Buyer paid deposit on car then pulled out. Is it refundable?
Discussion
Hi ,
I had a car for sale, had lots of interest and someone was very keen to buy but couldn't come to collect the car for 2 weeks. Over the phone we agreed that he pay £2,000 non refundable deposit and pay the balance on collection.
In the mean time I have done other bits to the car that he requested - ie put new tyres on which he agreed to pay me for on collection, and I put it through a fresh MOT and paid £400 for little bits to be done to make it perfect (which I probably would have done anyway). I have been very accommodating sending him lots of photos of things for him, which he was happy with at the time.
He has now suddenly developed 'cold feet' and is pulling out, citing a glass valuation coming in lower than he thought it would (the car has had modifications and so priced slightly higher than similar standard cars).
Now, over the phone I had stated that it would be a non refundable deposit, however in the email I sent him as a 'receipt' I didn't state non refundable (schoolboy error) however I did state the the car is now off the market and I have told other buyers that it is sold, which he agreed to. In his emails he stated 'coming to collect the car' not 'coming to view the car' so in both of our minds it was obviously sold.
Where do I stand with having to refund the deposit? I spent a lot of my time sending him extra photos / information about the car, and will now have to re-advertise and do through the whole thing again.
Thanks in advance.
I had a car for sale, had lots of interest and someone was very keen to buy but couldn't come to collect the car for 2 weeks. Over the phone we agreed that he pay £2,000 non refundable deposit and pay the balance on collection.
In the mean time I have done other bits to the car that he requested - ie put new tyres on which he agreed to pay me for on collection, and I put it through a fresh MOT and paid £400 for little bits to be done to make it perfect (which I probably would have done anyway). I have been very accommodating sending him lots of photos of things for him, which he was happy with at the time.
He has now suddenly developed 'cold feet' and is pulling out, citing a glass valuation coming in lower than he thought it would (the car has had modifications and so priced slightly higher than similar standard cars).
Now, over the phone I had stated that it would be a non refundable deposit, however in the email I sent him as a 'receipt' I didn't state non refundable (schoolboy error) however I did state the the car is now off the market and I have told other buyers that it is sold, which he agreed to. In his emails he stated 'coming to collect the car' not 'coming to view the car' so in both of our minds it was obviously sold.
Where do I stand with having to refund the deposit? I spent a lot of my time sending him extra photos / information about the car, and will now have to re-advertise and do through the whole thing again.
Thanks in advance.
Legalities aside, do you really want all that aggro in your life? People change their minds, it happens and holding them to ransom to the tune of £2k is a bit excessive. Me? I'd be hacked off but I'd give him his dosh back, life's too short to get into a scrap over a fairly sizeable sum and if you do withhold it, he's not going to go away without a fight that's for sure.
Perfect. Awaiting the hypocrites from this thread to post in the OP's favour
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
It seems it works like this
If you're a PHer who has paid a deposit, then you can demand it back in full from the seller
If you're a PHer who has received a deposit, then you can refuse to refund it at all to the purchaser.
Fantastic
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
It seems it works like this
If you're a PHer who has paid a deposit, then you can demand it back in full from the seller
If you're a PHer who has received a deposit, then you can refuse to refund it at all to the purchaser.
Fantastic
Thanks for the replies. Does anyone know the legal position on it, or is it one of the grey areas?
I feel that in a court of law, from the emails we have exchanged, the sale was definitely confirmed, and the fact that I went above and beyond for him by doing things like putting the new tyres on and sending so many photos showed that we were both under the impression that it was a done deal.
I feel that in a court of law, from the emails we have exchanged, the sale was definitely confirmed, and the fact that I went above and beyond for him by doing things like putting the new tyres on and sending so many photos showed that we were both under the impression that it was a done deal.
ol said:
Thanks for the replies. Does anyone know the legal position on it, or is it one of the grey areas?
I feel that in a court of law, from the emails we have exchanged, the sale was definitely confirmed, and the fact that I went above and beyond for him by doing things like putting the new tyres on and sending so many photos showed that we were both under the impression that it was a done deal.
I'm certain it will all be in the thread that I linked, that will state all the laws in favour of the purchaser. I feel that in a court of law, from the emails we have exchanged, the sale was definitely confirmed, and the fact that I went above and beyond for him by doing things like putting the new tyres on and sending so many photos showed that we were both under the impression that it was a done deal.
LoonR1 said:
ol said:
Thanks for the replies. Does anyone know the legal position on it, or is it one of the grey areas?
I feel that in a court of law, from the emails we have exchanged, the sale was definitely confirmed, and the fact that I went above and beyond for him by doing things like putting the new tyres on and sending so many photos showed that we were both under the impression that it was a done deal.
