Has the dealer breached the law and what can I do?

[trover]

Hi I’m new to here. I recently purchased a used car and have encountered some issues. I would greatly appreciate it if anyone could shed some light on them.

I purchased the car from a dealer. The front parking sensors make noise when they shouldn't, and sometimes don't work when they should. I also noticed a huge gap between the bonnet and the front grill (as if the latch to open the bonnet has been pulled). This is very noticeable when comparing it to photos of the same model and others parked in supermarket car parks.

When I looked at the service records of the vehicle, I found an invoice for a repair involving the front bumper, parking sensors (and basically all components incorporated into the front bumper), and wheelhouse shell. The repair was paid for by the previous owner's insurance, which proves that the vehicle had a front-end collision before and was repaired (perhaps poorly).

After doing some research, I believe I'm covered by consumer protection legislation. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 requires vehicles to be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose, and as described. Otherwise, I have the right to reject the vehicle within 30 days. The burden of proof is on me to show that the fault existed at the time of purchase. However, I'm unsure if faulty parking sensors and a misaligned bumper/bonnet hood are serious enough to justify a rejection. Does the invoice suffice as proof that previous repairs were not up to standard?

Regulation 6 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 states that it is an offense (misleading omission) to omit material information that could affect my purchase decision. In my case, the dealer sold me the vehicle without informing me of its prior accident and repair history, even though they were aware of it. If I had known the vehicle was damaged and repaired, I would have walked away and found another car.

Although the car wasn't written off, it was clearly not a minor repair, such as respraying stone chips or repairing a scratch. The vehicle is 5 years old, and I'm concerned about other hidden issues, such as structural damage. Unfortunately, I’m unable to inspect behind the bumper myself.

I haven't contacted the dealer yet, as this is the first time I've encountered such a situation, and I want to make sure I don't take the wrong steps. While the dealer may rectify the parking sensor issue, I anticipate that they will deny repairing the front grill/bumper misalignment, dismissing it as merely 'cosmetic.' Do I have the option to a refund or a repair? How should I proceed? Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

[Pezza54]

Hi
Welcome to LB
It would be helpful if you can answer the following questions:
How much and how did you pay for the car?
How old is the car and what is its mileage?
When did you buy the car? Did you view it and test drive it? Did you inspect any of the paperwork (V5C, MOTs invoices for services etc) before buying it?
Is the car for private use only and purchased as a consumer?
Did the advert or the dealer say the car was in good condition?

[R0b]

Hi

You appear to be along the right lines but to be clear, the starting point is that the dealer is under no legal obligation to tell you if the car has been in an accident or had any repairs carried out unless you ask the question specifically. However, the CPUTR does imply an obligation onto the dealer that if he/she is aware the vehicle has been in an accident and/or had major damage repaired, then they would be required to inform you as that is likely to be an omission that would influence a buyer's decision.

You should be mindful that the CRA 2015 and the CPUTR have different remedies and time limits so depending on when you purchased the car, you may or may not be out of time for certain remedies.

That being said, a couple of questions:

1. How long have you had the vehicle for? It sounds like you are still within the 30 day window but wanted to check first before making an assumption.

2. Did you pay for any deposit or part of the payment on credit card?

3. What are you looking to do to resolve this, repair or reject?

[trover]

Hi
Welcome to LB
It would be helpful if you can answer the following questions:
How much and how did you pay for the car?
How old is the car and what is its mileage?
When did you buy the car? Did you view it and test drive it? Did you inspect any of the paperwork (V5C, MOTs invoices for services etc) before buying it?
Is the car for private use only and purchased as a consumer?
Did the advert or the dealer say the car was in good condition?

Hi thanks for your comment.

It cost me around £17k, and I paid in full by debit card;
It’s 5 years old and has approx 40k miles on the clock;
I bought it last week, visited the dealership in person and test drove it, but was only given the documents after making the payment;
Yes it’s for my personal use;
It doesn’t specifically state that this car is in good condition, however, as a ‘car supermarket’ type of dealer it has a generic statement assuring the quality of their cars, including the bodywork

Thanks in advance.

[trover]

Hi

You appear to be along the right lines but to be clear, the starting point is that the dealer is under no legal obligation to tell you if the car has been in an accident or had any repairs carried out unless you ask the question specifically. However, the CPUTR does imply an obligation onto the dealer that if he/she is aware the vehicle has been in an accident and/or had major damage repaired, then they would be required to inform you as that is likely to be an omission that would influence a buyer's decision.

You should be mindful that the CRA 2015 and the CPUTR have different remedies and time limits so depending on when you purchased the car, you may or may not be out of time for certain remedies.

That being said, a couple of questions:

1. How long have you had the vehicle for? It sounds like you are still within the 30 day window but wanted to check first before making an assumption.

2. Did you pay for any deposit or part of the payment on credit card?

3. What are you looking to do to resolve this, repair or reject?

Hi thanks for your reply.

