Refund Options for a faulty caravan

PLY1970

Hi everyone. We recently traded our motorhome for a caravan at a reputable dealer. The motorhome was worth much more so they gave us £23,000 along with the caravan. No issues with the value exchange. We had an independent service done on purchase just to check and they found that the axle was badly damaged and shouldn't have been sold to us. The dealer says it's normal wear and tear. Both are NCC approved workshops.

I told them I want a refund but I do not want my motorhome back, and they say that is the only remedy in the Consumer Rights Act, returning to the status quo. But, I thought that provision was to protect the consumer from being offered vouchers and the like, and it could be done another way if I agreed. Do I have to take back the motorhome? They do still have it. Hopefully someone can give me some sound guidance as I can't quite find anything to match this scenario on line.

Many thanks for your help.

GDB2222

I think the problem is that dealers often give a generous part exchange price in lieu of a discount on the item you are buying. So, by keeping the £23k and getting a refund on the caravan you would be getting a better price for your motor home than they are happy with.

Aylesbury_Duck

If you want to cancel the contract and they can do so by returning both parties to the original position, then I don't think you can object. Either you want to cancel the contract, or you don't. The voucher comparison doesn't really fit here, although you could argue it strengthens the case for a reversal of the exchange, because if cash is used in a purchase, the consumer shouldn't be given vouchers as a refund by default in the event of a return. You paid with a motorhome, so the return of that motorhome is the default refund.

They might think you're trying it on as a way of selling your motorhome without the hassle of advertising, showing it to people, letting them test-drive it, etc.

sheramber

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6669321/refund-options-for-a-faulty-caravan

That is about giving vouchers when payment was cash

You paid with a motorhome.

Aylesbury_Duck

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82007342#Comment_82007342

Which may be why OP is keen to have the refund in cash.

elsien

Do you still have the extra 23K they gave you?

Okell

@PLY1970 - I don't think the Consumer Rights Act works in the way in which you believe it does.

s20(10) of the Act basically says that to the extent that you paid money for the caravan, you are entitled to receive back the same amount of money. So you can't be refunded in vouchers if you paid in money in the first place.

s20 goes on to say:

"(11) To the extent that the consumer transferred anything else under the contract, the consumer is entitled to receive back the same amount of what the consumer transferred, unless subsection (12) applies.

(12) To the extent that the consumer transferred under the contract something for which the same amount of the same thing cannot be substituted, the consumer is entitled to receive back in its original state whatever the consumer transferred."

I may well be mistaken, but AIUI that means that if you part-exchanged something then you are entitled to demand back what you part-exchanged, if that is something that the trader can still do.

However, if you part-exchanged something but don't wnat it back, I don't think there is anything in the Act that says you can refuse to accept it back and demand that the trader instead pay you its monetary value.

If you think about it that makes sense. Because if the trader can still return your motorhome to you in the same condition it was part-ex'd in, then you are being put back to the same position you were in before you entered the contract in the first place.

If you don't want it back because you want to keep a possibly over-generous part-ex valuation on it, you'll have to decide whether you still want to reject the caravan.

Sounds a bit "cake… keep… eat it"

PLY1970

Thank you everyone for responding so quickly. Yes, it does seem I am misinterpreting the CRA. It wasn't to try and have my cake and eat it, they were already advertising the motorhome for £10K more than they gave me for it so I don't think they would have lost out anyway, but never mind. I do still have the £23K so may have to go down that road and start again with another dealer.

Many thanks.

Okell

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82007438#Comment_82007438

Good question

I hadn't thought about that!

lincroft1710

Can the damaged axle not be replaced?

GDB2222

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82007471#Comment_82007471

I don't know what an axle costs, but I'm surprised there isn't enough in this transaction for the dealer that they'd rather simply reverse it.