I was sold a unroadworthy used car by a private seller

Mildly_Miffed

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868107#Comment_81868107

…they're worn thin.

Would a main dealer scaremonger "they could do with replacement soon?" Heaven forfend!

Now, it may be that the caliper is sticking leading to the pads wearing unevenly. That might just be a case of cleaning the slides up. One thing's for sure, unless there's a suggestion that the MOT was somehow hooky, that would not have been the case at that time, as it would have shown on the rolling road brake test.

jimjames

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868160#Comment_81868160

Easy defence, car just passed an MOT and they are more expert than the seller.

PTP123

I can't believe someone suggested reporting the seller to the police. :)

Okell

I'm a bit surprised by the number of posters (except apparently @Ectophile) who have overlooked the reference to "unroadworthy" in the thread title and have gone down the standard routes of caveat emptor; if the seller didn't know then they didn't do anything wrong; did you ask a specific question blah blah blah.

I don't know what the OP means by "unroadworthy" and I don't know what the "manufacture-authorised dealer" meant by unroadworthy either, but as the term plays a part in the relevant legislation, I wouldn't be so quick to assume that the "dealer" was using it inappropriately.

If the car the OP bought was legally unroadworthy, then the seller - private or otherwise - is committing a criminal offence.

Now that in itself doesn't help the OP, but depending on how defective the brakes are, he might want to point out to the seller that selling an unroadworthy car is a criminal offence. The OP would of course assure the seller that he is merely giving him information he might find helpful, and make it 100% that he is not attempting to blackmail him.

I don't know if the car is unroadworthy or not and I don't care if it is or not.

I'm simply pointing out that when the term "unroadworthy" is employed, more detail is required.

(I recall a post about ten or more years ago shortly after I joined this forum. The OP had sold a car to someone and the buyer claimed it was unroadworthy and sued the OP. The OP was assured by everyone on here that they had no chance of losing because caveat emptor etc etc. The judge accepted the buyer's argument that the car was unroadworthy and the OP lost. Never be certain)

Okell

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868389#Comment_81868389

Quite. I don't know if unroadworthy vehicles are prosecuted by the police or by trading standards

Aretnap

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868665#Comment_81868665

In this case, they're not prosecuted by anybody. Trading Standards will not be interested in a private sale, and police will not be interested in the fact that somebody sold a car with dodgy brake pads full stop.

(I wasn't actually suggesting that the OP report the seller to the police. Just pointing out that this would be the only thing that he could even theoretically do with the fact that the car is allegedly unroadworthy, and that it would not benefit him in the slightest.)

WellKnownSid

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868731#Comment_81868731

"Good afternoon officer, I believe my car to be unroadworthy…"

paul_c123

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868658#Comment_81868658

Pragmatically, the buyer doesn't have powers of arrest, the police aren't going to, and trading standards have other things to worry about. In theory a wealthy buyer could launch a private prosecution. In practice, in a fairly normal transaction like this, with not-too-serious (yet crossing the threshold for a main dealer to declare it unroadworthy) items wrong with the car, the buyer has taken on the responsibility for the car.

Remember that private sale offers a significant saving over retail prices (or should do, unless you pay over the odds or get a screaming bargain from a dealer). The fact that there might be issues with the car, and there is no "consumer right" is precisely why this is the case.

Also if it ever did get to court, it would be a battle proving it was unroadworthy at the point of sale, because 1) It has a recent MoT, 2) the buyer test drove it to their satisfaction, 3) the inspection was done after the sale, not before.

facade

The Thing with brake pads, is that "unroadworthy" is defined as "don't reach the standard required by the MOT test".

The MOT requires that brake pads have a minimum friction material thickness of 1.5mm OR they must not be worn down to the wear indicator if there is one.

The brakes will continue to work perfectly for many thousands of miles with 1.5mm of pad, and meet the MOT requirements for performance and efficiency.

However, if you try driving down Mont Blanc braking all the time, or repeatedly emergency stop from 70 miles an hour, the thinner pad is more likely to break up and fall apart, then the brakes will fail.

Driving to Tesco and back there wouldn’t be any problem.

But, The Law is The Law and The Ministry have set a requirement that they have to meet.

Perfectly possible that the brakes could have worn since the MOT, and even a calliper seized, it is also not unheard of for a main dealer to "err on the side of caution" and they are actually on the right side of roadworthy.

The brakes would need an independent inspection or another MOT to evidence that they are unroadworthy.

It really isn't worth the effort, just get new brake pads and the brakes serviced at an independent local garage- NOT a main dealer or a fast-fit chain.

Sounds like the OP has been lucky, there is always something wrong with a second hand car and you end up spending money as soon as you get it home, brakes are one of the cheapest things to repair.

As has been pointed out, if all a main dealer can find wrong with a car is worn brake pads and a sticky calliper, it is in good condition!

WobblyBitsGalore

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868107#Comment_81868107

On the other hand, how do you prove a car was unroadworthy when sold? Surely a professional inspection immediately-ish after sale is sufficient proof "on the balance of probabilities" as cars do not fall apart suddenly in a few days.

Regarding the tyres' cords exposed with a recent MOT without any such mentions… Well one way to explain it is that it is very easy to swap wheels…