Another Dodgy Secondhand Car Dealer

[Greenfrog]

That would be great, thank you

[Greenfrog]

Thanks des8

I've finished my witness statement, included below. If anyone has any comments, they would be much appreciated. I feel confident that my case to reject and the return the car is pretty rock solid. However, my only concern is that the judge may decide I should cover the repair bills. I don't think this is likely, but it worries me that I don't have any proof that the car dealer instructed for each repair. I do have proof that the car dealer instructed the first repair, but not the subsequent repairs, as this was all via phone call.

I do have one question which members of the forum maybe able to help with. I've been asked to submitted evidence. I've previously submitted the repair bills. However, I'm wondering if I should submit and email and WhatsApp chain which shows the dealer's lack of response. I've also got a copy of the advert which details that a warranty is supplied. I'm note sure if these add a lot to the case, so wondered if it's worth submitting?

Please see below witness statement:

On the 14^th of June 2021 I took delivery of a second-hand Suzuki Jimny, purchased from Harry at XXXX car garage. This was a distance purchase; I am based in Essex whilst the car dealership is in Worcestershire. I did not visit to view the car prior to purchase

As part of the negotiations for the purchase of the Suzuki Jimny, the warranty was discussed. As per the car advert, Harry advised that a full 6 month warranty would be supplied. As this was a distance purchase, it was agreed that the warranty covers repairs local to my home address.

Car was paid for and delivered on 14^th June 2021 via a bank transfer of £7,350. A deposit of £50 had previously been paid via bank transfer.

On the 26^th July I contacted Harry via Whatsapp to advise that the car had started to stall when idle. I requested that he sends me details of the warranty. I didn’t receive a reply to this message. A subsequent phone call was made to Harry, it was on this call that Harry advised he had ‘forgotten’ to complete the warranty during the purchase. Instead, Harry requested that I instruct a local garage to investigate and complete any work. Harry would then reimburse the cost to me as part of the warranty. It’s worth noting that Harry did not mention any preference to having the work done at a garage local to himself, despite his statement – clearly it wouldn’t have made sense to pay for the transfer of the car to Worcestershire for investigative work at a garage

Subsequently, the local garage was unable to fix the issue. The total cost of this work was £84, paid in full by me. Harry was kept fully up to date with this progress via phone call and Whatsapp, at this point Harry requested I take the car to the Suzuki main dealer to investigate. Suzuki made an initial attempt to repair the car. I collected the car and paid the £262.04 bill in full. After a drive of around 20 minutes, it became clear the problem had not been fixed. The car stalled and went into a limp mode, unable to accelerate past 20 miles an hour. Harry was advised of this by phone. Harry then requested I take the car back to Suzuki and ask them to investigate further. I then returned the car to Suzuki for further investigation. Further investigation was still unsuccessful, Suzuki could not find the issue. The bill at Suzuki was a further £463.20. At this point I requested Suzuki deal directly with Harry as I was concerned regarding the cost. Suzuki informed me that had called Harry who would not commit to payment or whether more work should continue. As Harry would not settle the bill (Harry had also not paid for the last two bills), I was left with no choice but to pay the bill myself.

I want to stress that all of the work carried out was done at the request and suggestion of Harry as part of the warranty cover.

The report on the state of the car from Suzuki was very negative, to quote ‘Found many things wasn’t screwed down properly or connected tight’. Furthermore, the report states that ‘Exhaust back box severely corroded’ and requires repair. This is all included in the report from Suzuki. I’ve also spoken to the service department who advise that the car runs with excessive fumes and is generally in a poor state of repair. They’ve advised I return the car as they have no way of knowing how much additional cost is required to fix whatever the issue is.

In retrospect, I should have returned the car to Harry after the first repair. However, throughout this process I had Harry’s continued assurances that he would cover the bills and that we would get the car fixed. Also, my wife required this car for work, she is an oncology nurse, who as part of her job role travels to difference locations. Once I had Harry’s word that he would honour the repairs, I had very little choice but to continue to undertake the repairs paying out of my own pocket.

