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garage sold me a dangerous car unsure of my postition now.


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ok this a long one.

 

basically i bought a renault scenic from a garage under finance handled by black horse over 4 years; the car was £5000 and i part exchanged a focus for £1400. i handed the focus over, signed the agreement and took my new scenic.

 

the car was mot'd on the day i picked it up and it passed. when i recieved the car it had a sidelight out, and a foglight out and hardly and petrol. i replaced these for the sake of three or four pounds but was not impressed with the garage for not making it ready.

 

the car was fine until about two days after when electrical problems reared their ugly heads.

 

the car started cutting out at junctions, and about 7 days after purchase whilst driving the horn started going when i pressed the brake. after about 5 minutes of this it stopped and smoke started coming from the steering column. upon looking to the steering column it was loose as if someone had already had it removed.

 

i stopped and killed the engine. checking the fuse for the horn it has blown leading me to believe it has a wire shorting somewhere. this worried me as i have kids and a wife, so therefore we have avoided using the car since then.

 

so being under warranty, i got onto the garage and told them. under my warranty agreement i am entitled to a courtesy car whilst the work is carried out.

 

now this is the problem. they say they dont have a specified courtesy car and thus i must wait for a part ex to come in so i can use it. is this legal? i mean technically it is using a car which isnt registered to the garage?

 

anyway it has now been two and a half weeks and a phone call to them every day and i have had no courtesy car. i asked about them giving me a hire car and the man said basically no.

 

i got onto black horse quality assurance and they said my only way forward (as i cannot cancel the finance agreement myself) was to see if the garage will fix the car under 'a reasonable timeframe' otherwise i would be eligible to reject the car in writing.

 

if the courtesy car does not turn up and its not fixed by the end of this week (three weeks since reporting the fault) i am tempted to reject the car although will the finance agreement then be cancelled and i will recieve my £1400 back for my part-ex?

 

i understand i will loose my first finance payment and my deposit.

 

i really wish i hadnt bought this car, and the garage isnt helping. i also feel like reporting them to trading standards. some sound advice would be very welcome.

 

regards

paul

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I'm assuming this is HP.

 

If so, your statutory rights are against the finance company, not the garage. You will have to go back to them under the Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act and inform them that the car is not of satisfactory quality or fit for its purpose and tell them why. Inform them that you are rescinding the contract and rejecting the car, and you are claiming a full refund of everything you have paid so far. Give them a date by which to do this.

 

I would get this down in writing and keep a copy. Send it recorded delivery, or at the very least get a proof of posting slip from the post office counter.

Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.

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Sorry this is a purchase over 4 years financed by Black Horse paying a monthly payment.

 

£5000 - £1400 (part ex)

=£3600 over 4 years.

 

The contract states I am inelieble to cancel the contract myself, and a member of the black horse team told me only the garage themselves can cancel the contract.

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Then you can claim from both the finance company and the garage :)

 

The garage are liable under the Sale of Goods Act for the quality and fitness for purpose of the goods (as before), if you wish to reject I would do so as soon as you possibly can, in writing, to the garage.

 

Copy the letter to the finance company with a covering letter stating that you are holding them equally liable for the faulty goods under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act.

Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.

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thats great advice thanks. i am going to write a letter out now, would you comment on it befor ei send it for me?

 

what about the legal standing of them using part exchanged cars for courtesy cars, obviously with no safety or proessional testing? (he was basically going to give me a courtesy car without looking at it for damage, safety features or up to date MOT)

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Of course, link it up here and I'll have a look.

 

All cars that they sell (or hire) should be roadworthy and safe. If you have reasonable doubts about cars on his forecourt, I would report this to Trading Standards as they are the body who would investigate the safety of cars for sale under the Road Traffic Act.

Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.

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ok i have just bee on the phone to black horse finance and their quality assurance dept agree with everything. black horse suggested i push for a written response within 7 days.

 

here is the letter with some elements blanked for security reasons.

 

Paul

 

 

 

May 1, 2007

 

Lomond Car Centre

 

 

Dear Sir,

I am writing this letter in relation to a car I purchased from your place of business on the 27th March 2007, a Beige 2002 Renault Scenic Megane 1.8 16v registration number xxxxxxx. I supplied you in part exchange for the sum of £1400 a Black 1999 Ford Focus 1.8 TDDI registration number xxxxxxx

Since purchasing this car, xxxxxxx, numerous problems have arisen which have seriously impaired the ability to drive the car, making it illegal to drive safely under the Road Traffic Act 1988 Chapter c.52 pt2 section 45.

