Van Purchase

[Emz]

Hi,

My son purchased a van on the 31st August this year and paid £3k for it from a dealer. It came without warranty and the paperwork they gave him, made that very clear.

On the 15th day after purchase, the van would not start. He called the AA and they advise the head gasket has gone and the engine is broken. The van is a mechanical write off. He is absolutely gutted – £3k for 15 days driving is really heartbreaking for a lad trying to make his way in the world. Tried contacting dealer and they will not return my call.

Does he have any rights here, or does he just need to accept that he has lost £3k.

Thank you for your help.

[Kati]

Re: Van Purchase

tagging [MENTION=39710]des8[/MENTION] [MENTION=71570]R0b[/MENTION] [MENTION=39331]ostell[/MENTION] ... hopefully they can help xx

[paulajayne]

Re: Van Purchase

Head gasket is a simple job. Is that all that is wrong with it?

[des8]

Re: Van Purchase

Hi and welcome

No, he has not lost everything, but he may have a fight on his hands to recover his money.

He needs to write to the trader asap.
He tells the dealer the van does not comp[y with the implied terms of the contract and that he is exercising his short term right to cancel the contract.
Tell the dealer where the van is for collection. by the dealer at the dealer's expense and that he requires a full refund of the purchase price within 14 days.

There may be other ways of recovering his payment:
How did your son pay for the van? cash/finance/credit card/debit card?

[des8]

Re: Van Purchase

Head gasket is a simple job. Is that all that is wrong with it?

Blown head gasket can lead to coolant leaking into pistons,where it can superheat and increase compression levels.
Result can be warped head, con rods & valves bent and even a damaged block

Coolant leaking into the oil reduces lubrication and cooling functions and can be catastrophic

[Emz]

Re: Van Purchase

Hi again.

Thanks so much for your response. I will write to them immediately and get that letter posted tomorrow.

.

There may be other ways of recovering his payment:
How did your son pay for the van? cash/finance/credit card/debit card?

It was a credit card that was used, so we will contact them tomorrow to see if there is any recourse that way.

I really appreciate your help - thank you.

[Emz]

Re: Van Purchase

Hi,

You are absolutely right about the additional damage that can be caused by a head gasket. I am unsure as to the exact details, but the AA guy told me the whole engine was shot and that the head is warped and all pistons (I believe he said) are bent. He recommended either a recon engine - or just plain scrapping...?

- - - Updated - - -

He needs to write to the trader asap.
He tells the dealer the van does not comp[y with the implied terms of the contract and that he is exercising his short term right to cancel the contract.
Tell the dealer where the van is for collection. by the dealer at the dealer's expense and that he requires a full refund of the purchase price within 14 days.

Sorry - one more question if I may, can you advise what his 'short term right to cancel' is? I guess I should specify that in the letter?

Thank you again.

[R0b]

Re: Van Purchase

I assume this is second hand but the difficult sometimes is that if a vehicle is old plus high mileage and parts need replacing, it's hard to place blame on the dealer to spend their money on carrying out all of the replacement parts - it's a moot point. That being said, if the vehicle is worn down then it should also come with certain caveats on the advertisement or if inspected in person the dealer should perhaps make you aware of possible problems with the car, particularly if it came with no warranty. Otherwise you would expect the car to be fit for purpose and of satisfactory quality, which on the face of it may sound like the dealer is in breach.

If the credit card was your son's credit card, then he would be able to make a section 75 claim. A section 75 claim derives it's title from section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, meaning that any purchase which has a value of £100 or more, providing that some or all of that price is made by credit card, then the credit card company is jointly liable for any breach of contract or misrepresentation as if it were the dealer.

If the credit card was yours or someone else's then I am afraid your son won't be able to rely on it, as the credit card used must be for the benefit of the person whose name it is in.

A short term right to cancel is if the dealer is in breach of an implied term of the contract under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 e.g. satisfactory quality, fit for purpose etc. then your son can terminate the agreement and obtain a refund. The onus is on your son to prove there was a defect/fault on the vehicle within the first 30 days if he is looking to terminate and this is usually done by obtaining a report of the vehicle confirming the current condition of it. If the AA guy had filled out some paperwork after attending the vehicle then you could possibly get away with that as evidence instead of having to fork out more money for a specific report.

[des8]

Re: Van Purchase

Hi,


Sorry - one more question if I may, can you advise what his 'short term right to cancel' is? I guess I should specify that in the letter?

Thank you again.

The right to reject is derived from the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
There is a short term right which is effective during the first 30 days.
If that right is exercised the purchaser is entitled to a full refund.
Then there is the final right to reject. If that right is exercised the trader can make a deduction for usage of the vehicle.
There are other differences, but no point in discussing them at the moment.


Regarding the credit card the claim would be a CCA1974 sec 75 claim for breach of contract.

[Emz]

Re: Van Purchase

R0b - I cannot thank you enough for your help.

Sadly, it was my husbands credit card. I will write to the dealer, but I don’t expect much to come of it if I’m honest.

Thank you!

- - - Updated - - -

Thank you des8. I will write the letter for him today and if we get nowhere during the 14 days I give them to come and remove the vehicle, I will come back to you about the right to refuse. Thanks again.

[R0b]

Re: Van Purchase

If you want any one of us to look over a draft before you send it off, post it up on here (with your son's personal info redacted) and we can take a look at it and add any comments we might have

[Emz]

Re: Van Purchase

If you want any one of us to look over a draft before you send it off, post it up on here (with your son's personal info redacted) and we can take a look at it and add any comments we might have

Thank you for offering to look at this for me. Attached for your review.

(Amethyst comment -> I've pasted letter a couple posts along, and moderated the attachment, as there was ID info (car reg, names etc) )

[des8]

Re: Van Purchase

Sorry, but I can't open attachment.
Problem is my computer has crashed, and the one I'm using hasn't got Word and I'm too computer illiterate to find a way round the probem!
Await [MENTION=71570]R0b[/MENTION] for comment

[Amethyst]

Re: Van Purchase

Sorry, but I can't open attachment.
Problem is my computer has crashed, and the one I'm using hasn't got Word and I'm too computer illiterate to find a way round the probem!
Await [MENTION=71570]R0b[/MENTION] for comment

Just for you Des xx

( actually I'm going to take the letter on word down as it's got reg and ID info on )

Dear Sir,

Ref: Fiat xxxxxxx – xxxxxxxxxx

I purchased the above Fiat xxxxxxxx from you on the 31st August 2017 for the price pf £3,000.

On the 15th September 2017, the vehicle would not start. I called The AA and they have advised me that the Head Gasket has gone and the pistons are bent. They have further advised that vehicle is a mechanical write-off.

I have tried to call you on various occasions and have been advised that Bud xxxxxxxxx would call me back. To date, I am still awaiting that call back.

I am writing to advise you that the van does not comply with the implied terms of our contract. It was clearly not of a satisfactory condition or fit for purpose. I am therefore, exercising my short term right under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, to cancel the contract and require a full refund from you within 14 days of the date of this letter.

The vehicle is located at the above address and you are welcome to come and remove at the same time the refund is given.

I look forward to hearing from you within the next 14 days.

Yours sincerely,

[R0b]

Re: Van Purchase

Had a quick look, and it looks fine generally but I've added a few comments and additional wording to bulk it out a little more. Up to you whether you want to include it or not.

I would also add suggest adding to the letter and make specific reference to the inclusion of any evidence i.e. the AA report (if any) also a proof of purchase. You could also add some additional wording to contact you for bank details for the refund.