Can anyone help me out here, someone sold me a car yesterday which was described as a good runner in the advertisement.

 

I drove it home which was about 12 miles followed by a further 2 miles to work this morning only to find that it had dumped almost all it's water. Not only that, I later went to the car when it was cold, opened the radiator cap, released any pressure. I then put the cap back, ran the car for a minute & released the cap & the thing exploded there was so much pressure in the cooling system.

 

It's pretty obvious that the head gasket has gone. I must confess, I started to get a little worried when (after handing my money over I might add & signing the log book) the owners father said that he'd better put some water in it & it took loads to fill it up. Also I heard a pop like there was air compressed in there when he removed the cap which I thought was a bit odd considering the car had been stood over night & was stone cold.

 

What's the score here legally, do I have a chance of getting my money back?:(

Any help would be gratefully received as I'm really p!ssed off not only because of the money but also the principle of it! B@stards

sadly m8, i doubt if you have much of a comeback

private sale= buyer beware

 

they could say it was fine when it left and the head gasket only went in your possesion, suprised you never removed the caps before deciding?

would you have bought it if you had realised it had back pressure?

 

even if you did have a case m8, getting the cash back would be expensive and time consuming, and thats to say they then pay you back,

sorry to say m8, probabaly cheaper to fix the head gasket and hope thats all it is:(

 

the other alternative and sounds the best, is to run the twats over and blame it on THAT car

if advertised as a good runner then it clearly wasnt fit for purpose....not sold as seen which is the usual catch all phrase...you could sue via a small claim using the ad as evidence include any mechanic reports quotes or bills with dates on them...it depends on a lot so i cant be deffo you'd win....buyer beware is true in most cases like this but it would seem the ad was misleading to say the least...check with trading standards for more advice/opinion

Bought as seen mate. It is a bit shitty, but thats the way it is. He will just say the car was free for inspection before you bought it.

i think the mis description part only comes into play, if they said summat like

just passed an mot, when it obviously couldn't have, or the fred flintstone holes in the floor wern't mods :eek:

fred flintstone holes in the floor wern't mods

 

v.v.funny...:)

What's the score with legal fees, would I end up paying hers if it went in her favour?

not if its the small claims court, but what is the value of the car??

have you been in touch with the sellers yet??

as you should make every effort to solve it before taking the legal route

might be worth contacting the AA if you're a member, there legal team might be able to help.

 

Vijay

"Sold as seen" has no value in law. The matter is whether it was/is fit for purpose and whether the seller took due care in selling the car and whether you acted recklessly in purchasing. It's all very vague I'm afraid.

"Fit for purpose" only applies to Consumer Protection Act i.e. not private sale.

 

Was the ad marked "T"? If so, was a trader and this will apply. If not, was the seller really a trader and just hiding it (which is not allowed). Did you sign anything to say "sold as seen"? There are really too many unknowns to hand out good advice on the case itself (and it's not allowed to hand out legal advice if you are not legally qualified which I am certainly not. So I won't.)

 

But there has been some good advice handed out on good things to do:

 

1) Check with Trading Standards. It's free and it's official. Find your local office at http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/

2) Check with your motoring organisation (RAC, AA, whatever - and if you aren't a member, consider joining: getting advice is one of the reasons why they exist.)

And to add

3) What is the code of practise of the publication in which you saw the ad? Was it an AutoTrader type publication and do they have an advice contact?

Surely the fact that the seller (private, or so they say but I'm now not sure!) advertised the car as being a 'Good runner' is misrepresentation though because it clearly wasn't & therefore grounds for legal action?

As mentioned it makes me laugh when people put SOLD AS SEEN, because, nothing can remove your statutary rights by law.

 

You have fewer legal rights if you buy privately. The car must be as described but the other rules dont apply.

 

If a private seller lies about the condition of a car, you can sue for your losses - if you can find the seller. Some dealers pretend to be private sellers to avoid their legal obligations and to get rid of faulty or over-priced cars. They advertise in local newspapers and shop windows.

 

Ive got loads of legal documents and things on this as my parents got done by someone and we sued em.

 

Ill see if I can dig em out.

 

I've had this happen to me, bought a car once, drove it home chuffed to ****, the minute I parked up, dumped all its ****ing water on the road, rad was ****ed. The **** must have bodged it with radweld or something hoping it would hold until sold.

 

Pricks, cant stand people who sell ****ed cars. Especially if someone has just about scraped up the money to buy the car then it goes wrong, absolutley gutting :(

I can only restate what has already been said - if it's a private sale you have little chance of recovering anything unless it was seriously mis-described in the advert and you can easily prove that.

 

Saying "good runner" isn't really a mis-description as the car may well have been running (maybe not at its best, but running nonetheless) OK prior to the sale. Also you have to consider whether the seller knew of the faults prior to the sale - good luck in proving that :(

 

Sorry to give more bad news, but it will probably cost less in time and money just to get the car repaired.

 

Try contacting the seller - you may be able to appeal to their better nature, if it was a woman (not being sexist here ;) ) she may have an attack of conscience and contribute to the repairs if you are lucky....

 

Good luck mate

 

Richard :cry:

It's a sad day when this happens :( It makes me fookin mad to hear how people get ripped off like this. Defo run them over. I havent got any idea how you stand legaly (not that way minded) but buddy if you need any help im sure the lads on here will be more than please to give advice etc.... Good luck matey ;)

Try contacting the seller - you may be able to appeal to their better nature, if it was a woman (not being sexist here ;) ) she may have an attack of conscience and contribute to the repairs if you are lucky....

 

Good luck mate

 

Richard :cry:

 

I've already tried that & to start with it seemed like she was going to be reasonable but after speaking to her solicitor, decided that she would only pay for parts, i.e. 1 head gasket which is £25 FFS! She wouldn't even pay out for a head set at £43 (which you need)! Anyway, it's the labour that costs all the money.

 

As it turns out, Davemac & myself will probably do the repairs but I'm just so p!ssed off that someone (especially a woman!) could do that! She seemed genuine too which probably made me do less checks on the car than I would do normally:( It kind of destroys your faith in mankind :cry:

I've already tried that & to start with it seemed like she was going to be reasonable but after speaking to her solicitor, decided that she would only pay for parts, i.e. 1 head gasket which is £25 FFS! She wouldn't even pay out for a head set at £43 (which you need)! Anyway, it's the labour that costs all the money.

 

As it turns out, Davemac & myself will probably do the repairs but I'm just so p!ssed off that someone (especially a woman!) could do that! She seemed genuine too which probably made me do less checks on the car than I would do normally:( It kind of destroys your faith in mankind :cry:

 

Sorry to hear that mate, it really is just another case of that you never really know someone and NEVER take them on face value...

 

If it makes u feel better, I have been fVcked over before, swapped my beloved Hona CBR600 for a Black tuned up Escort RSTurbo, the fVckin turbo went on the way home, the :xxx: knew it as well!! I couldnt get fook all off him.

 

So ur not alone matey, all been there, just sh1t when it happens to ya! :rolleyes:

Shaunmac. It's not G866 EJH by any chance?

No m8, it's L-reg.

 

I got her to cough up the £43 at least

Shaun

Bummer, mate...good luck. I think you aren't going to win on this one. All the legal arguments are rubbish in the real world. Get the thing fixed and then come and play with the rest of us

 

Good Luck