Online Auction – Negotiating after auction has ended (Reserve not met)

[HpySafePlace]

I bid on an online auction website for a Forklift Truck, but the reserve was not met. The Auctioneer messaged me the next day and after I asked him to confirm it was in good working order (which he did, in writing) we came to an agreement on price (£10,761). I had only seen photos of the truck online, including one of the dashboard with the recorded hours clearly visible (which will become relevant later).

As soon as it was delivered, I knew something was wrong as it spluttered off the back of the lorry. After speaking with the Auctioneer (same day) I was put in touch with the seller whose response was “It drove onto the lorry ok”.

I asked a local specialist to fix it, so far I have spent roughly £1600 and the truck, although running a little better, is still in very poor condition. There is a significant problem with the fuelling system which might need to be replaced (estimated at another £950).

Worryingly, the engineer also mentioned (almost in passing!) the dashboard had been replaced at some point and the recorded hours were for the new dashboard and the truck had clearly done far more than advertised.

The Auctioneer has told me I have no right to recourse and unfortunately, it’s my problem, is this true?

[R0b]

Hello, couple of quick points

1. Your contract will be with the seller and not the auctioneer who is acting on behalf of the seller.

2. Ordinarily, you have no consumer rights when it comes to auction sales, it's a case of buyer beware.

3. You may have a claim against the auctioneer for misrepresentation or negligent misstatement for claiming that the truck was in good working condition or if the description of the truck was not as advertised.

4. You may also have a claim against the seller if the seller has misrepresented the accuracy of the recorded hours for the truck or anything that may be significant when making a decision to purchase.

If you do consider action, you may be best to first obtain a detailed report of the vehicle and the potential problems with it and the cost of remedial action for parts etc. Alternatively in a case of misrepresentation, you may be able to unwind the contract and put back in the position you were had the agreement not been made.

Given the sums involved, you may be wise to seek some initial independent legal advice on the merits of your case. If you do bring a claim, with a value over £10k, you may be at risk of legal costs if you lose your case. Equally, if you bring a claim under £10k it may be allocated to the small claims track which limits costs (to things like costs of the application fees and witness attendance which is capped) so legal fees are not recoverable unless your conduct throughout the process is deemed unreasonable.

[HpySafePlace]

Hi Rob, Thank you kindly for taking the time to reply.

I'm going to arrange the detailed report to start and then explore my options under items 3 and 4.

Alas, the truck is barely running today, certainly not "in good working order"

[atticus]

I would research into whether in the circumstances this was an auction sale. I am sorry, I do not know the answer.

[DE DOGS]

Hi Rob, Thank you kindly for taking the time to reply.

I'm going to arrange the detailed report to start and then explore my options under items 3 and 4.

Alas, the truck is barely running today, certainly not "in good working order"

That's why it was in the Auction, the seller is, in my opinion, the problem, he passed information to the auction company, stating in good working condition, and would have been sold as such, so the running hours are false as well, I would write to the seller (DO NOT PHONE ALL ON PAPER) Point out the fact that they have misrepresented the sale and respectfully require a full refund, looking at Court action, a detailed report from an established engineer. Last, of all good luck, I know of a case where a car was purchased at auction, it was a lemon, auction house had to make good and refund.

[dslippy]

Be careful not to confuse buying a private car with buying a commercial vehicle. The differences are real.