The problems that have arose are:

1. Electrical shorting leading to small fire and smoke inside the drivers cabin, in turn leading to unserviceability of the cars horn, erratic dash lighting, erroneous petrol tank contents readings and the intermittent illumination of the ‘Service’ light.

2. Electrical problem leading to the car stalling at junctions, making it near impossible to steer the car in this event due to the lack of power steering. If this were to happen when traveling around a corner (which it has numerous times), it would be highly dangerous and could very easily contribute in a serious road traffic accident involving myself, my wife or my two small children if control could not be regained.

These problems were highlighted to yourselves on Saturday the 14th March 2007. As the car was under warranty issued by you I was entitled to a courtesy car, supplied to you, which was never supplied despite telephone calls each and every day up until the present. I have had no attempts from yourselves to collect the car, and have been denied a hire car as a temporary replacement. I refuse to drive this car to yourselves as I would then be doing so illegally.

All of the above problems have left me with a dangerous car which I cannot use legally on the roads. Therefore I am hereby rejecting the car and rescinding our contract under the Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act. The car is not of satisfactory quality, or fit for its purpose due to the reasons detailed above.

I am formally claiming a full refund for all monies I have paid for the car to yourselves through Black Horse Finance. This includes the price if the car, all interest and any outstanding money from the part exchange of xxxxxxx. This letter has been forwarded to Black Horse Finance’s Quality Assurance Department upon their advice and the advice of the Consumer Action Group, the Citizens Advice Bureau and the office of Trading Standards. I expect a written reply to this letter to me at the above address within seven days of receipt, which I work out to be the 9th of May 2007. Upon your acceptance of the rejection letter and once all financial agreements have been settled and signed I will return the car and collect xxxxxxx, or the financial equivalent, and not beforehand.

Yours Faithfully,

 

 

 

 

 

phew!

Edited by citizenB
removed personal details
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OK, sorry I should have stressed - since it's a credit agreement it's the Sale of Goods Act and not the Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act.

 

The dates seem wrong too - I assume you notified them on 14th April, not March, since the car was bought on 27th March.

 

I feel 7 days is also a fairly short time, you may wish to give them a bit longer to respond to show you are being reasonable.

 

Let me know what their response is and go from there.

Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.

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Guest Ruthie P

please keep us updated on this mate, go for it with them, it's disgusting that this has happened..... go for them with all guns blazing!!

 

Good luck :)

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ok im just worrying - what if they get a solicitor involved? coudl they throw out my case in a second?

 

not sure if i can afford a solicitor.

 

pw

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The small claims court is a very fair process. The judge will always try and view the parties on equal terms. So this means even if the other party turns up with a top QC barrister and you are representing yourself, the judge will allow for this and realise that the parties are imbalanced, and do what he can to redress this balance.

 

Most people tend to represent themselves in small claims cases (armed with plenty of advice beforehand) because this court does not generally award solicitor's fees. You CAN do it yourself, many have - just make sure you are well prepared and informed before the day, if it comes to that.

 

I've sat in as a "McKenzie Friend" on a case fairly recently (not a legal representative, but in an advisory capacity) where the defending trader had got plenty of paid legal advice from a solicitor - who had actually mis-advised him! He lost his case as his defence was basically pie in the sky. So even if people have money and pay out for legal advice, doesn't necessarily mean they'll be in a better position or better informed!

Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.

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ah i see your point. i have been having second thoughts as i do love the car, im going to give them a few more days to see if they arrange a courtesy car.

 

what is my position if they do not accept my rejection? if i do send the letter black horse said it would be better if i wanted to reject it if they dont do the work, can i just say you had your chances mr. garage and continue with the rejection?

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Ask yourself this ???

 

"Do you want a car which MAY have other major faults, for the next 4 years"

 

"Do you trust this garage to fix a faulty wiring loom"

 

"how many people used your car, as a 'courtesy' car"

 

"what about insurance on this 'courtesy' car, given that most insurance policies, now only cover other vehicles in an emergency"

 

IMHO Bin the car!

