Thread: Can I cancel new car?

Hi all, I'm wanting bit of advice please.

I put a deposit down of £500 on a new car with a balance to be made on picking the car up of another £1100 and the remainder to be on HP. I have signed an arfl form (or something like that) with my details for registration of the new car but not signed any finance agreement yet.

My question is - can I cancel the car now? What redress does the dealer have if I phone him up and just say, "I've changed my mind, I don't want the car".

I'm due to go down on Friday to pick the car up and sign for the finance.

Many thanks in advance.

If nothing is signed then you would just lose your deposit i guess.

Hi there

Yes I agree with map, if you haven't signed an agreement, you will still be able to cancel this, however you may lose the £500.00.

Loobyloo x

Thanks for the couple of replies to my question. I thought I'd give an update in case anyone reads this thread. I decided to phone the garage and ask whether I could cancel the car and after a day the manager phoned me up and told me I could cancel the car without any loss other than my £500 deposit. Whether this is because it is within my rights or whether he was being amenable I don't know.

Thanks again
Spindoctor

Originally Posted by spindoctor

Thanks for the couple of replies to my question. I thought I'd give an update in case anyone reads this thread. I decided to phone the garage and ask whether I could cancel the car and after a day the manager phoned me up and told me I could cancel the car without any loss other than my £500 deposit. Whether this is because it is within my rights or whether he was being amenable I don't know.

Thanks again
Spindoctor

He was probably being amenable because he will probably have made more profit by keeping your deposit than actually selling you a new car - there aint much in it nowadays!!!

Consider taking the dealer to small claims court to get back your £500. You can issue a claim on line using the governements new small claims court procedure.

https://www.moneyclaim.gov.uk

Send the dealer three letters, so that you can prove that you have tried to resolve the issue before starting a claim. In the letters, inform the dealer that you think £500 is excessive but accept that they have incurred some inconvinience and therefore you are willing for them to deduct an amount for this, but that you expect the majority of your deposit back. Also ask them for a Breakdown of the costs they have incurred.

Online, the claim will cost about £35 and if you loose you will not be liable for the other parties costs. You have already lost £500, so it may be worth risking another £35 to get it back.

Your case can be strengthened if any paperwork that you signed did not explicitly mention that the deposit is not refundable.

80% of claims are settled before they get to court. The dealer may offer you a compromise payment before the case gets to court.

The Dealer is intitled to keep your deposit and take you to court for loss of proffit.

Originally Posted by ltc1607

The Dealer is intitled to keep your deposit and take you to court for loss of proffit.

It is highly unlikley that a judge in a small claims court would support such a claim, if mde by the dealer.

I would ask for some of the deposit back, they should only deduct an actual costs they have incurred due to administration costs and out of pocket ecpenses such as processing time etc and they would have to substantiate that. the deposit was only left as an act of good faith and to resrve the car so it is not sold to anybody else. A contract was not signed but implied that you would enter into one so they would be entitled to their expenses thats all.