rejecting used car

[lauryloo]

in july this year we bought a 2015 citroen c4 picasso from a dealership

in october it broke down for the first time (wouldn't start and had to be recovered) and has broken down and had to be recovered a further 2 times since then. The dealership has had it 3 times now and have not been able to identify the cause of the fault. When the car was recovered by the AA they saved the fault codes so the dealership could see it and sent a report to my husband showing that the injectors were not performing as they should and that there seemed to be a fault with the fuel system. A video of the car failing to start was also taken.

The dealership has had the car for over 2 weeks now and cannot find a fault, and say that the fault codes are historical. They have offered to buy the car back from us at bottom book price - we didn't ask them about them buying the car back, this was an offer that was made directly to my husband.

The finance is through GMAC and they were phoned on Tuesday to advise that we would be rejecting the vehicle. They said that we would hear from a complaints manager within 24 hours and we are still waiting

can anyone advise where we go from here?

[Kati]

Re: rejecting used car

tagging [MENTION=39710]des8[/MENTION] xx

[des8]

Re: rejecting used car

Hi and welcome.

What sort of finance deal do you have?

In any case now write (email is acceptable) confirming your rejection under Consumer Rights Act 2015 Final Right to Reject as goods are unsatisfactory and their trader (assume finance was arranged via trader) has failed torepair vehicle.

Basically you are in a position where you can reject the vehicle (which you have already done!)
You are entitled to receive back all that you have paid less an amount for the usage you have had from the vehicle.
IMO bottom book value is not a fair charge.
You should be looking at what you paid less the depreciation over three months depending on your mileage (as effectively you only had use of the vehicle for 3 months)
The AA used to produce a breakdown of car running costs including a separate amount for depreciation which might be useful. Other sites are available!

[ostell]

Re: rejecting used car

Put it all in writing so that you have a paper trail that your rejection was within 6 months. You could copy the garage. Your rejection would be under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. It is presumed that the defect was there when you bought the car, they have to prove otherwise.

You are entitled to the cost you paid for the car, plus costs caused by the failure, less some deductions for the use you have had from it.

[gilbert81]

Re: rejecting used car

Hi folks, I'm Lauryloo's husband. To answer Des8 the finance is HP over 5 years. On Monday I sent them a letter by email rejecting the car under the consumer rights act 2015 and outlining my reasons. I have yet to hear anything back.

Today the dealership contacted me to say that the problem had occurred with them and they replaced the fuel filter which they believe has solved it. I'm no mechanic but I don't believe this is the case at all. They said the same thing when they replaced the battery.

I was unable to take the call as I was busy so they left a voicemail. I contacted the finance company again. Apparently my complaint handler was on another call. I'm not sure they exist as I've yet to speak to them or hear from them. The lady I was talking to took down the details and forwarded them on.

Basically I said I still wanted to continue with the rejection of the car as I had lost complete faith in it. Am I still within my rights to do this?

[des8]

Re: rejecting used car

IMO (for what that's worth) you are entitled to reject this vehicle.
Your rejection is addressed to the owners of the car (finance company) and is under your final right to reject.
You had problems with the car more than 30 days after purchase and less than 6 months after purchase and it is deemed the fault(s) were present when purchased.
They have one chance to bring it up to a satisfactory condition.
They failed in their attempt and so you have the right to reject... they only get one bite at the cherry1

[gilbert81]

Re: rejecting used car

IMO (for what that's worth) you are entitled to reject this vehicle.
Your rejection is addressed to the owners of the car (finance company) and is under your final right to reject.
You had problems with the car more than 30 days after purchase and less than 6 months after purchase and it is deemed the fault(s) were present when purchased.
They have one chance to bring it up to a satisfactory condition.
They failed in their attempt and so you have the right to reject... they only get one bite at the cherry1

Thanks for that. That was my understanding of it - that they had 1 chance to fix it. The fact the same problem has occurred 3 times, 4 if you include when it happened with the dealer, gives me a strong case for rejection. As I said to the finance company today, I've lost complete faith in the car.

