ford wants my money

[barry20]

hi guys,a while ago i visited a for showroom,looking for a used ford focus,after discussing my requirements with the salesman, he found a car at a different dealership,i was interested and he stated that he could arrange for it to be delivered to that showroom so i could testdrive it,he then asked for a good will gesture of £100 to show my commitment,i payed the sum on my debit card.the next day i saw another focus at a different showroom and purchased the car (£2000 cheaper as well for a newer car!!) i then approached the original dealership and asked for my £100 refunded,i was told to write in,which i did and have heard nothing.does anyone know how i stand? the money was not a deposit to purchase the car,i am thinking of going down there and if they do not refund the money explaining that i will return with the local press taking photos of me outside the dealership and running a story etc
Any help or advice would be brilliant as xmas is almost upon us !!

[Rob S]

Perhaps you should pop in and see them in person and politely ask for a refund of your money.

[barry20]

thanks rob, i'll try that first, just hate ignorant people

[rome]

Barry, I had an absolute nightmare with two Ford dealerships about 12 months ago. If you get no joy with just asking for the money back, I would strongly advise you to ring Ford UK's head office customer service department (I got the number off the net). When they stepped in, everything speeded up. They rang the dealers whilst I was on the line etc etc and my problem was sorted in 24 hours. At no point did they take responsibility for any of the problems I'd had, but by that stage I just wanted it sorted. They were great, Give it a go. If nothing else they get some feedback about the people representing their brand.

[barry20]

Rome, thanks a lot for you're advice!! i will ring them first thing in the morning

[asd120273]

I think this may be a Ford thing, I went for a test drive for a Focus a few weeks back liked the car but told the salesman I would have to go away and think about it. Anyway, a newer model at another garage and phoned the dealer out of courtesy to say I did not want the car and thought that was the end of it. However, two weeks later, if the post arrived the log book for the Car with me as the new owner!!!

Did think about going to the garage and demanding the car as I was the regestered ower according to the DVLA. The most frightening thing though was when I called the DVLA to let them know I have never owned the car, they told me that as the regestered owner of the car I was liable for any fines tickets etc until I sent back the documents and they changed the log book!!

[patdavies]

There is no such thing as a registered owner.

The DVLA have no interest in the ownership of a vehicle. Alll they record is the registered keeper - which as they point out on every logbook, is not the same thing.

[JonCris]

I think you may have bought the car in order to increase the salesmans xmas bonust.

Although they will have some excuse (but what escapes me) what they did is fraud & should be reported.

[Jimbo44]

Originally Posted by JonCris

I think you may have bought the car in order to increase the salesmans xmas bonust.

Although they will have some excuse (but what escapes me) what they did is fraud & should be reported.

Without wanting to get into the debate about 'excuses' and the salesman's 'Xmas bonus' at all, I'm a bit confused.

JonCris, could you tell me where the 'fraud' is in the scenario outlined by asd120273?

As has already been said, the V5 Registration Document (log book) does not indicate who the legal owner of a motor vehicle is, it merely records the registered keeper (who is the person, or company, to whom the police and local authorities turn for information regarding the driver). Unless I'm much mistaken, it is an invoice from the seller which transfers legal ownership to a purchaser.

asd120273 makes no mention of having received an invoice, only a Registration Document (log book). Assuming this to be the case, the only loser in this scenario would be the garage concerned for adding an extra Keeper and thus possibly de-valuing the car.

[Gruffle Gaw]

Originally Posted by barry20

i am thinking of going down there and if they do not refund the money explaining that i will return with the local press taking photos of me outside the dealership and running a story etc

Speaking as a member of the local press, you might want to check if they are interested in running the story before you promise their involvement in the matter. They are under no obligation to supply a photographer just because you want them to and you will look silly if you say that and they don't want to do the story.

[Gruffle Gaw]

With regard to your orginal question, though, I think it would be better to ask for your money back in writing. Keep a copy and proof of postage (you can get a free certificate of postage from the post office, and a judge will accept this as evidence that the letter was received). If you go down in person they can say what they like and you have no way of proving it, should you later need to. This way, you will have the evidence to back up your claim if you ultimately have to sue them to get your money back.

[JonCris]

Originally Posted by Jimbo44

Without wanting to get into the debate about 'excuses' and the salesman's 'Xmas bonus' at all, I'm a bit confused.

JonCris, could you tell me where the 'fraud' is in the scenario outlined by asd120273?

As has already been said, the V5 Registration Document (log book) does not indicate who the legal owner of a motor vehicle is, it merely records the registered keeper (who is the person, or company, to whom the police and local authorities turn for information regarding the driver). Unless I'm much mistaken, it is an invoice from the seller which transfers legal ownership to a purchaser.

asd120273 makes no mention of having received an invoice, only a Registration Document (log book). Assuming this to be the case, the only loser in this scenario would be the garage concerned for adding an extra Keeper and thus possibly de-valuing the car.

I don't undertsand why you don't think that without consent being registered as the vehicle keeper is not fraud..........It is

Also the keeper could have found themselves liable for speeding, parking fines or linked to even more serious crimes.