Template letter before taking finance company to court to reject car

[pieterhartzer]

Hi,

I bought a new Audi A5 in 03/2017 but it developed problems within weeks. After long battles with the dealer, they fixed a few, but the major issues still exist. They deny them happening. They claim the videos are not sufficient as evidence.

I rejected the car towards the end of 2017 after they still failed to repair it. As expected VWFS did not accept the rejection and it was passed on the the ombudsman. They gave their opinion but that was appealed by VWFS on the basis that the dealer states there is nothing wrong with the car. In protest, I parked the car in front of Nottingham Audi with large stickers stuck to it on 2 May 2018. It is still there and I refuse to use it any longer as it's not safe. The ombudsman stated in May that I would hear back within two weeks, and the same the end of June, but still no response. I am paying for the car and insurance each month and want it to stop. It is coming up to £10k now, so I decided to take it to small claims court instead of waiting any longer.

Citizens Advice Bureau states that I have to inform VWFS of my decision and stipulate the evidence that I intend to use, also giving them two weeks to respond favourably before proceeding to court. I cannot find a template for such a letter and is hoping that someone here could point me in the right direction.

Thanks in advance.

[R0b]

Hello

do you have a paper trail of these 'major issues' and evidence that they still exist? Have you obtained an independent report which proves that these major issues are still there and the dealer has failed to fix them?

What are these major issue that you talk about?

There isn't a template letter that is going to be a one size fits all, because every dispute will be fact specific. However, every letter before action should contain sufficient information to enable VWFS to understand the case against them and any evidence you are seeking to rely on to support your claim. A typical letter before action might include the following:

1. This is one or two sentences to outline that this is a letter before action due to XYZ.
2. Give a brief background leading up to the point where you are now and include any key dates, correspondence etc.
3. How or why VWFS are in breach of contract and on what grounds i.e. the Audi is not of satisfactory quality or fit for purpose.
4. Evidence you intend to rely on, and any evidence you require from VWFS.
5. What you want from VWFS to resolve the dispute.

[pieterhartzer]

Thank you for the response.

I have all the emails between the dealer and me. The issues range from the Satnav crashing to the car fully engaging the brakes so the ABS kicks in to try and prevent an accident when there is nobody in front of me. The engine light came on twice too, and the car wouldn't recognise the key for w few weeks, leaving me stranded at times.

I agreed for the RAC to investigate the issue on the condition that they take my videos into consideration (youtube -> pieter hartzer) to which VWFS agreed. I received an email from RAC who didn't look at the videos, nor drove the car, and only looked into a handful of the problems. When I left the key for the RAC in a sealed envelope at the dealer as agreed, the dealer immediately opened the envelope and removed my car from a public road (without my permission) and drove it into their garage (also on video). The next day there were no errors found in the database and the key worked without any problem. I once drove straight to the dealer when the button on the steering wheel stopped working. A master tech and service manager both witnessed the problem, blamed my phone, and refused to put it in writing. I suspect that the dealer is well aware of the issues but is hiding it at all costs.

I am hopeful that the video evidence will be sufficient in court and that the email trail dating back to 17 July 2017 is proof that the problems existed from when I bought the car.