Private secondhand car sale legalilty
Discussion
Hi all,
Need help.
I sold a car friday to a buyer for £671 quid (via ebay), i delivered it for them for a charge of £20 and upon arrival log book sign money exchanged i asked if they want to come take a look at it, which they declined.
I had a call Monday to say the car had broken done and had a leaking clutch master cylinder and that the AA man claimed it had been doing so for atleast a week (a week i had done 800miles in it prior to selling). He then told them i had to offer them a 2 month warrenty evne as a private seller.
I have since had calls and emails insisting i repair the car as i knew about the fault, (now im no mechanic and couldn't even tell you where it was, apparently under the car!!!!), and i have obviously declined saying that is there responsibility not mine, to which i have had threats of Trading Standard and small claims court.
I have researched this and as far as i can see, if you by from a private seller, all the car needs to be is a match to the description, which it was and the fact they declined the offer of viewing the car i feel its solely there resposibilty now!!
Am i correct in thinking this?
Thank good we in the TVR enviroment are not like this, we would never buy or sell any cars!!!!
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Mark
Need help.
I sold a car friday to a buyer for £671 quid (via ebay), i delivered it for them for a charge of £20 and upon arrival log book sign money exchanged i asked if they want to come take a look at it, which they declined.
I had a call Monday to say the car had broken done and had a leaking clutch master cylinder and that the AA man claimed it had been doing so for atleast a week (a week i had done 800miles in it prior to selling). He then told them i had to offer them a 2 month warrenty evne as a private seller.
I have since had calls and emails insisting i repair the car as i knew about the fault, (now im no mechanic and couldn't even tell you where it was, apparently under the car!!!!), and i have obviously declined saying that is there responsibility not mine, to which i have had threats of Trading Standard and small claims court.
I have researched this and as far as i can see, if you by from a private seller, all the car needs to be is a match to the description, which it was and the fact they declined the offer of viewing the car i feel its solely there resposibilty now!!
Am i correct in thinking this?
Thank good we in the TVR enviroment are not like this, we would never buy or sell any cars!!!!
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Mark
As far as I'm aware you agreed a price, they should have looked at/paid for an inspection, you haven't falsley advertised it, you did the deal so 'caveat emptor'. I believe only trade sales need to offer a warranty.
I would contact trading standards and ask them, you can then throw this back at them which should stop the emails and hastle. Good luck!!
I would contact trading standards and ask them, you can then throw this back at them which should stop the emails and hastle. Good luck!!
Edited by S6 Devil on Thursday 7th July 11:20
you are 100% OK. In a private sale it is for the buyer to satisfy himself that they know what they are buying as neither party is deemed to be an expert. He has not got a leg to stand on at all. The only exceptions are if you deliberately lie about the item being sold, eg its a 2006 and it's really a 2002. The fact that it has a fault that you did not know about is not a lie and it's his problem entirely. The bit about 14 day warranty is just total made up crap. Invite him to sue you or shut up.
I know what I'm on about and I didn't know mine had a leaky slave cylinder until I found that my clutch disappeared 30 miles from home. It had plainly been peeing for a while from the fluid on the bottom of the car but since I sit in it not under it how would I know that?
I know what I'm on about and I didn't know mine had a leaky slave cylinder until I found that my clutch disappeared 30 miles from home. It had plainly been peeing for a while from the fluid on the bottom of the car but since I sit in it not under it how would I know that?
I understand that the main principle for buying a second hand car privately is "Caveat emptor" - buyer beware. Beyond that it must not be mis-described and must be roadworthy. If you pay £671 for a car you are likely to get a car worth a small amount of money and therefore problems. I think the 2 month warranty relates to dealer sales. Trawl the web for more info.
Getsis said:
Sounds like you have done nothing wrong, I would tell them that if they want to pursue a claim they should go to the small claims court but even if they do they will no doubt rule on your side.
Yes. Just restate that you sold the vehicle as described to the best of your knowledge (which is all the law demands). The buyer has the option to go to the small claims court (who would chuck it out anyway), but you have acted within the law, so he can only lose (and lose money too).What this has to do with TVRs i dont know :-)
i sold someone a renault espace diesel turbo, with a working dvd drop down screen, six months tax and in great nick fro £300. I did not have the chance to ask them to view as they sniped it at the end of auction. i had been using it for a few weeks driving 60 miles a day. when they came down, the husband was an mot tester but said it was too cold for him to check the car over, they drove 150 miles back to leicester and complained 2 weeks later that it needed a new clutch and left me negative feedback!
takes all sorts, i just suppose some people are more desperate than we realise
i sold someone a renault espace diesel turbo, with a working dvd drop down screen, six months tax and in great nick fro £300. I did not have the chance to ask them to view as they sniped it at the end of auction. i had been using it for a few weeks driving 60 miles a day. when they came down, the husband was an mot tester but said it was too cold for him to check the car over, they drove 150 miles back to leicester and complained 2 weeks later that it needed a new clutch and left me negative feedback!
takes all sorts, i just suppose some people are more desperate than we realise
Milky400 said:
Hi all,
Need help.
I sold a car friday to a buyer for £671 quid (via ebay), i delivered it for them for a charge of £20 and upon arrival log book sign money exchanged i asked if they want to come take a look at it, which they declined.
