Can I claim a free repair for van under CRA 2015?

[StixUK]

Hello,
Here are the basics:

12th May 2018 - purchased a 2003-plated Ford Transit Connect van from a small trader via credit card. Paid £950 via credit card and this included £50 discount for a tyre being near legal limit that will need replacing. Mileage is 211,000 (approx).

Came with MOT that had been carried out 16th April 2018 with a pass and no advisories.
Within the first day of owning the vehicle there was an obvious issue with a wheel bearing and as I need the vehicle I had the wheel bearing replaced by my garage for a cost of £126 and put it down to one fault that I was happy to bear the cost with.

17th May - wheel bearing fixed at my local garage

18th May - contacted dealer as handbrake cable had snapped meaning that handbrake was ineffective and the dealer repaired the cable free of charge - but I had to bear the cost of fuel to take the vehicle to the garage, only a 25-mile round trip but still had to pay. Mentioned about wheel bearing verbally and didn't see the boss when collected vehicle and forgot to mention again.

12th August - vehicle has stopped going into 1st, 3rd and 5th gear. Contacted dealer on 13th August, who stated that the van is now outside of the 3-month/3,000 mile warranty stated on the sales agreement and won't be repair free of charge but will repair as a chargeable repair (i.e same as I can get from any garage).

I obviously don't agree with this as I have ended up posting here and I think I should be entitled to a repair free of charge.

My reasons for this are:

3rd fault within three months of owning the vehicle.
I figure that the burden of proof is upon the dealer to prove that I have misused the vehicle or that it is fair wear and tear - not mine.
Vehicle is not of satisfactory quality due to the number of faults within the time period of ownership

I was just wondering if someone can give me an objective view of where I stand and whether or not I am being unreasonable.

It is fair to say that I have not used the van since and the offer of repair is great but I cannot get the vehicle to the garage as it is missing 3 gears and therefore in my opinion, not roadworthy, I'd be a fool to get in the car and drive it down there. Also, to recover the vehicle there for a quote would be a one-way ticket through my free recovery with Green Flag as I couldn't get it back without paying if I didn't want the repair done there.

Any advice appreciated as I doubt myself in these situations.

[des8]

First off don't drive van.
It could be that the bearing at the top of the selector turret is failing and about to seize.
There is also a bolt in that area which sometimes sheers. If it does it can fall into the gearbox and must be removed.

Regarding your problem, as you had the bearing replaced and the brake cable also you can 't include them as evidence of an unsatisfactory vehicle.

"unsatisfactory" has to take into account the price paid, the age and mileage of the vehicle, and is what a reasonable person would consider satisfactory,
I think you need to find out exactly what is wrong with the gear selection before going further with this

IMO it is doubtful a court would agree the vehicle was unsatisfactory, but others might have contrary opinion ( R0b )

[R0b]

First of all, you've not said whether the purpose of buying the van is for commercial or consumer purposes. Unless you are a small trader or run your business as a partnership, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 doesn't apply to you.

Leaving the above to one side for the moment, I'm in inclined to agree with Des. Whilst the trader has a duty to ensure that a vehicle is in a roadworthy condition, your wheel bearing was repaired and the handbrake cable is a separate issue in itself. For a vehicle that has 211,000 miles on the clock, you surely must have known that there might be some wear and tear on the vehicle and I think a reasonable person would have raised some questions as to the vehicle's condition overall or asked to see the documentation relating to the van's repair and servicing. When selling a vehicle to a consumer, it is generally expected that a dealer should carry some form of pre-delivery inspection, which is basically an inspection of the car generally to ensure it is in a roadworthy condition and is documented with a copy given to the consumer when all the relevant paperwork is handed over.

I suppose it also comes down to how the van was advertised too, did you see it online or have a copy of the advertisement if there was one?

In reality, the cost of the repair for the gear issue may outweigh the cost of replacing the van altogether, but as Des has stated, you need to have it looked into first and determine the problem.

