Forums Forums Wirral Information Law And Your Rights re buying a secondhand car

can anyone help me out i purchased a secondhand ford focus from a garage 6 days ago for 1500 pounds, they said it didnt come with a warranty beacause it was a part ex and me being stupid bought it. thought i would be fine i booked the car in for a service at ford to be safe as it hadnt had one for 2 years to find it needed a water pump which i had done at the same time 600 pounds later i am still having problems, as when i am slowing down at lights or to turn the corners ie dropping down the gears the car is cutting out i feel robbed it is going back in to fords tomorrow to hav diagnostics done on it another 100 pounds i just dont know what to do can any one help me out thanks paula.

Hi paula, i work for a van company, by law if you have any unsatisfactory views about a vehicle you have bought from us (px or retail) we have to refund your cash if within 31 days of purchase.
Thats providing you as the customer hasn`t caused a major problem yourself.
Not sure where you go to look into it if refused but i`m sure someone on here can point you in the right direction

Good luck

thanks steve for your quick response i feel so let down i am gonna ring the garage tomorrow cheers paula.

See PM Paula

where did you buy the car paula?

prenton motor company borough rd birkenhead.

excuse my ignorance but what is pm x

Private message. See 'my stuff' at top of page. Good luck paula

Contact Trading Standards if you don't get results. Keep everything including receipts. If they have been approved by Wirral Borough Trading Standards, there's a better chance if you don't get results. Car traders are an easy job to get results from as there are so many laws etc covering car sales.

Also, if you ever get repairs done at a garage, tell them you want to see the old parts if anything gets replaced!!!!!!!

If the vehicle was sold for "spares or repair" as a lot of part-ex vehicles are, then you have no comeback to be honest. It has to clearly state this on the reciept however. Reason being, if they sold it for spares or repair, then they are essentially selling it as faulty, and you are purchasing it to either repair, or break for spares. Of course it does not always mean the vehicle is faulty (quite often they will work just as well as a warranted car), its just a loophole they use to get out of having to provide a warranty.

If they did not sell it for spares or repair, all traders have to by law, warrant the vehicle (non-commercial sales at least) for a period of 3 months from the date the vehicle was sold against failiure (not wear and tear caused by yourself).

If it is a private seller, there is no regulations, but as its a trader, they have responsibilities and if they are failing to comply with regulation, go to trading standards.

no i didnt buy for spares or repair they even got a 12month mot put on the car all i want is for it to run properly so i feel safe driving to work.

Have you actually spoken to the garage about it as yet, and if so, what was their response?

Because from what you have said, it appears you have had the service etc, done of your own accord, and the garage are blisfully unaware of the troubles you are having.

If this is the case, then it looks a little unfair towards the garage if they have not actually had any oppotunity to rectify the problems.

If Ford have replaced the water pump, without prior permission from the garage, don't expect them to cover this, and they could also quite easily say any further problems may have been caused by Ford (third party) and the warranty may well be void.

Btw, Ford, like all dealers atm, are finding it very tough, and may rip you off in any way they can, if they think they can get away with it, so be vigilant. Id have gone to a backstreet garage I trust, and if I didnt know of one, got a second opinion before authorising them to replace anything, unless it was clearly faulty/causing a problem - especially when you are talking £500+.

the reason i never got in touch with the garage is they told me the car was sold without a warranty sold as seen as it was a part ex car cheers paula.

I don;t think a trader is allowed to sell it as "sold as seen" - they are only allowed to do this if its being sold for spares or repair.

Ive bough a car in the past from a dealer, and it was sold-as-seen, and the invoice quite clearly stated for spares or repair, even though the car was in mint condition, running 100% and had a full-MOT. But the dealer put on the receipt that it was being sold for spares or repair, and when I enquired he said that was because they were not warranting the vehicle (it too was a part-ex and I was getting it at a significant discount so they could make space).

Im pretty sure they legally obliged to warrant all cars for 3 months if they are a trader, regardless of what they say. A lot fo dealers will say it has no warranty, meaning they are not providing an extended warranty with the car (12 month for instance) to save a bit of cash, but this does not affect your statutory rights.

Does the reciept mention anything about the warranty?

For them to do that it was a SALE from the business. Get your money back and go somewhere else to buy a car.

And Mat am pretty sure it is 30days warrenty.