they are a business seller, that it could be their private car. Unless their selling history has more cars sold?

[Deleted User]

budget888 said:

It’s a 2020 car and I think the damage occurred very soon after purchase.

budget888 said:

Sorry 2000 car, not 2020!

You're thinking of suing someone for misdescribing a 24 year old vehicle?

The fact that they own a business seems to be of little relevance to your issue.
A private seller has no obligation to tell you, are you able to prove that the vehicle was sold by a car trader, who would need to declare if the car was a write-off?

If not, I fear that it's a waste of time to pursue any further.

Out of interest, how much did this vehicle cost?

Undervalued

400ixl said:

Did you ask if it had been in any accidents or total loss claims? Did the advert make any claims that would be counter to a car that has been a total loss?

If it is officially marked on the V5 then your professional check should have found that. Does it have any insurance for missing such information?

Exactly.

Unless there are any special rules regarding car sales that I am not aware of, the normal situation is that a private seller must not misdescribe the item (car) and must answer any questions truthfully or not at all. However they are not obliged to volunteer information. 

Okell

If he's not a car dealer and if you didn't specifically ask about the car's accident history and whether it had previously been a write-off, I think you're stuck regarding the seller.

If you paid for a professional "car-check" and it wronlgy came back as clear, surely they're the people you should be suing?  You've got evidence of them telling you it was clear and you've also got evidence from the old V5 that that statement was wrong.  They should also be insured against this sort of claim and it'll probably be easier than trying to sue the seller.

(Surely the whole point of doing this sort of check is to avoid buying a dodgy vehicle.  If you pay for the check and then find out it was wrong, they're the first people you should complain to.  Otherwise why bother paying for the service????)

budget888

LightFlare said:

So you part-ex your previous vehicle for a 2000 vehicle ?

What was the sale price of the vehicle and what did you part-ex ?

Seriously though, with a 2000 car, being classed as a write off - you are lucky it’s still running and doesn’t have any major underlying mechanical issues

Yes.
25k was the new car
9k was his allowance for my car which i part ex'd

budget888

400ixl said:

Did you ask if it had been in any accidents or total loss claims? Did the advert make any claims that would be counter to a car that has been a total loss?

If it is officially marked on the V5 then your professional check should have found that. Does it have any insurance for missing such information?

Yes I did ask, and he replied no. I asked this question specifically.
The advert said it had suffered some damage to the rear end. That's why I specifically asked him if had been written off and he said it hadn't.
I've messaged car-check, the company I used (I paid for the full report), they won't reply!

budget888

born_again said:

budget888 said:

Ok thank you.
He only gave me the green slip, new keeper supplement.
I later found an old v5 in the boot which shows it as written off.
he’s a business seller on eBay but not a vehicle dealer. His main business is stationary products.
I appreciate he may not have known (but don’t believe it). But now I’ve told him he must put things right surely?

So is that in the same name as the seller?

Sounds like while they are a business seller, that it could be their private car. Unless their selling history has more cars sold?

Yes, same name as seller.
Selling history shows 6 cars listed for sale since February this year.

budget888

[Deleted User] said:

budget888 said:

It’s a 2020 car and I think the damage occurred very soon after purchase.

budget888 said:

Sorry 2000 car, not 2020!

You're thinking of suing someone for misdescribing a 24 year old vehicle?

The fact that they own a business seems to be of little relevance to your issue.
A private seller has no obligation to tell you, are you able to prove that the vehicle was sold by a car trader, who would need to declare if the car was a write-off?

If not, I fear that it's a waste of time to pursue any further.

Out of interest, how much did this vehicle cost?

What significance has the age of the car got?
They do own a business, but they're past sales include the sale of 6 cars in the last 3 months, that could be classed as a dealer?
The car was over 20k, so not cheap.

budget888

Okell said:

If he's not a car dealer and if you didn't specifically ask about the car's accident history and whether it had previously been a write-off, I think you're stuck regarding the seller.

If you paid for a professional "car-check" and it wronlgy came back as clear, surely they're the people you should be suing?  You've got evidence of them telling you it was clear and you've also got evidence from the old V5 that that statement was wrong.  They should also be insured against this sort of claim and it'll probably be easier than trying to sue the seller.

(Surely the whole point of doing this sort of check is to avoid buying a dodgy vehicle.  If you pay for the check and then find out it was wrong, they're the first people you should complain to.  Otherwise why bother paying for the service????)

Hi, Yes agree somewhat. I've messaged the hpi people, no reply yet. I'll have to write to them.
I just think it's unfair for the seller to get away with this "gain"