Yes I’m aware that dealers aren’t obliged to declare unless it’s been written off. However, talking about specific questions, you reminded me that I’ve missed something important here.

Both the salesperson and I noticed a gap between ‘the bumper and headlights’, which he claimed to be a misalignment of the headlights, nothing to do with the bumper/front grill. He brought the car to the garage side and had it adjusted, the gap has been improved. However, I was not aware of the larger than usual gap between ‘the bonnet and front grill’ at the time.

I did asked the salesperson if the car was involved in a minor collision before, which may have caused the misalignment (between the bumper and headlights). However, he didn’t answer directly, and only assured that all their cars passed HPI. I also have no proof that I asked him this question because it was asked verbally. Do you think this would still be classified as omitting key information?

While CRA2015 is easier to understand and more information is available on the internet, the CPUTR seems more complicated for a layman like me, could you provide some insight into it please?

Regarding the three questions:

1. I’ve had it for less than a week
2. I paid in full by debit card, they don’t take deposit, but rather a reservation fee, which is not deducted from my card whether I purchase the car or not
3. It’s a difficult question. Whilst I understand that used cars often suffer from cosmetic damage, it looks like it wasn’t properly repaired, and makes me wonder if there’s any structural damage/damaged poorly to the point the exterior couldn’t be restored to pre-collision condition. And the way the dealer omitted the collision makes me concern whether they’re also hiding anything else. I’m inclined to keep the car as long as it’s structurally sound and the alignment can be fixed. However, I’d prefer a refund if they don’t bother to fix it.

Thanks very much.

[Pezza54]

Does the car's MOT post date the invoice for the accident repair work?

If a salesman refused to let me see the paperwork before I signed on the dotted line, I would walk away
For a 5 year old car costing £17k I would want to see service history, 2 MOTs, logbook

My advice is to contact the dealer, say you weren't provided with the paperwork before you paid for the car, and now you have found an invoice for accident repair work which you weren't made aware of. On closer examination it appears to be a poor repair and you are worried about your safety and the problem you will have when you try to sell the car on in the future. See what the dealer answers.

A genuine dealer would admit to his mistake and offer you a proper repair or your money back. Don't forget to mention the faulty front parking sensors

[trover]

Does the car's MOT post date the invoice for the accident repair work?

If a salesman refused to let me see the paperwork before I signed on the dotted line, I would walk away
For a 5 year old car costing £17k I would want to see service history, 2 MOTs, logbook

My advice is to contact the dealer, say you weren't provided with the paperwork before you paid for the car, and now you have found an invoice for accident repair work which you weren't made aware of. On closer examination it appears to be a poor repair and you are worried about your safety and the problem you will have when you try to sell the car on in the future. See what the dealer answers.

A genuine dealer would admit to his mistake and offer you a proper repair or your money back. Don't forget to mention the faulty front parking sensors

Yes, the MOT is very recent.

I regret now for not asking to see the service records, it’s the first time I buy a car on my own. I’ll try that and let you know how it goes. Thanks so much for your advice.

[trover]

I’ve made an appointment with the dealer. However, as I anticipated, they claimed that they won’t look at the gap between the bonnet and the grill as it’s cosmetic. I’ll show them the invoice and try to persuade them again when I get there. If they still don’t budge, can I reject the car straightaway, ask for a refund, and seek compensation under CRA2015 and CPUTR?

[Pezza54]

I don't think you have a right to reject the car under CRA because of the age of the car. It is unusual for a car to reach 5 years of age without any form of accidental damage. There is also a defence that you had the chance to carefully inspect the bodywork. The faulty parking sensors can probably be repaired easily.

I think you have a stronger claim for redress under Section 6 of CPUTR. The dealer "hid" the details about the accident the car had suffered and failed to tell you even though you didn't ask. You were unable to make an informed decision whether to purchase the car and had you been told about the accident or shown invoices for accident repair, you would not have bought the car

Much depends on the extent of the damage and the quality of the repair, and what an average consumer would do, had he or she been made aware of the accidental damage.

In my opinion, you should argue your case for redress with the dealer under CPUTR. If the dealer refuses a refund my advice is not to leave the car there. Bring it home and think about starting a court claim after you have obtained quotations to rectify the bodywork

[trover]

I don't think you have a right to reject the car under CRA because of the age of the car. It is unusual for a car to reach 5 years of age without any form of accidental damage. There is also a defence that you had the chance to carefully inspect the bodywork. The faulty parking sensors can probably be repaired easily.

I think you have a stronger claim for redress under Section 6 of CPUTR. The dealer "hid" the details about the accident the car had suffered and failed to tell you even though you didn't ask. You were unable to make an informed decision whether to purchase the car and had you been told about the accident or shown invoices for accident repair, you would not have bought the car

Much depends on the extent of the damage and the quality of the repair, and what an average consumer would do, had he or she been made aware of the accidental damage.

