Car purchase Section 75 claim advice

Sandwich

Looking for a bit of advice:

Long story short, I've submitted a Section 75 claim against my bank relating to a car purchase that went wrong. The dealer has offered me a partial refund (minus £1000 of the purchase price), on the grounds that I've put ~800 miles on the vehicle. I've declined the partial refund because, having rejected the vehicle within the first 30 days, my understanding is that a full refund is due.

Anyway, the bank have told me that I should accept the partial refund in order to 'mitigate my losses', and to then do a Section 75 claim for the remaining balance. I'm wary of doing that because (1) the dealer has already been a nightmare to deal with and it won't be a smooth process, and (2) I'm worried that if I do accept the partial refund, that will later be construed by the bank or by the Financial Ombudsman as the dispute having been resolved.

What should I do in the circumstances? Will me refusing to take the partial refund be viewed as me not acting 'reasonably'?

marcia_

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6682285/car-purchase-section-75-claim-advice

the bank is right, you accept the partial refund under protest and the bank will pay the rest through chargeback or s75. By refusing the refund you are being unreasonable and putting the whole amount on to the bank when you do not need to.

born_again

As above.

Retailer has offered a solution. Although £1k for 800 miles is really taking the preverbal, as will as not strictly legal.

Boohoo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127314#Comment_82127314

Not forgetting the car/road tax and insurance that the OP may have forked out for.

Grumpy_chap

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127319#Comment_82127319

But the OP had to pay all of that regardless.

Boohoo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127380#Comment_82127380

But don't you not get all the vehicle tax back now?

Insurance will have to be cancelled and they may have to pay a fee for that I assume.

All adds up to their money lost even though tax and insurance is a must.

Sandwich

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127148#Comment_82127148

Thanks for the advice. I may need to go back to the bank then, because I had said to them basically 'I would rather you adjudicated the case as things stand, but if you insist I take the partial refund please tell me how I can do it without prejudicing my claim.'

The thing is, the car dealer is proposing the partial refund as a full resolution, so I don't see how I can accept that and then succeed in a Section 75 claim or with the FOS, because they can just say, 'you accepted a resolution to the matter and there is nothing further to adjudicate'?

Is it a matter of how you accept the refund? I.e., do I need to say this before agreeing to take the refund: 'I will take the partial refund, but not as a full resolution and I intend to recover the remainder via Section 75'?

marcia_

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127459#Comment_82127459

you dont need to say anything to the dealer, they have no input into the s75 process and it doesn't effect them. The bank will be giving you the money from their own coffers.
You tell your bank you have accepted the partial refund but do not accept the matter closed as you accepted under protest on their advice. Tell them you want to claim the rest of the funds back via s75 as per your legal rights.

Sandwich

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127508#Comment_82127508

But the bank is the one telling me to deal with the dealer over that payment, and go back to them (the bank) for the remainder.

born_again

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127459#Comment_82127459

S75 is seperate to what dealer is offering.

If you failed to take dealers offer. Bank could turn round & refuse claim on that basis of there being a resolution on the table. FOS could even back them up on same basis.

Okell

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127508#Comment_82127508

But he does need to say soemthing to the dealer, doesn't he, because the dealer won't pay up unless the OP agrees the £1000 is in full and final settlement?

I can fully understand the OP's concern.

Under s75 the bank is only liable to the OP to the extent that the OP has a claim against the dealer.

If the OP has already received £1000 from the dealer "in full and final settlement" is the bank still liable to pay the balance under s75 if the OP no longer has a claim against the dealer?

I suppose it depends how far the OP trusts his bank, but I can understand why he is reluctant to accept the conditional £1000 from the dealer.

I'd want some sort of guarantee from the bank that they would pay up the balance