After relaying much of this information back to Harry, I suggested that we return the car for a full refund. Harry initially indicated that this is the best option and we agreed to talk after the weekend (this call occurred October 22^nd). The next week I had several calls with Harry, no progress was made on any of these calls, each time a new excuse was offered as to why he couldn’t agree to anything presently. Harry would either end the call abruptly due to a customer interrupting, a pending meeting or stating he would need to agree with a business partner. Subsequently Harry stopped answering his phone.

I then sent an email advising that I wish to return the car for a full refund. My reason, which Harry initially indicated was the best option, was that this protects both parties: I will be rid of a problematic car and Harry protected from a seemingly never-ending bill from Suzuki.

As Harry was not responding to phone calls or Whatsapp messages, I sent an email. After a couple of emails, Harry replied stating ‘the onus is on you to bring the car back to us to get repaired’, this had not been discussed previously. Also, the car was a distance purchase with no prior viewing delivered by Harry. As no mention of how the car was due to be returned nor any response to my requests to settle the repairs bills had been received, this was plainly an unreasonable solution. Furthermore, the point of the warranty was, in part, to avoid any issues with mechanical problems encountered at a distance. I replied stating that the money was still owed for the repairs undertaken so far, this was not replied to. Other than the initial confirmation that Harry would pay for the repairs in lieu of a warranty, Harry has never responded to any requests for payment of bills paid so far.

On the 2^nd November, I sent a recorded letter to Harry with notice of a final rejection.

As the car is still undriveable I am claiming for the whole cost of the car. I have advised Harry that the car is ready to collect once the outstanding bills and purchase cost have been returned.

I am also claiming for the repair bills as these are covered under the warranty and have wholly been paid by myself.

Far more costs have been incurred, such as insurance & tax. I’ve not claimed for these as I wanted to simplify the case and stick explicitly to the cost of the car and it’s repair.

[des8]

that WS needs a little tweaking!
When do you need it by? I'm tied up tomorrow.

[Greenfrog]

Oh dear, sounds like I'm off the mark! To be honest, I'm not sure, the latest court order has a date of 17th Jan to request the hearing is changed or delayed, but didn't specify an actual date for the hearing.

I'm assuming once the 17th passes I'll get a fixed date for the hearing.

Any advice you could give would be much appreciated. I'll owe you a bottle of wine at least!

[des8]

Not sure where you are in the process.
Can you post up a copy of that court order (suitably redacted)please

There are examples of witness statements in the "SHORTCUTS" panel on the right hand side of this page.
They are mainly for debt cases, but it will give you an idea of how to set out a witness statement.
I'm out soon for probably all day, but will revert asap.

[Greenfrog]

Thanks for pointing me in the direction of the witness statements, I'll take a look through those.
I've attached the court order I've received. Hopefully you can view this

[des8]

Sorry for delay in response. but no rush writing your WS as no hearing date yet.

Hopefully you have now read some of the guides and have a better idea of what goes into a WS and how it has to be constructed.

You should use font Times New Roman size 12 with line spacing 1.5 and margins of 3.5cm, all on A4 paper

Sentences are numbered, as are pages, each of which needs the claim number in top right corner

Exhibits, such as text messages are number sequentially and listed on a separate index sheet

You need to be more factual and less chatty, it is not a letter but a formal document

May I suggest you try again.. it is your witness statement and it is better you do it than have it written completely by a third party.
After the preliminary paras stating who you are etc I think you should say something along the lines of:

3.On or about dd mm yy I saw an advertisement (exhibit 1) in xxxx for a Suzuki Jimny being sold by XXX of xxx Worcs.

4.On dd mm yy after negotiations I agreed to purchase the vehicle prior to seeing it and paid a deposit of £ xx by bank transfer (exhibit 2)

5.On dd.mm.yy I took delivery of the vehicle and paid the balance of £7,350.00 by bank transfer (exhibit 3)


and so on.....
Post up for tweaking when you're ready

[Greenfrog]

Hi des8 thanks for your reply. To be honest, I'd misunderstood the witness statement to be more of a script I'd run through when presenting my argument during the dispute resolution hearing. Hence the reason it was more chatty, as you pointed out.

