Private Car Sale
Discussion
Hi everybody,
this is my first post here as i'm looking for some advice.
I recently sold a car privately. The car was working perfectly well and I'd recently been on a family holiday in it with no problems.
Anyway, the buyers are asking for a refund because they say the car is faulty.
I was contacted by the buyer a few days after the sale. She said that she had the vehicle inspected by a mechanic friend and it has a number of faults! One being the DPF and Engine had been removed recently and it is unsafe to drive????!!!!! Another being that the car cuts out when it hits 3000revs. (this never happened whilst I drove it)
I know nothing about cars and I told her that none of this was done whilst I owned the vehicle, and I didn't know of any faults with the car. Like i said, I went on holiday with my wife & kids in the car and experienced no problems.
She also said that there are bolts missing and loose pipes under the bonnet which can be clearly seen????, I politely pointed out to her that when she and her husband came to look at the car, they looked under the bonnet at the engine, under the car and took it for a test drive and were more than happy with it at the time.
I have since received a letter from her with some photos of the engine and a list of faults. She is also threatening me with legal action.
I've never been in a situation like this before and its giving me sleepless nights with worry.
I've read about the 'Buyer Beware' and the 'sale of goods act', but I'm still unsure of what to do????
For all I know they could've damaged the engine if they changed their minds about the car????
Do they have a case against me as it was a private sale??
Any help and advice much appreciated.
Thanks
this is my first post here as i'm looking for some advice.
I recently sold a car privately. The car was working perfectly well and I'd recently been on a family holiday in it with no problems.
Anyway, the buyers are asking for a refund because they say the car is faulty.
I was contacted by the buyer a few days after the sale. She said that she had the vehicle inspected by a mechanic friend and it has a number of faults! One being the DPF and Engine had been removed recently and it is unsafe to drive????!!!!! Another being that the car cuts out when it hits 3000revs. (this never happened whilst I drove it)
I know nothing about cars and I told her that none of this was done whilst I owned the vehicle, and I didn't know of any faults with the car. Like i said, I went on holiday with my wife & kids in the car and experienced no problems.
She also said that there are bolts missing and loose pipes under the bonnet which can be clearly seen????, I politely pointed out to her that when she and her husband came to look at the car, they looked under the bonnet at the engine, under the car and took it for a test drive and were more than happy with it at the time.
I have since received a letter from her with some photos of the engine and a list of faults. She is also threatening me with legal action.
I've never been in a situation like this before and its giving me sleepless nights with worry.
I've read about the 'Buyer Beware' and the 'sale of goods act', but I'm still unsure of what to do????
For all I know they could've damaged the engine if they changed their minds about the car????
Do they have a case against me as it was a private sale??
Any help and advice much appreciated.
Thanks
rigga said:
Have you not read anybody the above? I presume you sold it with a valid mot? Then it was roadworthy you have nothing to worry about.
Yes I have read everyones comments, but I've also read up on this kind of situation, and an MOT does not actually mean the car is roadworthy, because it was obviously roadworthy at time of mot but a few months down the line it might not be! I feel better though and like you've all said she's just clutching at straws
EskimoArapaho said:
If she does do that, it will cost her a bit to start the ball rolling (via MoneyClaim Online). Not much at first.
Then you'll receive a paperwork from the court. It may seem scary, but it's just routine. She could be claiming that the car was full of dodo droppings and the court would still send out the paperwork. There's a form to fill in to file a defence (as discussed above). It's got a time limit on it, so do not ignore/defer that.
Then the court writes to her to tell her that you've filed a defence. She now has to decide whether to pay more fees to proceed. If she does, then the case will get assigned to a court and you get another batch of paperwork, including the chance to ask for it to be your local court (if it's not already). Bear in mind that - so far - no-one in the justice system has looked to see if the buyer's case has any merit - it's just a paper-shuffling exercise.
You will also both be asked if you are willing to try to mediate. You don't have to agree, and that will not prejudice your case. If you both agree, a date for the mediator will be set and s/he will speak to you both by phone (in turn not in a conference call) with the sole purpose of seeing if there's a middle-ground financial figure and/or agreed action that would be acceptable to both parties to settle the issue. The mediator does NOT decide the rights/wrongs, but will have the complaint and defence paperwork. (1)
If the mediator cannot find the compromise (or if you don't want mediation), a date gets set at court (which I also think costs the buyer yet more in fees). And only then will a legal professional look at the evidence/merits of the buyer's complaint and your defence.
