seller not taking his responsibility?! please help us

newport2012

New Member
May 15, 2012
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We would love for you to give us some information on our current situation. Here is the whole story:-



After looking for a family vehicle and saving up for some time we finally found one suitable it was a renault scenic grand, the 7 seater model,

We travelled over 120miles from our hometown of Newport to Birmingham to purchase the vehicle. We spoke to the dealer first to confirm the car was in full

working order as we didn't want to travel all that way to be shown the car wasn't up to standard. We were assured there was nothing mechanically wrong with

the car.



When arriving at the dealership we then found it was a muddy field being guarded by several vicious dogs, we were slilghty worried as the property seemed to

be in the middle of nowhere and we had also bought along our newborn baby, we overlooked this matter as the man who welcomed us seemed to have an office

with what looked like official paperwork, and several people knew the location we were going to. The man did not give us his name, and still to this day refuses to give

us his name. He started the engine and told us some stories about the other cars he had for sale. Myself and my partner were not used to electric cars, this was our first

'decent' car as we had managed to save up for it for a long period.



As my partner pulled off from the space the handbrake made an excruciating noise, we were both alarmed but the gentleman reassured us that this noise was normal as the

car had been parked up for while. He could also see that the car was going to be used for family purposes as we explained about our children. We agreed to purchase the

car for a sum of £2350. Mostly paid by card payment, some cash. I questioned the man about tax/insurance as i did not want to drive the vehicle home without it being totally

legal. He then told us about a 'scheme' he was doing for £35 cash, where he could give us 24 hour drive away tax and insurance, obviusly we wanted the car to be legal so

we paid for this extra. (when returning home however we instantly realised he was not totally truthfull about this as after looking thoroughly on the internet there is no such

thing as 24hour 'drive away tax and insurance') also the fact that he did not ask for either of our license details so obviously alarm bells were already ringing. Again on

returning home the handbrake made the same loud noise when being engaged. On finding this out the car was then insured and taxed by ourselves.

(we were given a handwritten reciept with a scribble on the bottom, the log book and mot certificate, this was the only paperwork)



The car was bought on 13th April 2012



The handbrake continued to make the same noise for several days, but as advised we ignored it as this was 'normal'.



On the morning of 23rd April my partner decided to take the car to work with him. He travelled from Newport to Port Talbot

(around 45 miles). I recieved a telephone call from him in complete shock as halfway along the motorway towards his workplace the handbrake engaged and would not release,

causing the car to smoke and a strong burning smell occured, pulling over onto the hardshoulder he was then recovered by our roadside recovery AA Brakedown and towed home.

The previous day we had taken our four young children along the motorway in the vehicle to a garden centre located in Barry with myself driving. I myself have not been driving

as long as my partner and if this had happened on this day I would of panicked, with four young children in the vehicle the effects could of been devastating.

(We have all paperwork to confirm this recovery)



The following morning (24th April 2012) I took the car to a local garage that specialises in electrical diagnostics and electronic vehicles. They explained to me that electric cars

are like computers they have history stored on them for when they were last scanned for any errors. After scanning the car they advised me not to drive the vehicle as it was

unroadworthy without some sort of brake. The mechanic was also extremely angry at the fact that this gentleman had sold us the car knowing there was a major fault with it, and

also, aswell as giving me a full printed description of the faults he also wrote me a letter saying how dangerous it was and advised me to take it to trading standards as this gentleman

needed to be investigated. It also appeared on the computer that the car was scanned for the same handbrake fault, 4 different times in April 2012, and 36 times previous.

Which shows this was an old fault that the dealer knew about. (the dealer had the car since february 2012). I then had the car moved to a private, flat drive and used bricks to secure it

to ensure no injuries were made as the car is not secure.

(we have all paperwork to confirm this)



After arriving home I contacted the gentleman we bought the car from and politely told him we were having problems with the car and it was no longer safe for our family to use.

He replied by saying it was nothing to do with him. I explained to him the car had only been used three times since we had bought it and on the third time it had broke, also that

it was only ten days since we bought the car. I do not want to describe the language that he used during the phonecall all i can say is he is not a very pleasant gentleman at all.

He started to shout at me saying he would 'get the best ******* lawyers' and i wouldnt be getting a penny from him, he then started laughing at me and hung up the phone on me.

This made me quite upset. After calming down i thought maybe i caught him on a bad day and contacted him again on the same number, only to hear a message saying my number

had been barred from calling his number. On arriving home from work my partner then called him only to recieve the same treatment.

(we have phone records of these calls)



The following day I contacted Trading Standards to see if there was any advice they could give us, but to this date they have been unsuccessful on contacting him.

I wrote a formal letter to the trader explaining the situation calmly, and asking him if he could help with repair costs as it is his responsibility as a trader to refund/repair/replace

the vehicle if it is unsatisfactory condition.

(i have copies of this letter, also reciepts showing the letter was sent recorded delivery)



I recieved an unproffessional letter in reply in this he states, 'you did not contact me within 14 days', clearly as you can see in the dates listed above We contacted him

on numerous occassions within 14 days. He also states 'the car went through a 21 point safety check', i have asked him for written confirmation of this from his mechanic and he

refuses to do so. 'the handbrake fails through abuse which you have done after you purchased the car', he is also calling us liars and saying we were to blame when he knows

himself there was something wrong with the handbrake at the date of sale, hence the strange noise. Any correspondence we recieve from him also has a different signature everytime.

(i have kept and copied all correspondence)



We have contacted the previous owner from details on the logbook to ask whether he had any idea about the faults before selling the car onto this dealer.



We understand that a private seller can sell a car as 'sold as seen', but we have been advised a trader has to sell a vehicle in 'roadworthy condition'.





I hope you may be able to assist us in any way.

It would be extremely appreciated as we are a young family who work hard for what we own and now find ourselves thousands out of pocket because of this.

We are very upset about the matter and it is now heartbraking knowing we have a car in our posession, which not only doesn't work and is not fit for purpose, but we cannot

sell on the vehicle as it is unsafe.

We are not asking for a full refund, we would just like the car to be repaired. We bought the car for a purpose and are shocked at what has happened.

Not only is it us that worries us, but other road users potentially purchasing cars from him. If he has sold this vehicle to a young family knowing it had major faults, it

worries me who else is out there with unsafe cars
 
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