Just as an FYI, the CRA stipulates that the trader should bear the costs of collection or delivery in the event of faulty goods, so if you genuinely believe that the trader is at fault here, then you should insist for it to be collected at their expense, or you make the arrangements and then invoice back. Alternatively, you could meet in the middle and share the cost of returning it, if in agreement.

[StixUK]

First off don't drive van.
It could be that the bearing at the top of the selector turret is failing and about to seize.
There is also a bolt in that area which sometimes sheers. If it does it can fall into the gearbox and must be removed.

Regarding your problem, as you had the bearing replaced and the brake cable also you can 't include them as evidence of an unsatisfactory vehicle.

"unsatisfactory" has to take into account the price paid, the age and mileage of the vehicle, and is what a reasonable person would consider satisfactory,
I think you need to find out exactly what is wrong with the gear selection before going further with this

IMO it is doubtful a court would agree the vehicle was unsatisfactory, but others might have contrary opinion ( R0b )

Thank you for your advice.

[StixUK]

First of all, you've not said whether the purpose of buying the van is for commercial or consumer purposes. Unless you are a small trader or run your business as a partnership, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 doesn't apply to you.

Leaving the above to one side for the moment, I'm in inclined to agree with Des. Whilst the trader has a duty to ensure that a vehicle is in a roadworthy condition, your wheel bearing was repaired and the handbrake cable is a separate issue in itself. For a vehicle that has 211,000 miles on the clock, you surely must have known that there might be some wear and tear on the vehicle and I think a reasonable person would have raised some questions as to the vehicle's condition overall or asked to see the documentation relating to the van's repair and servicing. When selling a vehicle to a consumer, it is generally expected that a dealer should carry some form of pre-delivery inspection, which is basically an inspection of the car generally to ensure it is in a roadworthy condition and is documented with a copy given to the consumer when all the relevant paperwork is handed over.

I suppose it also comes down to how the van was advertised too, did you see it online or have a copy of the advertisement if there was one?

In reality, the cost of the repair for the gear issue may outweigh the cost of replacing the van altogether, but as Des has stated, you need to have it looked into first and determine the problem.

Just as an FYI, the CRA stipulates that the trader should bear the costs of collection or delivery in the event of faulty goods, so if you genuinely believe that the trader is at fault here, then you should insist for it to be collected at their expense, or you make the arrangements and then invoice back. Alternatively, you could meet in the middle and share the cost of returning it, if in agreement.

I have purchased the vehicle to use for consumer purposes.

I don't have the original advertisement (will learn that for the future) but it was sold with a 12 months MOT, which it has come with.

Do you have any advice on where I should go to get the issue looked into? The garage have offered to look at the vehicle but getting it down there might be an issue?

I also haven't driven the van since the issue was realised so it is currently sat around doing nothing :-(

I suppose my idea of using the CRA 2015 was that there have been too many 'faults' in such a short period of time and therefore I could argue that the vehicle is unsatisfactory within that respect. Also I understand the wear and tear argument, hence why I wanted some clarification from more objective viewpoints.

My understanding was that it was upon the trader to prove that it was wear and tear and not their when the vehicle was sold, as it was within the first 6 months of purchase.

Therefore the summary of my argument would be:

1. Vehicle is unsatisfactory because:

a. It has had three faults with 3 months and 1 day of purchase and although rectified, there are too many faults to be expected within that time period

b. it is upon the trader to prove that this was wear and tear or caused through misuse of the vehicle and therefore the assumption is that the vehicle was sold with the faults that have been presented (including the gearbox issue).

Any help appreciated.

[R0b]

You are right that where you want to obtain a repair or a replacement, the burden of proof rests with the trader to prove it was not faulty at the time it was handed over to you. The difficulty you have is that the vehicle has 211,000 miles on the clock so there is bound to be certain things that are worn out or due to be worn out. That said, the trader would have to show that when you took possession of the car it was in a roadworthy condition. For claims relating to satisfactory quality, it is determined on a number of things including:

1. any description of the goods
2. the price or other consideration for the goods
3. all the other relevant circumstances

So the trader could argue that price is a factor here (hence the £950 sale price) as well as the age of the vehicle and the mileage it has on it. You should look to see if there has been any service history or repairs carried out on the handbrake cable and/or if it has been replaced recently that might assist.

