Hi everyone, I am a newbie and absolutely scared by the whole experience. Not long ago I received a letter from cap quest demanding £500 on behalfof the cap 1 credit card. It came out of the blue as I was trying to repay my debt by sending £10 a month to cap1 account for the past 2 years. Trying to find a way of dealing with DCA I found some advice on this website and sent cca demand. After receiving the standard 28 days account on hold letter, the cca copy and some typed statements arrived in the today's post. The letter demands that I arrange a payment scheme and failure to do so will result in passing my account to collection department for further action. My account with cap1 was set up in 2005 and I defaulted on a few payments but I tried to send a small sum of money each month to cover the outstanding balance and now it seems the interest applied is gigantic and I have an alleged debt wit capQuest. Has anybody got any advice what to do next? Miserable M

I bought a 2GB memory card from a second hand shop which I found out I could not use. Now before I purchased the item I explicitly asked about what were my rights if I wanted to return the item before I paid for it on my debit card. I was told that was fine but I would receive the value in vouchers which I had to spend in store again. I accepted this and proceeded to pay. I actually found out that day the memory card was useless to me as it did not match the slots I had. 10 days later I walked in to the store only to be told I was not entitled to a refund because I had to return it within it 48 hours if I was to be eligible for a full refund. They said I could sell the item back to them but I refused. It was never made clear to me verbally or in writing and I think this is grossly unfair. I now have a second hand item that is useless to me. I was prepared to receive the full value of credit to spend in their store again but frankly I would never ever spend my money on them again if this is how the treat their customers. Please tell me what is the correct procedures to undertake as I wish to make a formal complaint and reclaim. The high street store is part of the webuy.com franchise but the shop in particular is CEX in Lewisham.

Hi there On the 27th July, my husband and I purchased a used car from a dealership for £26,950. We paid £2,000 deposit via credit card, traded in a vehicle for £2,450 and paid the balance via debit card. Within 21 miles of driving the car and 3 days of owning it, the engine management light appeared on the dashboard. We contacted the dealership straight away but as it was nearing 7pm the Service department was not available. However, the following day my husband did receive a call apologising for the issue but advising that unfortunately these things do happen. On the 2nd August, we dropped the vehicle back to the dealership and picked up a courtesy vehicle. They plugged out vehicle in to find out what the fault was, we were advised it was the DPF and it would need to go to VW. We also pointed out some other issues with the vehicle, the brakes looked worn and there were several issues with the paintwork that we hadn't picked up on when originally looking at the vehicle. The Service Manager took down the issues and said they would get them dealt with whilst they had it. To cut a long story short, we have had to chase the dealership for updates regarding our vehicle, explain the other issues to god knows how many people and we never get call backs when messages are left. The original fault has gone from being the DPF, to the EGR Cooler and now something to do with the air conditioning has been thrown in the mix also. The dealership has looked at the brakes and told us that they have 1,000-2,000 miles of wear left on them and that this is acceptable. I would like to point out that they MOT'd and serviced the vehicle before we picked up and this was not mentioned on any paperwork. They agree with the paintwork issues but couldn't tell us what they were going to do about it. Not only have we had issues with the above, we also had an issue over the tax for the vehicle. We paid for the dealership to put 6 months tax on it and were told that this had been done and the tax disc would be sent on once received by them. We later found out that the car was not taxed until the 7th August, so they were happy for us to drive around that long. The salesman pointed out that it wasn't an offence to which my husband soon corrected him. Today I have spoken to the DVLA and they haven't received any notification that the vehicle has changed ownership. I wouldn't be surprised if they haven't even sent the V5 document yet. We have already sent a letter of complaint to the Director of the dealership via email and recorded post to which we received a response saying that a certain person would now be dealing with us and he hoped they could rectify a bad experience. We have since sent another letter of complaint and asked that we receive a response in writing detailing exactly what repairs had been carried out etc and what they were going to do about the other issues and so far we have not received anything. We have contacted the CAB who have said we have a case to reject and if we don't get anywhere, we can approach the bank to help through the chargeback scheme. I have checked this and they are happy to deal with on our behalf. My question is, what should we do next? My husband wants to take their courtesy vehicle back and then send a letter of rejection via email and recorded post. We are obviously not driving the vehicle as it is at the dealership still (will be 3 weeks tomorrow). Should we keep hold of the 2nd key that we have and the paperwork that we have or should we return these to them. There is probably much more, but to be honest so much has happened that I find it difficult to keep track with it all. Many Thanks

