The amount of time you have to make a complaint is six years (five years in Scotland), but it will be a lot harder to claim against any private vendor the longer you keep the car, so if you have a complaint, get in touch as soon as possible. Essentially, the car needs to be as described in the advert and reflect what the seller told you when you bought the car. If the car is faulty or the vendor has failed to mention something, it doesn’t necessarily mean you will be entitled to anything. And if a vendor has given a disclaimer as part of the sale, then you may not have any rights at all.
If a car isn’t as described, then you’re covered by the Sale of Goods Act 1979, which states that a car should be of a satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described in the advert. If it’s not, then you can get in touch with the seller to seek some sort of compensation, but this will usually be in the form of paying for repairs rather than a refund.
You can get quotes from a garage for repairs and come back to the seller to ask them to pay for the work. However, the seller may refuse. As with buying from a dealer, keep the seller informed about the situation, rather than landing them with a repair bill without any notice. Also, the repair bill can’t come to more than what you paid for the car in the first place.
If a seller refuses to pay for repairs, then the next compromise is for them to offer you the difference in value between what you paid and what the car is really worth.
However, if that gets you nowhere, then you can send a formal complaint letter to a vendor. There are form letters online you can use that include legal wording for such situations, and inform the seller that you are looking to escalate your complaint. Beyond that, you can choose an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) scheme. This avoids taking the complaint to the small claims court (which can be expensive and time consuming), and sees a third party intervene to help mediate between both sides of the complaint. In Scotland, a small claim is called a Simple Procedure and is limited to goods up to a value of £5,000.
Hopefully you won’t have to use any of these measures when buying a used car, but it’s good to know that you’re not alone if the vehicle you buy lets you down.
Frequently Asked Questions
Buying a car from a dealer through an online auction site gives you exactly the same legal protections as buying face to face. You are also protected when buying online by The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation, and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013. This gives you the right to cancel within 14 days of placing the order and then a further 14 days to return the car. A dealer should then issue a refund within 14 days of getting the car back.
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