In my opinion, you should argue your case for redress with the dealer under CPUTR. If the dealer refuses a refund my advice is not to leave the car there. Bring it home and think about starting a court claim after you have obtained quotations to rectify the bodywork

I see your point, but I’ve read somewhere stating that the right to reject is valid as long as I can prove the fault existed at the time of purchase, and I don’t even have to give the dealer opportunity to fix it, is that true? As far as I understand, the my short term right to reject within 30 days is provided by the CRA. Is there any time limits if pursuing through CPUTR?

As I said in my response to R0B in #5 above, I did asked the salesperson if the car was involved in a minor collision before, which may have caused the misalignment (between the bumper and headlights). However, he didn’t answer directly, and only assured that all their cars passed HPI. Does that make any difference?

Prior to that, both the salesperson and I noticed a gap between ‘the bumper and headlights’, which he claimed to be a misalignment of the headlights, nothing to do with the bumper/front grill. He brought the car to the garage side and had it adjusted, the gap has been improved. Does his answer of ‘nothing to do with the bumper/front grill’ strengthen my case? Unfortunately, I didn’t record our conversation.

[des8]

I’ve read somewhere stating that the right to reject is valid as long as I can prove the fault existed at the time of purchase,

That is not quite accurate.
You have the right to reject the vehicle if it is not "of satisfactory quality"
In the words of the Act:
"The quality of goods is satisfactory if they meet the standard that a reasonable person would consider satisfactory, taking account of—
(a)any description of the goods,
(b)the price or other consideration for the goods (if relevant), and
(c)all the other relevant circumstances (see subsection (5))."

Also note:
The term mentioned in subsection (1)[satisfactory] does not cover anything which makes the quality of the goods unsatisfactory—
(a)..........
(b)where the consumer examines the goods before the contract is made, which that examination ought to reveal,


The fact there is a fault does not automatically mean the vehicle is of unsatisfactory quality.

[trover]

That is not quite accurate.
You have the right to reject the vehicle if it is not "of satisfactory quality"
In the words of the Act:
"The quality of goods is satisfactory if they meet the standard that a reasonable person would consider satisfactory, taking account of—
(a)any description of the goods,
(b)the price or other consideration for the goods (if relevant), and
(c)all the other relevant circumstances (see subsection (5))."

Also note:
The term mentioned in subsection (1)[satisfactory] does not cover anything which makes the quality of the goods unsatisfactory—
(a)..........
(b)where the consumer examines the goods before the contract is made, which that examination ought to reveal,


The fact there is a fault does not automatically mean the vehicle is of unsatisfactory quality.

Thanks for clarifying that for me. I see that s.9(5) requires that relevant circumstances has to be statement made by the dealer. Therefore, the failure to disclose past accidents isn’t covered, as the dealer didn’t explicitly state that the car was free from collision and repair, am I understanding it correctly?

For s.9(4)(b), although a visual examination would reveal the misalignment, the fact that it might have resulted from a substandard repair following a collision wasn’t presented to me. Does it make any difference? Cheers.

[des8]

We often read from posters that they wish to reject a vehicle because of some fault or other
I was just pointing out it is not that straightforward.

If you look at the Act on line you might note a link to "Explanatory Notes" which makes interesting reading .and might answer your questions

As in post 9 by Pezza54 I think you should consider backing any claim you make with a reference to sec6 of CPUTR 2008
The vehicle might be deemed unsatisfactory as per CRA 2015, but also the dealer could be guilty of unfair trading practice

[trover]

We often read from posters that they wish to reject a vehicle because of some fault or other
I was just pointing out it is not that straightforward.

If you look at the Act on line you might note a link to "Explanatory Notes" which makes interesting reading .and might answer your questions

As in post 9 by Pezza54 I think you should consider backing any claim you make with a reference to sec6 of CPUTR 2008
The vehicle might be deemed unsatisfactory as per CRA 2015, but also the dealer could be guilty of unfair trading practice

Thanks! I wasn’t aware of the existence of the explanatory notes, will read it thoroughly.

[R0b]

Sorry I thought I already replied earlier but looks like I haven't.

I don't have much more to add to what has already been said, but with regards to CPUTR, rather me trying to explain it and potentially miss something out, the government has provided guidance on how it applies - see this link. The right to redress only applies to misleading actions and aggressive practices (excludes misleading omissions) and the remedies available are to either seek compensation or to unwind the contract.

To unwind a contract, you have to exercise that right within 90 days of taking possession of the vehicle and there is no formal requirement to exercise that right but for obvious reasons, putting it in writing is best and I would use email as the primary method of notification because it is easy to evidence whereas a letter may be more difficult if they say it was not received or some other reason.

Other useful published guidance that might help you:

BEIS Guidance for Car Traders: This guidance provides assistance to car traders on consumer rights, but is useful for consumers to read also. It covers CPUTR and CRA.

.Gov Goods Guidance for Businesses: This was the official guidance form the government on goods under the CRA. Don't think they have this listed on the .gov website but found it somewhere else.