[lauryloo]

Re: rejecting used car

Hi all

well a month since we rejected and the dealership will not respond to the finance company. On the 31st we can take it to the ombudsman

the issue now is we have no car and no idea what to do about one. We can’t really buy another on finance until this is resolved and don’t want to spend money on a runabout when we are paying for this.

Any advice?

[ostell]

Re: rejecting used car

You are also allowed to add costs to your claim under CRA so a letter to the finance company, copied to the dealer, telling them that you will be claiming the cost of alternative transport form them unless there is a quick resolution.

Which Ombudsman were you going to write to?

[gilbert81]

Re: rejecting used car

You are also allowed to add costs to your claim under CRA so a letter to the finance company, copied to the dealer, telling them that you will be claiming the cost of alternative transport form them unless there is a quick resolution.

Which Ombudsman were you going to write to?

I'd be afraid to take on any other additional costs in case we didn't get them back. The finance company did mention the financial ombudsman and one for the motor trade so I'm assuming you'd have to involve both?

It's very frustrating as we've seen another car we really like and it's a good deal but it would mean committing to more finance which wouldn't be a problem if we knew for certain our current deal was going to be 'written off'.

[gilbert81]

Re: rejecting used car

The finance company got back to me today. The dealership have refused to reject the car and the finance company say they are powerless to do anything. The only thing I can do now is refer it to the ombudsman. GMAC are sending me a letter with all the details. I've also been advised by GMAC that I need to collect the car as it is still at the dealership. Apparently it is seen as abandonment of goods and this is against the terms and conditions of my contract. Apparently it won't affect my right to reject it.

I've let the dealership know I'll be collecting the car tomorrow, under duress, following advice from the finance company.

[des8]

Re: rejecting used car

The finance company are talking b******t.
They own the car and you have rejected it because they were unable to correct a recurring fault.
You have not abandoned the car but returned it to the dealer for the finance company to collect or dispose of at their choice.
Under the provisions of The CRA 2015 faults occurring within 6 months of, and after 30 days of, delivery date are deemed to have been present when the vehicle was purchased.
They have only one opportunity to repair the vehicle.
You rejected the vehicle at the end of November .
You did not ask for a repair as they had already attempted to bring the vehicle to a satisfactory condition thrice previously.
On 13 December the dealers informed you they had yet again fixed the fault, but this was not what you requested.
Accordingly you require a refund of the purchase price Plus costs etc .
Failure to come to an agreement within 14 days and you will initiate a county court claim.

I personally would never bother with the ombudsman. They might be free but can also be long winded and in my experience rarely satisfactory.

Or you could accept the car back and see how it goes, and reserve your right to reject later.

[gilbert81]

Re: rejecting used car

So do you think I'd be better leaving the car with them and draft up a letter to send to the finance company?

The finance company said as far as they are concerned, the case is closed with them but I still have a right to go to the ombudsman.

[des8]

Re: rejecting used car

If the finance company have said the case is closed (in writing?) they have refused your rejection and you have a right to initiate court action as well as appeal to the ombudsman!

To avoid possible complications with the dealers disposing of the car (wrongly), I would suggest you take possession of it as arranged, but then write to finance company a letter before action warning them you are about to initiate court action.
Post up the draft so someone here can tweak it.


Or keep the car if it seems to be ok now... might be less stressful!!

[gilbert81]

Re: rejecting used car

I collected the car last Saturday. On Monday I got an email from the dealership asking when I was collecting the car - so the usual standard of wonderful service!

Today I got my letter from the finance company. It basically skimmed over the details and said the dealership had a right to repair the car under warranty at no cost to me. This is the 1 year warranty that they sold me for £300 so it was at a cost to me.

The dealership claimed that when I left the car in on the 22nd November I signed a job card authorising repair of the car and they claim that this revokes my right to reject the vehicle. I don't remember signing anything except the form for the courtesy car and if I did sign something it wasn't explained to me and it certainly wasn't pointed out that I would revoke my right to reject the car so I find this a bit hard to believe. GMAC have been completely useless in my opinion.

I've sent an email to the dealership asking for a copy of the job card I signed. So far I've heard nothing back. I've actually been signed off work this week with stress as well.

They've sent me a leaflet about complaining to the financial ombudsman. Is this who I take my complaint to or is it the motoring ombudsman?