Trouble returning faulty car to dealership.

bugaboo_2

I'm looking for some advice. How can I progress this quicker? It is making me depressed and causing upset between me and my husband.

We picked a car up from a dealership a couple of weeks ago and when we got it home we noticed it had oil leaking out from underneath the car. We travelled over 200 miles to pick it up. When we took it to our local garage, they confirmed that the injectors would need to be replaced as this was where the leak was coming from. The dealership said they would cover repairs under warranty. After more inspecting, there were more faults and it should not have passed an MOT. (The dealership has also said there should be partial service history which there is not and the MOT was listed as August but was actually May). The garage said it is not roadworthy or fit for purpose and should send it back. We purchased it through Car Money and have the finance with Stellantis.

The dealership said we could take it back but I said we are not delivering it as they were at fault and they should come and collect it. He told me I need to go back to the finance company and he wasn't going to deal with it now.

I cannot get hold of Car Money complaints department. There is just an automated answer message constantly that says they will get back to you in order of people calling. The first message was left at least a couple of weeks ago. I have emailed them. No response. I keep trying, no success. I have also contacted the finance accompany and emailed them. They have acknowledged complaint but have said it can take up to 8 weeks to respond. I have spoken to them about the urgency of the situation but they just keep referring to 8 weeks to respond. Under the consumer rights act you have 30 days to return/reject faulty car.

This is costing us so much money. Fuel to get there and back, insurance, tax and loss of earnings as was relying on this vehicle to take sheep to market, get to addition places of work as relying on one car. It is sitting on our drive doing nothing.

I just can't get anywhere with this. It is so frustrating! Has anyone had any luck in returning a faulty car? How did you do this? Do I need to be more forceful with the finance company? Should I now refer to Financial ombudsman even though it hasn't been 8 weeks?

The first payment is due to come out in the next few days from the finance company. I don't feel I should pay this.

paul_c123

Unless you had contacted the dealership you bought it from prior to it being looked at by the local garage and agreed they would diagnose it, their findings have no weight in the situation (but at least give you an informed opinion of the car). Injectors don't cause oil leaks.

There is no right to have it collected or them to pay delivery costs back to their premises.

8 weeks is the agreed timeframe the finance company can wait before making a decision on a complaint, before it can be escalated to the Financial Ombudsman. However under consumer law (CRA2015 - BUT see below…) the 30 day short term right to reject clock stops once you have contacted a dealer and told them you want to reject.

Do not stop payments - you will probably earn a default on your credit file.

Take sheep to market? Is this a business use? Did you buy the car as a consumer or as a business? It affects which laws apply.

soolin

This bit in OP needs to be clarified

This is costing us so much money. Fuel to get there and back, insurance, tax and loss of earnings as was relying on this vehicle to take sheep to market, get to addition places of work as relying on one car. It is sitting on our drive doing nothing.

OP do you use this vehicle for business ?

bugaboo_2

I did contact the dealership before asking them to carry out the inspection and they they did pay for it. Also the oil was spilling out the injectors when the car was started causing it to leak oil. It is standard practise to replace all the injectors. Also I can't drive the car back 200 miles as it is not safe to drive and is not roadworthy.

SuperExcelMan

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82137968#Comment_82137968

I’ve been in the same situation before.

The easiest way is phone AA, RAC, or independent, and ask for a price for it to be towed to the garage 200 miles away. You need to pay for this, it’s not the garages fault you live 200 miles away.

You could also try driving it there, and if it has the slightest sign of a breakdown, stop and call AA/RAC, have it towed there. Likely to be covered at no extra cost, but will take all day, and you’ll likely be going with the car too

Mildly_Miffed

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82137744#Comment_82137744

This is vital to the answers.

If the vehicle was bought for business purposes, then the legislation in place is VERY different.

But, yes, you need to physically return the vehicle to where you collected it from. It is not the supplier's responsibility to collect. If the vehicle cannot be driven, then you need to get it transported.

The service history and MOT date are irrelevant, as they could have been checked pre-purchase.

Herzlos

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82138051#Comment_82138051

Breakdown companies are unlikely to cover the rest of the journey if the breakdown is a pre-existing fault, so you'd need to be careful to not give them that impression which might be difficult if the journey is to a car dealer 200 miles away from home.

It should be possible to get a local independent to trailer the car back to the dealer much more cheaply than via the AA. If the sheep to market thing implies some links to the farming community then it may be possible to ask around and find someone with a flatbed/car trailer to help.

Whilst it's unclear if it was a personal purchase or business, the first step is still going to be to get the car back to the dealer.

paul_c123

If it’s a business sale then SOGA applies, there’s no entitlement to a refund for any fault which occurs after collection. Only protection for misdescribed, etc

PTP123

As people have mentioned above, sounds like a B2B transaction.

Even if you buy and finance it it your own name but it's used for business use then CRA doesn't apply.