Using the resources you directed me to, I'll put together a more formal witness statement. I did get a reply from the court and no date is set, so I have some time.

Thanks again for your help!

[Greenfrog]

Hi all, I have what I'm hoping is a more appropriate/complete witness statement.

I've tried to keep it as factual as possible, everything (apart from phone calls) backed up with evidence.

Also, I've worked to make it less chatty, I'm hoping I've achieved this. Although I admit I've found it hard to balance this with making a strong argument.
I think my case for a full refund/return for the car is strong. My only concern is that the judge may not force the defendant to make good on the outstanding invoices. I have the commitment of a warranty from the defendant, however, I'm worried that by allowing repairs to continue, the judge may think I should have put a stop to the repairs earlier (although really I think that is only reasonable with hindsight).

If anyone has some time to review, it would be much appreciated.

Please see below (I've also attached as a word doc in case it's an easier read):

IN THE XXXXX COUNTY COURT
Claim No. xxxxxx

BETWEEN:
MR CLAIMANT
Claimant
- and –
DODGY MOTOR COMPANY LIMITED
Defendant
_________________________________

WITNESS STATEMENT OF MR CLAIMANT
_________________________________



I Claimant being the Claimant in this case will state as follows;

1. I make this Witness Statement in support of my claim. A Suzuki Jimny was purchased for my wife to allow her to travel to clinics for new role she has recently started as an oncology nurse. My wife recently had a few years break from driving and wished to purchase a small SUV with an automatic gearbox. We identified the Suzuki Jimny as a good fit. However, automatic versions are in short supply, with only several being listed at time throughout the country
2.In May of 2021 I saw an advertisement on Ebay for a Suzuki Jimny being sold by Dodgy Motor Company Limited of Worcester. The car was advertised with a 6 month warrant (exhibit A)
3.On 08 06 21 after negotiations I agreed to purchase the vehicle at a distance with no prior viewing in person. A deposit of £ 50 by bank transfer (exhibit B). The car would be delivered by Dodgy Motor Company with the delivery costs included in the purchase cost
4.On 14 06 21 I took delivery of the vehicle and paid the balance of £7,350.00 by bank transfer (exhibit C)
5. On 26 07 21 the vehicle started to stall and lose power. I contacted Harry via WhatsApp to advise that the car had started to stall when idle (exhibit D). I requested that he sends me details of the warranty. I didn’t receive a reply to this message. A subsequent phone call was made to Harry, it was on this call that Harry advised he had ‘forgotten’ to complete the warranty during the purchase. Instead, Harry requested that I instruct a local garage to investigate and complete any work. Harry would then reimburse the cost to me as part of the warranty
6. 16 09 21 a repair is attempted at a local garage (exhibit E) at a cost of £84 paid by myself. After driving the car for a short distance, it became clear that the issue has not been resolved. The car has to be recovered by the AA. The same day this information was relayed to Harry via a phone call. Harry’s instruction was to take the car to the main Suzuki dealer for a detailed analysis and repair
7. 06 10 21 The repair at the Suzuki dealership is complete. The report details many problems with the car including ‘Found many things wasn’t screwed down properly or connected tight’. The total cost of £262.04 is paid by myself (exhibit F). After a short drive from the dealership the car breaks down, the car is once again undriveable. This information is relayed to Harry via phone call. Harry once again requests the car to be returned to Suzuki to fix the issue.
8. The Suzuki dealership advise that after further investigation they are not able to repair the car without significant ongoing costs. At this point the investigative costs are £463.20. As per Exhibit D, I request Harry deal directly with Suzuki as I have become very uncomfortable with the costs being incurred. The Suzuki dealership advise me that they have been unable to take payment from Harry after contacting him via phone call. It’s important to note that all efforts to repair the car have been under the instruction of Harry and his advice that the bills will be covered as part of the warranty. As Harry will not respond to myself or Suzuki, I am left with no choice but to make payment to Suzuki for the latest bill on 22.10.22 exhibit G.
9. 04.11.21 Harry signed and received (exhibit H) a letter (exhibit I) detailing my final right to reject, as per the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
10. 16.11.21 (exhibit J) Harry replied via registered post stating that I should return the car for repair. No arrangement of this, nor settlement of the outstanding bills were included. It is my opinion that this was a further attempt to avoid payment of outstanding bills and place obstacles in the way of returning the car. As per Exhibit D, Harry has been unresponsive and evasive throughout. Also Harry states in his letter that ‘’the (Suzuki Dealership) think that the garage has fitted the wrong part”, this is not the case, nor has this ever been presented as the case to Harry. The Suzuki dealership have stated that the next course of action is to review the work carried out by the local garage, on the basis that all other investigation has so far failed.
As the car is still undriveable I am claiming for the whole cost of the car. I have advised Harry that the car is ready to collect once the outstanding bills and purchase cost have been returned.
I am also claiming for the repair bills as these are covered under the warranty and have wholly been paid by myself.
Far more costs have been incurred, such as insurance & tax. I’ve not claimed for these in an effort to simplify the case.
Statement of Truth