If you are really worried, prepare a little now. Print out EVERYTHING with dates added. Write out as much of the conversation - date of test drive, what was said, how long, etc - as you can remember. Create a paper file in strict chronological order. The better prepared you are with the facts, the better your chances will be, other things being equal. (2)
IMHO, at no point mention anything about roadworthiness. You are not an expert - all you know was to get the car MOTed when it was due, and that's what it was sold with.
Don't fret. Good luck.
(1) In my case, the mediator tried to exert pressure to settle very close to the other party's position, talking about the greater risks I was running: "Well, the other party has spoken to their company's solicitor, and he is absolutely certain of getting a full settlement with costs if it goes to court. It could get much worse for you than the settlement they're offering now."
(2) In my case, I had emails/dates that the other side had lost/forgotten, and when I gave the details and quotes to the mediator (and her to them), they softened and we met more or less in the middle, and with an agreed rectification action required on their part.
Thanks for that, just out of interest what was your case? You don't have to tell us tho Then you'll receive a paperwork from the court. It may seem scary, but it's just routine. She could be claiming that the car was full of dodo droppings and the court would still send out the paperwork. There's a form to fill in to file a defence (as discussed above). It's got a time limit on it, so do not ignore/defer that.
Then the court writes to her to tell her that you've filed a defence. She now has to decide whether to pay more fees to proceed. If she does, then the case will get assigned to a court and you get another batch of paperwork, including the chance to ask for it to be your local court (if it's not already). Bear in mind that - so far - no-one in the justice system has looked to see if the buyer's case has any merit - it's just a paper-shuffling exercise.
You will also both be asked if you are willing to try to mediate. You don't have to agree, and that will not prejudice your case. If you both agree, a date for the mediator will be set and s/he will speak to you both by phone (in turn not in a conference call) with the sole purpose of seeing if there's a middle-ground financial figure and/or agreed action that would be acceptable to both parties to settle the issue. The mediator does NOT decide the rights/wrongs, but will have the complaint and defence paperwork. (1)
If the mediator cannot find the compromise (or if you don't want mediation), a date gets set at court (which I also think costs the buyer yet more in fees). And only then will a legal professional look at the evidence/merits of the buyer's complaint and your defence.
If you are really worried, prepare a little now. Print out EVERYTHING with dates added. Write out as much of the conversation - date of test drive, what was said, how long, etc - as you can remember. Create a paper file in strict chronological order. The better prepared you are with the facts, the better your chances will be, other things being equal. (2)
IMHO, at no point mention anything about roadworthiness. You are not an expert - all you know was to get the car MOTed when it was due, and that's what it was sold with.
Don't fret. Good luck.
(1) In my case, the mediator tried to exert pressure to settle very close to the other party's position, talking about the greater risks I was running: "Well, the other party has spoken to their company's solicitor, and he is absolutely certain of getting a full settlement with costs if it goes to court. It could get much worse for you than the settlement they're offering now."
(2) In my case, I had emails/dates that the other side had lost/forgotten, and when I gave the details and quotes to the mediator (and her to them), they softened and we met more or less in the middle, and with an agreed rectification action required on their part.
Hello again, is this ok for my response to the courts??
The defendants thoroughly inspected the car inside
and out, including under the bonnet whilst revving the engine,
underneath the car and the exhaust pipe. She also took it for a
test drive and seemed very pleased. Later that day she phoned me
to make an offer, which I accepted, and she paid a deposit for me
to take the advert down.
Approximately 2 hours after collecting the car the following week,
the defendant phoned me stating the car had seemed to lose power
but didn't cut out. Therefore they were going to take the car to a
mechanic friend of theirs. I had never experienced anything like
this whilst i drove the car.
I then received contact 4 days later saying their mechanic friend
has looked at the car and found a number of faults - some of which
were 'clearly visible' when looking under the bonnet, yet these
'clearly visible' faults were not seen or picked up on during the
initial inspection.
I was also told that the car wouldn't go over 3000rpm, again a
problem I had never experienced, and didn't happen during their
inspection when the engine was revved or on the test drive.
None of the faults that were listed were apparent to me, if there
at all, whilst I owned the car.
Regarding the 'DPF filter' removal, this most certainly was not
removed whilst I owned the car.