I'm certain it will all be in the thread that I linked, that will state all the laws in favour of the purchaser. I feel that in a court of law, from the emails we have exchanged, the sale was definitely confirmed, and the fact that I went above and beyond for him by doing things like putting the new tyres on and sending so many photos showed that we were both under the impression that it was a done deal.
ol said:
From what I have read in the linked thread it looks as though "The redress for either party for a breach of contract is the recovery of any loss incurred. Anything else is a penalty and not enforceable." So this would indicate I can deduct the cost of the new tyres, as well as costs to re-advertise the car and my time lost in the whole debacle.
If you have spent 400 on new tyres you havent lost 400 have you as it will icnrease the value of the car when you go to sell it again.We know thought that it probably wont increase it by a full 400 so you will need to come to a reasonable figure.
If all of the extras you have done are fully recouped in the next sale then all you can charge for is your wasted time and advertising.
ol said:
From what I have read in the linked thread it looks as though "The redress for either party for a breach of contract is the recovery of any loss incurred. Anything else is a penalty and not enforceable." So this would indicate I can deduct the cost of the new tyres, as well as costs to re-advertise the car and my time lost in the whole debacle.
Your problem if you do that is you are left with a car to re-sell that is better than the one you originally sold. Is that fair on the original purchaser?ol said:
From what I have read in the linked thread it looks as though "The redress for either party for a breach of contract is the recovery of any loss incurred. Anything else is a penalty and not enforceable." So this would indicate I can deduct the cost of the new tyres, as well as costs to re-advertise the car and my time lost in the whole debacle.
You want lost time, despite the other thread specifically saying that's a non-starter?Mojooo said:
If you have spent 400 on new tyres you havent lost 400 have you as it will icnrease the value of the car when you go to sell it again.
We know thought that it probably wont increase it by a full 400 so you will need to come to a reasonable figure.
If all of the extras you have done are fully recouped in the next sale then all you can charge for is your wasted time and advertising.
But he could have sold the car with the tyres he had, which he no longer has. I'd say deduct what you've had to spend out and return the rest. I'd imagine when faced with that, the guy may change his mind and buy it after all!We know thought that it probably wont increase it by a full 400 so you will need to come to a reasonable figure.
If all of the extras you have done are fully recouped in the next sale then all you can charge for is your wasted time and advertising.
Mojooo said:
ol said:
From what I have read in the linked thread it looks as though "The redress for either party for a breach of contract is the recovery of any loss incurred. Anything else is a penalty and not enforceable." So this would indicate I can deduct the cost of the new tyres, as well as costs to re-advertise the car and my time lost in the whole debacle.
If you have spent 400 on new tyres you havent lost 400 have you as it will icnrease the value of the car when you go to sell it again.We know thought that it probably wont increase it by a full 400 so you will need to come to a reasonable figure.
If all of the extras you have done are fully recouped in the next sale then all you can charge for is your wasted time and advertising.
Legally, is t this just a straight co tract law question? Ok, so you've agreed to sell car for say 30k with new tyres done, chips fixed, some new parts etc. buyer pays 2k deposit.
If you have spent say 1k of that on tyres and bits etc, it is not immediately relevant, but may become so.
If he pulls out, he has breached contract and you can claim any costs that you incur in reselling, as well as any eventual loss on sale over the agreed price, ie 30k. Now car has new tyres on etc, if you still only need to get 30k for it to be no worse off. You have to readvertise etc, but so long as you get 30k you are in the same position. So you can claim from his deposit the re advertising costs and any additional reasonable costs too.
If however, you end up selling for 29k, you can potentially claim 1k from the original buyer on top, Ie to get you back to the 30k original sale price. So you won't know your true 'loss' until you've sold the car. But you can't just hold onto his 2k then sell it next week for 30k and make 2k on the deal, you can't be seen to profit as such.
In practice though, some people would! IMHO, you ,at be best returning 1k and say once sold, if you get a similar price, you will return the rest less any re advertising costs. Unless you did get an exceptional price that you won't ever replicate in which case hold onto the lot until sold, then return any residual funds to him once ta the 30k sales price, (plus hold new selling costs).
If you have spent say 1k of that on tyres and bits etc, it is not immediately relevant, but may become so.
If he pulls out, he has breached contract and you can claim any costs that you incur in reselling, as well as any eventual loss on sale over the agreed price, ie 30k. Now car has new tyres on etc, if you still only need to get 30k for it to be no worse off. You have to readvertise etc, but so long as you get 30k you are in the same position. So you can claim from his deposit the re advertising costs and any additional reasonable costs too.
If however, you end up selling for 29k, you can potentially claim 1k from the original buyer on top, Ie to get you back to the 30k original sale price. So you won't know your true 'loss' until you've sold the car. But you can't just hold onto his 2k then sell it next week for 30k and make 2k on the deal, you can't be seen to profit as such.
In practice though, some people would! IMHO, you ,at be best returning 1k and say once sold, if you get a similar price, you will return the rest less any re advertising costs. Unless you did get an exceptional price that you won't ever replicate in which case hold onto the lot until sold, then return any residual funds to him once ta the 30k sales price, (plus hold new selling costs).
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