I had a call Monday to say the car had broken done and had a leaking clutch master cylinder and that the AA man claimed it had been doing so for atleast a week (a week i had done 800miles in it prior to selling). He then told them i had to offer them a 2 month warrenty evne as a private seller.
I have since had calls and emails insisting i repair the car as i knew about the fault, (now im no mechanic and couldn't even tell you where it was, apparently under the car!!!!), and i have obviously declined saying that is there responsibility not mine, to which i have had threats of Trading Standard and small claims court.
I have researched this and as far as i can see, if you by from a private seller, all the car needs to be is a match to the description, which it was and the fact they declined the offer of viewing the car i feel its solely there resposibilty now!!
Am i correct in thinking this?
Thank good we in the TVR enviroment are not like this, we would never buy or sell any cars!!!!
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Mark
I'm afraid I can't help on the legal questions, but there are some really horrible people about aren't there. Hope they give up and the problem goes away. Need help.
I sold a car friday to a buyer for £671 quid (via ebay), i delivered it for them for a charge of £20 and upon arrival log book sign money exchanged i asked if they want to come take a look at it, which they declined.
I had a call Monday to say the car had broken done and had a leaking clutch master cylinder and that the AA man claimed it had been doing so for atleast a week (a week i had done 800miles in it prior to selling). He then told them i had to offer them a 2 month warrenty evne as a private seller.
I have since had calls and emails insisting i repair the car as i knew about the fault, (now im no mechanic and couldn't even tell you where it was, apparently under the car!!!!), and i have obviously declined saying that is there responsibility not mine, to which i have had threats of Trading Standard and small claims court.
I have researched this and as far as i can see, if you by from a private seller, all the car needs to be is a match to the description, which it was and the fact they declined the offer of viewing the car i feel its solely there resposibilty now!!
Am i correct in thinking this?
Thank good we in the TVR enviroment are not like this, we would never buy or sell any cars!!!!
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Mark
I wouldn't worry, I had a car that I sold and the new owner was concerned about the clutch. It had been fine for me and I had no such concerns.
Clutch went a week or 2 later but you cannot know how the new owner has been driving etc.
Never heard anything again. It is up to the buyer to satisfy themselves before handing over the money. If they are not happy they should not proceed with the purchase from a Private seller and buy a car from a trader.
Clutch went a week or 2 later but you cannot know how the new owner has been driving etc.
Never heard anything again. It is up to the buyer to satisfy themselves before handing over the money. If they are not happy they should not proceed with the purchase from a Private seller and buy a car from a trader.
He's trying it on, provided you did not misdescribe the vehicle he can do one. Someone tried it on with my younger brother in the same it got as far as small claims court where he didn't turn up. Tell him to shut it, he had a chance to satisfy himself and chose not to exercise this, caveat emptor and his own fault.
As with the others , in a private sale no warranty whatsoever , cars sold for sub £1000 are normally regarded as 'spares or repairs' and even a dealer does not have to give any warranty at this price level .
Furthermore - you offered the buyer the chance to inspect the car before the deal was concluded - he declined .
No one can say how long the cylinder had been leaking - they can just fail suddenly - AA man's statement that it had been leaking for a week is just conjecture .
By all means check with Citizens' advice if you are worried - they will tell you the same .
Furthermore - you offered the buyer the chance to inspect the car before the deal was concluded - he declined .
No one can say how long the cylinder had been leaking - they can just fail suddenly - AA man's statement that it had been leaking for a week is just conjecture .
By all means check with Citizens' advice if you are worried - they will tell you the same .
Hi,
Thanks for all your responses, Im sure i am in the right but they are being quite threatening towards the other half as they have her email address and both our numbers, i have reported this to the police just incase, i am concerned that when the V5 arrives they will have my adress!!!
In answer to your question, No they paid cash on delivery.
I have just had a call from the trading standards guys who were brillinat, they have given me some one liners to put in an email back to the buyer quoting various laws, but even though it seems we are all correct, they can still take me to small claims court.
fingers crossed
Thanks for all your responses, Im sure i am in the right but they are being quite threatening towards the other half as they have her email address and both our numbers, i have reported this to the police just incase, i am concerned that when the V5 arrives they will have my adress!!!
In answer to your question, No they paid cash on delivery.
I have just had a call from the trading standards guys who were brillinat, they have given me some one liners to put in an email back to the buyer quoting various laws, but even though it seems we are all correct, they can still take me to small claims court.
fingers crossed
They haven't seen an AA man, he wouldn't say that you need to give a warranty.
They've just used this to add weight to a non-existant claim.
You don't even know that the car has broken down! There is NO warranty in a private sale!
Don't lose any sleep on this at all, it's going nowhere.
Tim
They've just used this to add weight to a non-existant claim.
You don't even know that the car has broken down! There is NO warranty in a private sale!
Don't lose any sleep on this at all, it's going nowhere.
Tim
toxgobbler said:
He's trying it on, provided you did not misdescribe the vehicle he can do one.
This.He can take you to small claims but he won't because at some stage he will get advice from someone with more legal knowledge than an AA man and will be told that he has no chance of winning.
Unless you have used phrases like "mint condition" when describing it for sale you'll be fine.
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