I will keep this as brief as poss..... I bought a car through Ebay, I went to the persons house test drove the car it was fine, handed over the cash, drove down the road approx 20 miles and the car broke down, I called the seller, who came to meet me and after a long very heated and difficult conversation including calling the Police, he would not agree to give me my money back or offer a repair. I managed to get the car working again drove off only to completely brake down after approx 10 mins, I called the AA who attended and discovered that the cars engine management systems had certain codes by passed and cleared just before I picked it up, in their opinion the trader had deleted the faults in order for it to drive perfect on the test drive. The Diesel particulator filter needs replacing along with the mass air flow meter & the turbo along with the manifold cover that had been bent. The trader will not enter into any discussion about returning the car or even a refund. He tells me as I bought the car from a trader and I signed a piece of paper saying that I was buying the car with no warranty and that he had told me about all known faults ie none! there was nothing he was legally obligated to carry out. Is there any course of action I can take to get part or all the money back, can I get him to pay for the repairs..... Help needed please.

Good afternoon, We bought a 2 year old car from a car dealer 12 days ago. While having a test run there was grinding from the wheels but the salesman said that was probably due to it sitting in their forecourt for weeks and I agreed. The morning after we took delivery the grinding was still there so called them back and the car was taken into the workshop and the pads were cleaned. They had stated that some dirt and rust had got in. Still no change though and I noticed that one side of the rear brake discs had scores and the other side was smooth. Called them back up and got the usual fob off that brakes are not supposed to be silent and the scores will go away once the car is being used. I did use the car but again no change. Not happy with their response I had a brake inspection done on the car and the fault was a damaged brake pad. Somehow there is a chip out of one of them causing the grinding and the scores. Back to dealer with the brake report but they have said as long as the brakes function there is no problem and that they was no damage when their mechanic cleaned the brakes, but they are fully booked up till next week and they will test drive it. Told them id prefer them to look at the pads rather than do a test drive rather than do any more damage to the discs, plus id want it checked before next week. Next weeks the best they can do and they wont allow me to take it to any of their other branches. The salesman has said its now out of his hands and its back to the service supervisor but they are basically saying that they wont be fixing as the grinding on the test drive was due to the car sitting for a few weeks. Ive had a quote from another dealer for £109 plus vat using oem parts but don't see why I should be paying for something they should have fixed before selling to me. I do intend to complain to their head office but looking at any other advice. Cheers

My daughter bought a car which she had seen advertised on ebay She arranged to view the car with her boyfriend, and proceeded to buy using bank transfer, the sale went through but not through ebay he cancelled the listing. The car was described as superb etc and apparently had been driven by his wife whilst her car had been fixed the week before. She paid £3900 by bank transfer and brought the car home as she insured it whilst she was there The guy is a dealer and sells many cars from home through ebay. Compared to her car some fairly expensive cars After 3 weeks car began overheating, we rang him and he described a fairly minor problem which my daughter got fixed at the cost of £60 to herself (heat sensor) After a further 2 weeks the car made horrendous noises and was checked by RAC and informed gearbox had gone, the car is not drivable and has now been parked up for 2 weeks. On the advice of CAB she wrote to him saying he was in breach of contract under sale of goods act and would he fix the car or take it back and give her a refund She after getting text that car was sold through auction so had no responsibility under sale of goods act to repair or refund. she then sent second letter giving final notice that she would take him to court …no response she now hasn't got a useable car, is struggling getting to work and her daily affairs…what can she do its going to cost a fortune going to court and she is spending money she hasn't got….the car is parked up at my house doing nothing and is undrivable tax has run out now and she has SORN it we need to proceed quickly on this and cheaply! thanks for any help and advice

