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Aftermarket immobiliser affecting car electrics- am I entitled to claim out of pocket expenses?
Hi all and thanks for taking the time to read my particular tale of woe.
Our story begins with the purchase of a second hand car. For insurance purposes, the car needed to have a tracker fitted and, after doing some research, I decided upon a system which included both a tracker and an engine immobiliser. The idea was that the car wouldn't start without a toggle being present and so, if someone cloned my key, they still wouldn't be able to steal the car.
I chose a local fitter and was on my way to have the system installed. I tried to start the car it wouldn't start right away. When I got to the fitter they asked if there were any problems with the car and I told them of the issue.
You may wonder where this is going but I promise that all will make sense in a minute. The fitter proceeded to fit the new tracker and immobiliser which involved splicing into the electrics of the car. After leaving the fitter, I noticed that whenever I tried to start the car it would tell me that there were a host of problems, it would say that the adaptive cruise control wasn't working, the adaptive lights didn't work, that there were problems with the suspension, the 4 wheel drive system and there was also a loud buzzing noise under the steering wheel. Clearly something was wrong but remembering what we're often told about computers I turned the car off and back on again and the problems disappeared, only to reappear again the next time the vehicle was started from cold.
Obviously something was wrong and putting two and two together to make five, I assumed that there must have been something wrong with the car when I bought it a only a couple of days earlier. The car is only four years old and so I booked it into a franchised dealer to diagnose and fix the problem.
The dealer told me that an electrical control unit needed replacing and that their diagnostics were telling them that this would fix the problem. They replaced the unit and called me to collect the vehicle but when trying the car for the first time, I realised that all of the warnings were still coming up on the display. They concluded that it was the after market immobiliser that was at fault and sent me a video of the unit physically buzzing when they tried the car- the same as I had experienced. They were adamant that the unit was to blame and that they couldn't do any more work until the unit was removed.
I showed the video to the fitter, who then showed it to the tracker manufacturer, who told him that the unit shouldn't be doing that and so I asked him to remove the system. After taking the car back to the dealership again, the electrical control unit was replaced and the car immediately stopped throwing up the fault codes. I then went back to the fitter and demanded a refund, I also feel that I should be reimbursed for the electrical control unit at the dealership as the immobiliser was either a) faulty b) incorrectly fitted or c) not suitable for my car
The fitter disagrees and has given a final offer of simply a refund of the unit and the cost for removal. He also says that the manufacturer has bench tested the unit and found it to be operating exactly as it should despite telling me in the first instance that it shouldn't have been buzzing.
I now have to decide whether to accept the offer or to take the issue further. I am out of pocket for another £700 for having the control unit replaced and the dealership were right in that removing the immobiliser did sort the problem out.
My issue now, is that due to us going on holiday, and not being able to book the car into the franchise any sooner, it was over a month until I told the tracker fitter of the problem. It seems so obvious now, but, at the time, I did not link the faults to the fitting of the tracker. I understand that my consumer rights for a refund only apply in the first month and so the fitter only needs to offer a replacement. There is no way that I want another unit fitted to the car, it created lots of issues and the car clearly didn't like the last one and I worry that it may cause additional damage.
I dont want to accept the offer as the car manufacturer has been clear in telling me that the tracker was at fault and also since removal, the car has worked without throwing up the faulty codes. If the tracker caused the problems then I feel that they should pay for my repairs. The fitter argues that my car had problems when it came to them and that there is nothing wrong with the unit. Meanwhile the tracker manufacturer has the tracker, the fitter has my money for sale of the unit, fitting and removal and the dealership has charged me for repairs!
I am left without the unit and with all the bills.
I am very suspicious of the tracker manufacturer as they were clearly very concerned when they say the video of the unit buzzing but now say after "testing" it that there is nothing wrong with it. How can I prove that the unit is the same one that was in my car? Its obviously not in their interests to admit that anything is wrong with their product. Reputational risk etc.
If I take the matter to court and lose could I end up with nothing? I wont accept another unit and I guess that the fitter may withdraw their offer of a refund. In addition could I also be left with their legal costs?