The CRA does state that if the goods do not conform because they are not of satisfactory quality and you wish for a repair then it is deemed that the goods did not conform on the day it was handed over to you (under Section 19(14)). It also states that the trader should bear the costs and that should be pointed out to him if you haven't already.

You said you paid by credit card so if the trader is unwilling to budge then you could seek to claim against your credit card provider under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, which might give you a little hope but no guarantee as they may come back with similar arguments.

I think, if you want to have any chance of being successful in this, is to write a formal letter to the trader outlining his obligations including references to the sections under the Consumer Rights Act and setting out very clearly what you require. The letter should also point out that if he still insists on not collecting the vehicle at his own cost then you will assume that his refusal will amount to a breach of his obligations under the CRA and you will seek compensation by looking to issue legal proceedings without further notice.

You should then also speak to your CC Provider to make a Section 75 claim and then send a copy of that letter to them as well as setting out any facts and background to the purchase itself. If you want any feedback on the letter then feel free to post it up and one of us will comment on it.

I'm not saying that you are wrong and not entitled to the repair, but this is just my own view of things based on experience and what you've said in your original post. But you should exhaust all options to the point that legal proceedings is now your only resort and then consider whether it is worth pursuing.

Have you had a quote from anyone in terms of the cost for replacing the handbrake cable? What about mobile mechanics, can you get a quote online?

[StixUK]

You are right that where you want to obtain a repair or a replacement, the burden of proof rests with the trader to prove it was not faulty at the time it was handed over to you. The difficulty you have is that the vehicle has 211,000 miles on the clock so there is bound to be certain things that are worn out or due to be worn out. That said, the trader would have to show that when you took possession of the car it was in a roadworthy condition. For claims relating to satisfactory quality, it is determined on a number of things including:

1. any description of the goods
2. the price or other consideration for the goods
3. all the other relevant circumstances

So the trader could argue that price is a factor here (hence the £950 sale price) as well as the age of the vehicle and the mileage it has on it. You should look to see if there has been any service history or repairs carried out on the handbrake cable and/or if it has been replaced recently that might assist.

The CRA does state that if the goods do not conform because they are not of satisfactory quality and you wish for a repair then it is deemed that the goods did not conform on the day it was handed over to you (under Section 19(14)). It also states that the trader should bear the costs and that should be pointed out to him if you haven't already.

You said you paid by credit card so if the trader is unwilling to budge then you could seek to claim against your credit card provider under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, which might give you a little hope but no guarantee as they may come back with similar arguments.

I think, if you want to have any chance of being successful in this, is to write a formal letter to the trader outlining his obligations including references to the sections under the Consumer Rights Act and setting out very clearly what you require. The letter should also point out that if he still insists on not collecting the vehicle at his own cost then you will assume that his refusal will amount to a breach of his obligations under the CRA and you will seek compensation by looking to issue legal proceedings without further notice.

You should then also speak to your CC Provider to make a Section 75 claim and then send a copy of that letter to them as well as setting out any facts and background to the purchase itself. If you want any feedback on the letter then feel free to post it up and one of us will comment on it.

I'm not saying that you are wrong and not entitled to the repair, but this is just my own view of things based on experience and what you've said in your original post. But you should exhaust all options to the point that legal proceedings is now your only resort and then consider whether it is worth pursuing.

Have you had a quote from anyone in terms of the cost for replacing the handbrake cable? What about mobile mechanics, can you get a quote online?

Thank you very much for your advice.

I have just got a couple of quotes online for the price of the vehicle and it seems that I should have paid around £1300 - £1500 for the vehicle, so I can safely assume that I have had a bargain and therefore being unreasonable in my assertion that I should force the dealer to repair the fault. Waiting on quotes, maybe he will agree with a contribution to the cost?