I took out an unsecured personal loan in the amount of £10k with Northern Rock in June 2006 and since October 2008 have been on a reduced payment plan with them - monthly payments should be £204.00 and I am now paying £110.00 pcm. I have maintained these payments religiously but did receive a phone call from them last week stating that they could put a charge on my home if they so wished. They also informed me that the PPI I had on the loan does not cover me for anything as I have a mental health problem and so cannot claim. There was a payment of £2,480.60 Loan Protection on a statement that I received from them this month - the only statement I have ever seen regarding this loan. Currently my balance on this loan - according to them - stands at £8,820.99p which I don't understand either - seems like I've not paid anything off. I want to reclaim the PPI from them but do not want to "muddy the waters" a nd end up with them putting a charge on my home - it's recently been paid off and I need this PPI money to buy my husband an electric scooter as he cannot walk. Any advice on what to do would be appreciated.

Hey guys, So I am posting this on behalf of a friend. So just over 2 months ago he bought a Pug 206 on a 53 plate from a local "dealership," (a little allotment and sing garage between two houses.) He has had nothing but problems with it and I want to know were he stands. So the car was bought with approx 90K miles on it for £1100 and it was in average condition a few marks and dents here and there but nothing to major. So anyway here are the problems that he has had; 1) The seller put it in for an "MOT," and it passed with no advisories but it had a tire with .6mm depth, crack in the tire wall and no reverse light, he only noticed the tire after buying it and I got to admit I didn't see it either as I was there with him. (Cost £29 too put right) 2) Both doors check straps had disintegrated after about a week of owning it. Meaning that the doors could swing freely (Cost £90 to get put right.) 3) As of about two days ago his check engine light came on and it turns out his fuel injector has failed and causing it to loose power. (Cost £65 for diagnosis and £220 for the repair and oil change) So far he has had to spend in excess of £400 to put all this right and it has been driven for about 1000 miles over this two months. He isn't too fussed about getting the money back for the first two issues but he wants to try and get some money back to cover the cost of the injectors as they should have been serviced and noted before sale to say they may need replacing. So any help would be appreciated and I shall pass it on and keep the thread updated. Cheers guys.

Hi all, I'm after some advise to a problem that I'm dealing with. In Nov 2013 I bought a car from Citroen Garage (13 plate). When the sales person came over to talk and asked if I needed any help so as any normal people would, I said yes and would like to know more about this DS4 that I was looking at. He took me through all the good details as all sales persons do, then asked me what car I'm trading in. I had a 2011 Ford Cmax Titanium which was an good car and had all the luxuries that any person would need. I told him that one thing that I definately needed was a DAB Radio. I know to many out there it's not such a big thing to have but I travel a lot up to Scotland (up to the isles) and frequently up to North Wales and traveling through mountain areas you get no radio signal and that's where the DAB comes in. He informed me that it was a DAB so I was happy to hear that. My Cmax had hands free and other gadgets that the DS4 didn't but I was not that much fussed on it as I never used the hands free for the whole time I had it. Now after all that waffle my main concern is this.................. It has no DAB. I went back to the garage and spoke to the sales person and his manager and they said that it's his word against mine. He said that he looked at the list of details that the car comes with and he said that it doesn't say that there's DAB on it, but how many customers out there buy a car from a garage with the sales person having a clip board with all the car details on there?? I mentioned that selling a car (or any product to that matter) under False Pretence not only is wrong but is illegal. When I mentioned this his manager said that he will need to speak to his higher manager and will get back to me. I'm now back in Afghaistan and had to leave all this for my wife to deal with. The best option they came up with was for us to buy a BRAND NEW CAR that will have a DAB in it!!! I don't want a new car. Because it's now my wife dealing with this matter they're not helpfull at all and are just fobbing her off. Can I take this matter to Trading Standers Agency for False Pretence? I don't want this car anymore now and would be happy to take my old car back. Which they still have on their forecourt. Any advise will be extramely greatfull. Aide