Thanks for reading all of this. Any guidance/suggestions with this would be very much appreciated
Best wishes
Jellybean
Hi all and thanks for taking the time to read my particular tale of woe.
Our story begins with the purchase of a second hand car. For insurance purposes, the car needed to have a tracker fitted and, after doing some research, I decided upon a system which included both a tracker and an engine immobiliser. The idea was that the car wouldn't start without a toggle being present and so, if someone cloned my key, they still wouldn't be able to steal the car.
I chose a local fitter and was on my way to have the system installed. I tried to start the car it wouldn't start right away. When I got to the fitter they asked if there were any problems with the car and I told them of the issue.
You may wonder where this is going but I promise that all will make sense in a minute. The fitter proceeded to fit the new tracker and immobiliser which involved splicing into the electrics of the car. After leaving the fitter, I noticed that whenever I tried to start the car it would tell me that there were a host of problems, it would say that the adaptive cruise control wasn't working, the adaptive lights didn't work, that there were problems with the suspension, the 4 wheel drive system and there was also a loud buzzing noise under the steering wheel. Clearly something was wrong but remembering what we're often told about computers I turned the car off and back on again and the problems disappeared, only to reappear again the next time the vehicle was started from cold.
Obviously something was wrong and putting two and two together to make five, I assumed that there must have been something wrong with the car when I bought it a only a couple of days earlier. The car is only four years old and so I booked it into a franchised dealer to diagnose and fix the problem.
The dealer told me that an electrical control unit needed replacing and that their diagnostics were telling them that this would fix the problem. They replaced the unit and called me to collect the vehicle but when trying the car for the first time, I realised that all of the warnings were still coming up on the display. They concluded that it was the after market immobiliser that was at fault and sent me a video of the unit physically buzzing when they tried the car- the same as I had experienced. They were adamant that the unit was to blame and that they couldn't do any more work until the unit was removed.
I showed the video to the fitter, who then showed it to the tracker manufacturer, who told him that the unit shouldn't be doing that and so I asked him to remove the system. After taking the car back to the dealership again, the electrical control unit was replaced and the car immediately stopped throwing up the fault codes. I then went back to the fitter and demanded a refund, I also feel that I should be reimbursed for the electrical control unit at the dealership as the immobiliser was either a) faulty b) incorrectly fitted or c) not suitable for my car
The fitter disagrees and has given a final offer of simply a refund of the unit and the cost for removal. He also says that the manufacturer has bench tested the unit and found it to be operating exactly as it should despite telling me in the first instance that it shouldn't have been buzzing.
I now have to decide whether to accept the offer or to take the issue further. I am out of pocket for another £700 for having the control unit replaced and the dealership were right in that removing the immobiliser did sort the problem out.
My issue now, is that due to us going on holiday, and not being able to book the car into the franchise any sooner, it was over a month until I told the tracker fitter of the problem. It seems so obvious now, but, at the time, I did not link the faults to the fitting of the tracker. I understand that my consumer rights for a refund only apply in the first month and so the fitter only needs to offer a replacement. There is no way that I want another unit fitted to the car, it created lots of issues and the car clearly didn't like the last one and I worry that it may cause additional damage.
I dont want to accept the offer as the car manufacturer has been clear in telling me that the tracker was at fault and also since removal, the car has worked without throwing up the faulty codes. If the tracker caused the problems then I feel that they should pay for my repairs. The fitter argues that my car had problems when it came to them and that there is nothing wrong with the unit. Meanwhile the tracker manufacturer has the tracker, the fitter has my money for sale of the unit, fitting and removal and the dealership has charged me for repairs!
I am left without the unit and with all the bills.
I am very suspicious of the tracker manufacturer as they were clearly very concerned when they say the video of the unit buzzing but now say after "testing" it that there is nothing wrong with it. How can I prove that the unit is the same one that was in my car? Its obviously not in their interests to admit that anything is wrong with their product. Reputational risk etc.
If I take the matter to court and lose could I end up with nothing? I wont accept another unit and I guess that the fitter may withdraw their offer of a refund. In addition could I also be left with their legal costs?
Thanks for reading all of this. Any guidance/suggestions with this would be very much appreciated
Best wishes
Jellybean