I, xxxxxx, the Claimant, believe the facts stated within this Witness Statement to be true.


Signed: ________________________________

Dated:

[des8]

witness statements need to be very factual, without expressing opinion, or even necessarily reasons for a particular action eg no reason to day why you wanted a particular type of car as it doesn't add anything to your claim.

I've restarted your WS, perhaps you could continue reworking it as I don't have time, and it is better in your own words.
We can look it over for you.

PS who's "Harry"? an employee / the owner?


1 . I, [name], [occupation], of [address] am the Claimant in this case and will say as follows:

2. The facts contained in this witness statement come from my own knowledge. except where indicated to the contrary.
Where the facts are not within my own knowledge, I identify the sources of information or belief.
3. .In May of 2021 I saw an advertisement on Ebay for a Suzuki Jimny registration number............. being sold by Dodgy
Motor Company Limited of Worcester. The car was advertised with a 6 month warrant (exhibit A)
4 On 08 06 21 after negotiations and without viewing the vehicle I agreed to purchase it for £7,400.00 . the price included delivery and the warranty
5. I paid a deposit of £ 50 by bank transfer (exhibit B).
6.On 14 06 21 I took delivery of the vehicle and paid the balance of £7,350.00 by bank transfer (exhibit C)



I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true. I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth.

[Greenfrog]

Thanks des8 , I'll strip all opinion, etc from the witness statement.

I guess I still have the mentality that I need to put some emotive reason behind each action - when an issue like this which has so much time, money and effort involved, it's hard to move past that. But I do appreciate your guidance that this is necessary.

Thanks again for your help.

"Harry" is a bit of an enigma, I actually thought I was dealing with two different people. However I think Harry is both the person who sold me the car and also the person who has responded to my legal claim, under the name Peter. There's a couple of reviews online for the car dealership which have pointed out the same person seems to go by two names.

[Greenfrog]

Hi All, time to resurrect this thread! My court case is in 3 weeks time, so hopefully we are nearing a conclusion.

As per the very helpful advise from des8 and others, I have rewritten my statement removing all opinion, keeping it purely factual.

If anyone has the time, I'd really appreciate someone giving it the once over to ensure I'm on track.

I've copied the whole text below. The only part which concerns me is point 10. I'm trying to address a false claim in the dealer's response. I don't think I've strayed into opinion, however, I'm not sure if I should be making addressing the issue as part of the witness statement.

Any help really would be much appreciated!