Just after some advice, your help would be greatly appreciated. I bought a 2010 Audi A4 at the beginning of September 2013 and have only done 2600 miles in it. The car recently started making a loud noise so I took it to an independent VW/Audi specialist who have diagnosed it to be a gearbox problem. They stated the gearbox would need to be removed and then taken to a gearbox specialist who would strip it to pinpoint the exact fault. I asked them not to do any further work and then collected it. The next day I phoned up the car super market I bought it from, after several calls to the after sales guy I managed to get a conversation out of him. He was a bit cautious of admitting that the car would still be under some kind of warranty as it was bought less than six months ago and had done a very small amount of mileage. I did mention the sales of goods act to him which he did try to fob off as well. I explained to him that the car had been diagnosed with a gearbox problem from the garage I took it to and stated the gearbox would have to be removed/stripped for inspection. He suggested I called a local gear box specialist to find out if there was a common problem with these cars and what it would cost to remove/strip the gearbox to find the fault. He then told me to forward all this information by email to one of his seniors. He also mentioned that I would have to pay for the gearbox to be removed/stripped/inspected. So I called my local gearbox specialist who told me they wouldn't know what the fault was until they stripped the gearbox. They also gave me a price to do the work. I have forwarded all this information on by email to the trader on Friday and have had a reply by email the same day to acknowledge they have received it and they would get back to me once they have spoken to the relevant parties concerned. So I am now waiting for further communication from them which I hope will not take too long as I need a car to commute. For now I would greatly appreciate any advice in this matter, I am not sure if they will come back to me with an excuse or if they will just carry out the work to resolve the problem. I just want to be ready to give them a reply if it is the former so the advice would be very useful. I would also like to know what your take would be on me paying the costs for the initial work, that is to get the gearbox removed and stripped for inspection. This will set me back £350 + VAT before any repair work. Should I be paying for this or should the car super market be doing this? Also what is the chances getting a courtesy car from them so I can use it to get about? Thanks