The reason for not responding to the initial written contact
(apart from being under no obligation to) is that I was not given
a postal address, just an email address, and I didn't think it was
very formal to respond to the email address given regarding this
matter.
If I felt the car was not 'fit for purpose' there is no way
whatsoever I would've taken my wife and 3 children on a family
holiday in it just a few weeks prior.
Hope thats ok, any tips or advise are appreciated.
The defendants thoroughly inspected the car inside
and out, including under the bonnet whilst revving the engine,
underneath the car and the exhaust pipe. She also took it for a
test drive and seemed very pleased. Later that day she phoned me
to make an offer, which I accepted, and she paid a deposit for me
to take the advert down.
Approximately 2 hours after collecting the car the following week,
the defendant phoned me stating the car had seemed to lose power
but didn't cut out. Therefore they were going to take the car to a
mechanic friend of theirs. I had never experienced anything like
this whilst i drove the car.
I then received contact 4 days later saying their mechanic friend
has looked at the car and found a number of faults - some of which
were 'clearly visible' when looking under the bonnet, yet these
'clearly visible' faults were not seen or picked up on during the
initial inspection.
I was also told that the car wouldn't go over 3000rpm, again a
problem I had never experienced, and didn't happen during their
inspection when the engine was revved or on the test drive.
None of the faults that were listed were apparent to me, if there
at all, whilst I owned the car.
Regarding the 'DPF filter' removal, this most certainly was not
removed whilst I owned the car.
The reason for not responding to the initial written contact
(apart from being under no obligation to) is that I was not given
a postal address, just an email address, and I didn't think it was
very formal to respond to the email address given regarding this
matter.
If I felt the car was not 'fit for purpose' there is no way
whatsoever I would've taken my wife and 3 children on a family
holiday in it just a few weeks prior.
Hope thats ok, any tips or advise are appreciated.
The claim is as follows:
I purchased a car off the defendant after being told it had been looked at by a mechanic and was sound but within 2 hours of driving away an engine fault presented itself.
After investigation by a professional mechanic, we found the vehicle to have several faults and the DPF filter had been removed making the car an mot failure.
None of which had been declared before the sale. We notified the defendant by phone on the same day about the fault & have since written to him for a resolution but have had no response. We feel the car is not fit for purpose.
That's it.
I purchased a car off the defendant after being told it had been looked at by a mechanic and was sound but within 2 hours of driving away an engine fault presented itself.
After investigation by a professional mechanic, we found the vehicle to have several faults and the DPF filter had been removed making the car an mot failure.
None of which had been declared before the sale. We notified the defendant by phone on the same day about the fault & have since written to him for a resolution but have had no response. We feel the car is not fit for purpose.
That's it.
charltjr said:
The text of that claim makes it even clearer that they don't understand the difference between a private sale and buying from a trader.
As others have said I'd just refute their statement point by point. One thing though, you still haven't posted the original text of your advert and that's about the only place you might come unstuck if you've made too many claims about the car.
Hi the original advert went: As others have said I'd just refute their statement point by point. One thing though, you still haven't posted the original text of your advert and that's about the only place you might come unstuck if you've made too many claims about the car.
Very low genuine milage Mazda 5. Excellent condition throughout.
Full Mazda Service History. MOT until April 2015 with no advisories, Tax until end Jan 2015. Insurance group 6.
Lovely to drive, very comfortable and very spacious.
Very well looked after car. Ideal for families with 2+ children, lots of room to put all the things that come with kids
Only selling because we have another MPV and we have no need for 2.
Cheapest of this model with low milage online.
Any further questions or to arrange a viewing please contact me.
B'stard Child said:
So who gutted the DPF??
Sorry missed your statement that you weren't aware of any DPF removal whilst in your ownership
Not a clue mate. I even wondered whether they'd changed their mind about the car & their mechanic friend did the necessary stuff for them to complain??? I don't knowSorry missed your statement that you weren't aware of any DPF removal whilst in your ownership
Edited by B'stard Child on Monday 13th October 14:10
BlackLabel said:
What a nightmare - looking at the above 2 posts it appears the claimant doesn't have a leg to stand on. But yes seek legal advice.
Mods, can this thread not be moved over to S,P and L? It might assist the OP more. If of course he has posting rights in that forum.
Is there any way I can move it to S,P &L? Mods, can this thread not be moved over to S,P and L? It might assist the OP more. If of course he has posting rights in that forum.
Thanks
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