THE XXX COUNTY COURT
Claim No. xxxxxx

BETWEEN:
MR Claimant
Claimant
- and –
DODGY MOTOR COMPANY LIMITED
Defendant
_________________________________

WITNESS STATEMENT OF xxxx
_________________________________



1. I, Claimant, Financial Analyst, being the Claimant in this case will state as follows;

2. The facts contained in this witness statement come from my own knowledge. except where indicated to the contrary. Where the facts are not within my own knowledge, I identify the sources of information or belief.

3. In May of 2021 I saw an advertisement on Ebay for a Suzuki Jimny registration number xxxxx being sold by Dodgy Motor Company Limited of xxxxx The car was advertised with a 6 month warrant (exhibit A)

4. On 08 06 21 after negotiations and without viewing the vehicle I agreed to purchase it for £ xxxx. the price included delivery and the warranty

5. I paid a deposit of £ xxx by bank transfer (exhibit B).

6. On 14 06 21 I took delivery of the vehicle and paid the balance of £xxx by bank transfer (exhibit C)

5. On 26 07 21 the vehicle started to stall and lose power. I contacted xxxx via WhatsApp to advise that the car had started to stall when idle (exhibit D). I requested that he sends me details of the warranty. I didn’t receive a reply to this message. A subsequent phone call was made to xxxx it was on this call that xxxx advised he had ‘forgotten’ to complete the warranty during the purchase. Instead, xxxx requested that I instruct a local garage to investigate and complete any work. Xxxx would then reimburse the cost to me as part of the warranty

6. 16 09 21 a repair is attempted at a local garage (exhibit E) at a cost of £xx paid by myself. After driving the car for a short distance, it became clear that the issue has not been resolved. The car has to be recovered by the AA. The same day this information was relayed to xxxx via a phone call. Xxxx instruction was to take the car to the main Suzuki dealer for a detailed analysis and repair

7. 06 10 21 The repair at the Suzuki dealership is complete. The report details many problems with the car including ‘Found many things wasn’t screwed down properly or connected tight’. The total cost of £xxx is paid by myself (exhibit F). After a short drive from the dealership the car breaks down, the car is once again undriveable. This information is relayed to xxx via phone call. Xxx once again requests the car to be returned to Suzuki to fix the issue.

8. The Suzuki dealership advise that after further investigation they are not able to repair the car without significant ongoing costs. At this point the investigative costs are £xxx. As per Exhibit D, I request xxx deal directly with Suzuki as I have become very uncomfortable with the costs being incurred. The Suzuki dealership advise me that they have been unable to take payment from xxx after contacting him via phone call. As xxx will not respond to myself or Suzuki, I am left with no choice but to make payment to Suzuki for the latest bill on 22.10.22 exhibit G.

9. 04.11.21 xxx signed and received (exhibit H) a letter (exhibit I) detailing my final right to reject, as per the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

10. 16.11.21 (exhibit J) xxxx replied via registered post stating that I should return the car for repair. No arrangement of this, nor settlement of the outstanding bills were included. Xxx states in his letter that ‘’the (Suzuki Dealership) think that the garage has fitted the wrong part”, this is not the case, nor has this ever been presented as the case to xxx. The Suzuki dealership stated that the next course of action is to review the work carried out by the local garage, on the basis that all other investigation has so far failed.

As the car is still undriveable I am claiming for the whole cost of the car. I have advised xxxx that the car is ready to collect once the outstanding bills and purchase cost have been returned.

I am also claiming for the repair bills as these are covered under the warranty and have wholly been paid by myself.
Statement of Truth

I, xxxxxx, the Claimant, believe the facts stated within this Witness Statement to be true.


Signed: ________________________________

Dated:

[echat11]

Greenfrog edit your post, remove all personal details / reference numbers.

[Greenfrog]

Thanks echat11 I missed the name/number plate

Unfortunately it looks like I've left it too long to edit as the edit button is not present under my post.

So far as I can see there isn't another way to edit the post

[echat11]

Thanks echat11 I missed the name/number plate

Unfortunately it looks like I've left it too long to edit as the edit button is not present under my post.

So far as I can see there isn't another way to edit the post

I've asked Admin to do that for you.