I hope I am going to make sense here. I bought a vehicle yesterday from a CAR SALES place in somerset. It is a Citroen Xsara Picasso Desire . I had paid a deposit on the 12.12.2013 of £100. I had a friend test drive the vehicle just prior to deposit. He thought that it would be a good buy and that it needed the tracking doing immediately and then the advisories later. I went yesterday to take my peugoet to my friend who was buying my car off me. He then drove me to the Carsales. I paid the rest of the money plus the Tax which car sales person had purchased prior that morning. Mr car sales wanted my signature on the invoice, however he was reluctant to sign my copy. I insisted that he sign the invoice. He did not, at any point, tell me that the vehicle was actually dangerous! Infact in the ad on ebay he quotes that it drives well! I understood from him that it was mainly cheap because it had battle scars and would need the advisories done before the next MOT. The drive home had so freaked me out that I took it to the local garage after having had the tracking done beforehand. Please see below report from local garage and main block of sales info on the Citroen below that the car sales person had in his ad. My husband rang him (car sales person) today and asked him on his thoughts on this as the vehicle was not roadworthy. He (car sales man) said that I had had an expert round to check it over and that this man had been satisfied with it and that it was out of his hands. He took no responibility for it. This was a lie. It was a friend who took it for a test drive and he only drove it and did not inspect it. The garage man I took it too has said that the vehicle is unroadworth and should not be moved. He also said that in 40 years he has never driven a car that had scared him as much as this one. He said a lot more but I won't put it in here. Garage report We were asked to look at the Citroen Picasso for xx as she felt that there was something seriously wrong with the steering. xx also presented the existing MOT document with the advisories as follows: 001 Front (both) Anti roll bar linkage has slight play in a ball joint 002 Off side front lower suspension arm has light play in a ball joint. 003 Nearside track rod end ball joint has slight play. 004 Front brake disc worn pitted or scored but not seriously weakened She asked us to look at these items whilst we investigated the steering fault before repairing it as requested. After a short test drive, during which it was obvious there was something wrong with the steering we put the car on a lift to investigate. During a visual check we found the following faults Front brake discs excessively corroded and excessively worn Front brake pads worn OSF Anti Roll Bar link, top mount unattached (nut missing) and dust covers split. OSF Bottom Arm Rear Bush has excessive movement. OSF Hub worn where the bottom ball joint locates resulting in excessive movement (we removed the pinch bolt and dropped the ball joint out of the arm to investigate this as the movement appeared to be in the pinch joint not in the ball joint itself.) OSF TRE Dust cover split OSF Hub shows signs of mis-treatment NFS Bottom Arm Ball Joint has excessive movement NSF driveshaft oil seal leaking NSF Anti roll bar link dust cover split Engine Fault, uneven running particularly when cold like a misfire Front bumper loose OSF Seat cushion worn Auxiliary Belt beginning to perish Various body damage Spare wheel & carrier loose Rear tyres worn to approx 3mm Front tyres worn to approx 4mm These points have all been found as a result of a basic visual check with exception of dropping the OSF bottom arm to investigate the play here. There may be other faults evident on further inspection. END This is the information that car sales put up for selling the car on ebay. I have saved the webpage and printed it out. Clearly states Drives well. It was being sold as a road worthy vehicle. It does not say anywhere that it was for spares or repairs, or that it was dangerous to drive. This is the main piece: REDUCED TO CLEAR CITROEN XSARA PICASSO DIESEL MAUAL Mot May 2014 only 89k Some Service History Some Battle Scars see pictures Drives Well INSPECTION WELCOME Contact me on 0794 """" NO EMAILS """" PX WELCOME Address : MONDAY > SATURDAY 8am - 7PM CASH SALES ONLY I have left him a verbal message on his mobile which I have also put into an email and letter which I haven't as yet sent. Any extra advice on it would be appreciated. It goes: Dear Mr car sales person, I regret to inform you that the vehicle that you sold me yesterday, that you quoted had Some Service History Some Battle Scars see pictures Drives Well! Is unroadworthy. It does not drive well at all It is very clear that this vehicle does not come up to the description that you gave. Not only this, but the vehicle is actually dangerous. This has been verified by the garage I took it too in Glastonbury. They have advised me that it should not be driven and that I would be committing an offence if I drove it on the road. I have received advice from Trading Standards, who have informed me that I have three options with regards to this sale of goods. Of these options I am requesting full refund of money and expenses incurred by me by the incorrect information of a driveable vehicle. It is not in a satisfactory condition and is not good for the purpose for which it was bought. I have drawn up an invoice for payment from you which includes expenses such as the £20 fuel, £30 tracking, £55 inspection fee from the garage I took it to. Then there is the £877 that I paid for the actual vehicle (£77 of that is veh tax). This brings the total to £982. The vehicle is being held currently at XXXXX garage, in glastonbury, for you to pick up upon the payment of the above sum of money. However I must advise you that you will need a trailer as this vehicle is not roadworthy. If you do not comply and refund the money as requested, further action will be taken. In short, I do not accept this vehicle in the dangerous condition in which it is. This email will also be sent as a letter by registered mail. Yours faithfully later edit after first few posts.....------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi everyone, Thank you for your help. Citizens advice have helped me. Unfortunately this forum wasn't of much help. For those of us on a small budget. Cheap secondhand cars are the only option. All I ask is that they are honest and not send me out on the roads in a highly dangerous vehicle. I am not a mechanic, and I took it straight to a local garage for checking. Also something that I did not say was how the man was actually quite nasty after I had paid the cash. I did not feel confident to go back to the car sales as I was afraid. Also, the car was not altered. It was only inspected. If I had had the brakes done or some such to change the vehicle, then that would have been a different matter. This was also clarified by the Citizens Advice. Best wishes for all those who do try to help.