 

p.s. yours would not be the first scenic to catch fire due to a wiring fault.

I don't always believe what I say, I'm just playing Devils Advocate

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"what about insurance on this 'courtesy' car, given that most insurance policies, now only cover other vehicles in an emergency"

 

 

Interesting. I have never seen anything about "in an emergency" as a restriction on this; and we have 3 separate police all with different companies in this household.

 

What is defined as an emergency; who defines it?

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In the CIS insurance policies,

 

Emergency: means an unexpected urgent situation or sudden state of danger that requires immediate action.

 

Note a bad definition, as far as insurance legal speak goes :)

I don't always believe what I say, I'm just playing Devils Advocate

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well i had a ponder and a sleep over it, and the letter went off recorded today. i also spoke to trading standards over at glasgow council and they were very helpful. they said they and the consumer advice group? would be able to step in and help out.

 

its been 3 weeks now so i think ive left it a reasonable amount of time, just waiting for the snotty phone call from them. im going to not allow them to carry out work even if they offer to collect the car.

 

as i have already had a reasonable amount of time for them to get it fixed, according to the consumer advice people i can say i no longer wish for them to carry out the work so the only option i am left with is to reject the car.

 

i await their reponse (nervous)

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  • 2 weeks later...

it has now been a week since i posted the letter and it came back today as noone bothered to go to the post office and collect it.

 

i sent a copy to black horse on the same day and they said they had forwarded the details on to lomond car centre.

 

if they didnt recieve the letter they wouldnt have known about me rejecting the car - and they havent rang - it makes it a month now.

 

ill ring black horse on monday morning and confirm the garages address to make sure i had it right (pretty sure i did) and ask their advice for what happens next.

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Phoned black horse finance today and they said that the garage had contacted them and said they were prepared to carry out the work.

 

I am in no way happy for them to do this and wish to reject the car.

 

What kind of position am i now in if they refuse to let me reject the car?

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Phoned glasgow council awaiting a call from Trading Standards. Black horse dont seem too keen to help, Trading Standards did howeve ralso say that i could claim from Black Horse if the garage were no help as they are joint liable.

Any comments?

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we have just purchased a bmw 535 touring from our local dealer, we took delivery of the car on the 24th April 2007 and within a week the entire incar computer stopped working, and discovered that the roof rails were corroded. My husband booked it into the garage to have this fixed and in the meantime we took the vehicle on a long weekend to France, during our trip the warning light came on to warn that we had a puncture, this was checked by the garage in france and found to be fault (ie we did not have a puncture) - we took the car into the dealer last Wed (16th May 2007) to be told that the car did in fact have a punture and it would cost us £216 plus vat for a new tyre! We were not prepared to pay this price so booked the car into another local garage (which we have used for years and trust) to fit the new tyre - I collected the car from the dealer this afternoon (21st May 2007) and took it to have the tyre replaced, the trustworthy garage discovered that

a) dealer had curbed the alloy on repair

b) two rear wheel rims cracked and potentially very dangerous, thus indicating to the on board computer that there was a puncture when in fact there was not!

 

I am very upset and would like to reject the vehicle, cancel the credit agreement and have a full refund - how do we stand legally?:-? :evil:

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I would suggest starting your own thread for starters...

7 years in retail customer service

 

Expertise in letting and rental law for 6 years

 

By trade - I'm an IT engineer working in the housing sector.

 

Please note that any posts made by myself are for information only and should not and must not be taken as correct or factual. If in doubt, consult with a solicitor or other person of equal legal standing.

 

Please click the star if I have helped!!

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I have been onto Black Horse finance today and they said their accounts manager has spoken to the garage and they are not going to accept rejection of the car (suprise suprise) and they will be passing their exact reasons why in writing in the next few days.

 

I mentioned the Black Horse are legally as liable as the garage to my representative at quality assurance and he basically said they would look at the case, but if the garage has a good reason to accept rejection they also would go along with it.

 

Im not happy about this, however i am yet to see a reply from trading standards. Looks like I may have to go through a solicitor to claim rejection from either the garage or black horse finance, and im very worried about the cost of this, and even if it will be worth it.

 

Any advice please?

 

Paul

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