Vehicle Dispute

Vehicle Dispute

Buying a car can be a large outlay, whether it is simply used to run you to and from work, to safely carry your family, or even a fun weekend car and when you buy one, you trust the dealer to sell you a car that will be safe, reliable and free from defects; after all, dealers should know all about cars.

However, sometimes things go wrong, and you are literally left holding the pieces, whilst the dealer gives you the cold shoulder, denying any responsibility.

However, a consumer, you are protected by the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (“the Act”), regardless of whether the dealer had a written contract or not.  In fact, dealers cannot exclude certain terms from the purchase contract.  Terms which cannot be excluded include that the vehicle must be:

1. of satisfactory quality;
2. fit for particular purpose); and
3. as described.

You can read further guidance about what rights you have as a consumer buying a car on our Faulty Car Rights page.

If your car purchase has gone wrong and the dealer is either refusing to refund or repair the car, we now offer a fixed fee structure to help you enforce your rights under the Act.

How our fixed fees work

Our fixed fees* for vehicle disputes are conditional on receiving:

1. a mechanic’s report or detailed written description of defects;
2. a timeline of events;
3. an invoice and all contractual information for the car; and
4. correspondence between you and the dealer.

*Excludes any disputes involving finance or business to business contracts, which would be undertaken at our hourly rate.

We ask for this information before we enter any correspondence with the dealer to ensure that you do not waste time or money on what might turn out to be a fruitless case because we didn’t have this information at the outset.

If having reviewed the information we have asked for, we conclude that you do not have prospects of success, at that point we shall advise you accordingly, and charge at our hourly rate, up to a maximum of £200 plus VAT.  Ultimately this step can save you unnecessary legal costs.   Should you wish to continue your claim against our advice, it will proceed on the fixed fees below.

Initial stages

Drafting an initial letter to the dealer setting out the issues with the car and either rejecting the car or demanding repairs under the Act – £75 plus VAT.

Drafting letter before action in the event the dealer does not respond – £300 plus VAT.

Issuing the claim

Should the dealer not respond to the letter before action, the next step would be issuing the claim**:

1. small claims £250 plus VAT;
2. fast track £500 plus VAT;
3. intermediate £850 plus VAT.

**Court fee not included. 

Enforcing an award

If the dealer fails to respond to the claim, we can ask the Court to give Judgment on the matter and if successful, enforce the Judgment if the dealer fails to pay. Our costs for enforcements are:

1. request for judgment £75 plus VAT;
2. instructing enforcement following judgment £75 plus VAT.

When the dealer defends the claim

If the dealer disputes the claim, our fixed fee structure will drop away and our hourly rate will apply.  In this event, we shall do our best to advise you of the potential costs, and risks of continuing litigation.

For more information regarding a vehicle dispute please contact complete our online enquiry form here, selecting Vehicle Dispute.