Sale Of Goods Act - Cars?
Sale Of Goods Act - Cars?
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Discussion

Silent1

Original Poster:

19,762 posts

266 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
I have a 2002 VX220 and a common fault on them is for condensation to build up inside the headlights due to a poor design, my drivers side headlight has now misted up to the extent it would fail an MOT due to the way it affects the light pattern.

I spoke to vauxhall with regard to possibly contributing towards the cost of replacement (£700 yikes) and they flatly refused saying it was out of warranty and their legal obligations finished there.

Would the headlights then fall under section 14 of the SOGA?

The reason i ask is basically that would it be possible for me to take them to the small claims court over this or is it going to be like pushing water up hill?
My gut feeling is that due to the sheer amount of cases of the lights building up condensation it must be a manufacturing fault, yet i don't know of any attempted cases against vauxhall for it.

Marcellus

7,210 posts

250 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
The important time is not the age of the car but when you bought it from and who......

Silent1

Original Poster:

19,762 posts

266 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
Really?

That could be an issue as i bought it privately, how would this affect it, if it did turn out to be a manufacturing fault?

Marcellus

7,210 posts

250 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
Privity of contract under the sale of goods act means that you actually have a contract with the person who sold it to you and not the person he bought it from.

Therefore, whilst Vauxhall do offer a warranty to the purchaser, and this is transferable you have no contract with Vauxhall.

The warranty has now expired so you have no real recourse on that front.

To claim on the person who you bought it from you would have to do this within a "reasonable" time, so how long ago did you buy the car?

Denis O

2,141 posts

274 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
Do you need to replace or is there a fix. If it's a known problem then I'm sure other VX owners have figured a cheap fix.

Same thing happens to e39's and various methods have been devised from a couple of hours with a hair dryer just prior to your MOT test to pulling the headlamp unit out, splitting it and sealing with a bead of clear silicone.

Hope there's a way you can save £700.

Jasandjules

72,676 posts

260 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
Marcellus said:
To claim on the person who you bought it from you would have to do this within a "reasonable" time, so how long ago did you buy the car?
In a private sale, caveat emptor would apply, and unless you directly asked the buyer about this and he recklessly (i.e. he knew or ought to have known) answered, then you have no come-back against him IMHO.

I am not even sure if you have a claim in negligence, you would not necessarily be reasonably forseeable in terms of a purchaser...


TheKeyboardDemon

713 posts

238 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
Also most people selling, or at least when I have bought privately, tend to put 'Sold as Seen' on the receipt that they give out when selling a car. Suggesting there are/is no implied warranty on their part.

Plotloss

67,280 posts

301 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
You've got no chance whatsoever.

Dry them out, reseal with silicone and carry on.

Mine were replaced under warranty but on a 5 year old car you'd get laughed out of court, if you even found a solicitor mad enough to represent you in such a case.

POORCARDEALER

8,669 posts

272 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all


Do you know that if you bought privatly and the car was on the VCAR register ie a write off, that if the seller didnt know you would have no right of recourse with them???


Buyer beware.

Silent1

Original Poster:

19,762 posts

266 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
POORCARDEALER said:
Do you know that if you bought privatly and the car was on the VCAR register ie a write off, that if the seller didnt know you would have no right of recourse with them???


Buyer beware.
How is that relevant to my headlights? Or are you telling me my car is a write off?

Plotloss said:
You've got no chance whatsoever.

Dry them out, reseal with silicone and carry on.

Mine were replaced under warranty but on a 5 year old car you'd get laughed out of court, if you even found a solicitor mad enough to represent you in such a case.
Fair enough, thanks for clearing it up. The bit i wasn't sure about was the quality of manufacture and whether that had any legal standing.

BIG DUNC

1,925 posts

254 months

Thursday 11th October 2007
quotequote all
POORCARDEALER said:
Do you know that if you bought privatly and the car was on the VCAR register ie a write off, that if the seller didnt know you would have no right of recourse with them???


Buyer beware.
As I understand it, even if the seller does know, unless you specificaly ask him ( or her ), then he ( or she ) does not have to tell you anyway. Unless the seller specificaly lies to you ( and you can prove it ), you have no chance.

This is IMHO, regarding buying a car privately.

POORCARDEALER

8,669 posts

272 months

Friday 12th October 2007
quotequote all
Silent1 said:
POORCARDEALER said:
Do you know that if you bought privatly and the car was on the VCAR register ie a write off, that if the seller didnt know you would have no right of recourse with them???


Buyer beware.
How is that relevant to my headlights? Or are you telling me my car is a write off?

Plotloss said:
You've got no chance whatsoever.

Dry them out, reseal with silicone and carry on.

Mine were replaced under warranty but on a 5 year old car you'd get laughed out of court, if you even found a solicitor mad enough to represent you in such a case.
Fair enough, thanks for clearing it up. The bit i wasn't sure about was the quality of manufacture and whether that had any legal standing.
The point I was making was you are frankly been ridiculous to think a private seller might have a responsibility for your headlights.......if they can sell you a write off without comeback what chance have you got??

Ps You did Hpi it didnt you ?? smile