I bought a used Ford Galaxy from a dealer in Chigwell as a part exchange and while driving the car back home I discovered that the heating in the car doesn't work. I also discovered 2 days later that the engine overheats and that I couldn't lock the car and also it kept loosing power as if the turbo function was switched on and off. I took it to the mechanic who suggested that the water pump and possibly thermostat may need replacing and the remote locking and immobiliser is further work. So I rang the dealer and complained that I have these issues who initially tried to put me off but I called too many times and he eventually said we will fix it for you. So I drove the car all the way back to the dealer who then sent me to another place for fixing it. I spend the whole of that day (taking day off work) but the guys couldn't fix the heater and advised me to leave the car and they gave me my car back which I had part-exchanged with them to drive away until the new car is fixed. Its been nearly 3 weeks and I have ranged god knows how many times and the car is still not fixed. I asked for a refund but they refused to say that they are repairing the car for me. Where do I stand legally with this and what should I do. I am really stressed... many thanks for any help/advice.

Hi guys, I am really in a difficult situation. Yesterday I saw a laptop on ebay and I decided to contact the seller for any acceptable offers. Being a student, I wanted a good deal. The seller said he would give me the laptop for 990 which was pretty good deal for laptop that would last me at least 5 years throughout my whole phd course. However I had to transfer the money into his bank account. I didn't have all 990 in my bank as I had some in paypal account. I transfered 500 to his bank account and remaining via paypal. But later the seller advised me that he was going to wait for the paypal payment to go into his bank account which takes 7 working days normally. This is not something I have ever encountered before. I usually make the payment via paypal and my items are sent straight away. I do not have the sellers address or any details as the ebay listing didn't contain them. I only have his mobile number, bank account No, paypal address and email address. Being a student and already living under tight circumstances. It took me 18 months to save that money for the laptop. I am really worried that what it is some sort of doggy guy. I have spoken to the seller over the phone and he seems very persistent sales guy who is really good at persuading others and putting the blame on others. Please can someone advice what I can do if something does go wrong? millions of thanks in advance

Hi all, I bought a used Ford Ghia in 17 Sep'13 for £1000. At the time of sale there was a squeaking sound in the car when you drive or brake which dealer said it will go in time as it is because the car was in standing position from some time. thought its ok and bought the car and payed the amount by direct debit. Later that week I noticed there is a rubber/ plastic burning smell in and outside the car when you drive. I informed the dealer about it and he said it will also go in some time. I used that car for 2 weeks but still the squeaking sound and the smell didn't stopp but got worse I called the dealer again and asked him to check and he asked me to bring the car to his garage and asked to call him before coming. after that weekend I tried his ph. no. few times but he never answered on 19/10/13( Saturday) I took the car to dealer directly and asked him to see for himself he asked me to tell the problem to his garage people so they can look the car which I did and left the car and keys with the dealer. When I am coming out of his premises I seen him taking out the car on road at speed, at that time I thought he might be checking for the problem so ignored it. later that day in evening I got call from him saying that there is a problem with brake disk ( its damaged) which he can't fix and I have to do it myself but he can repair the smell problem which I explained him as it was there at the time of sale and you know that so you have to repair which he refused I asked him to do not do any repair as I want to proceed legally and I'll collect the car next day (Sunday) as we agreed when I given him the car for repair previous day and he excepted. Next day when I arrived at his shop at the time we agreed there was no one there and the office was locked, t hen I tried his mobile but the never answered. As I had work that day so I left for my office and while I was driving out I seen my car standing outside on a private parking outside dealers premises. When later evening I tried his mobile one lady answered the phone and she said he is out of town when I can hear the dealer dictating her what to say she said the car is with the garage and can collect from them. I told her I never given that car to garage but to you and |I asked him not to do any repair. I informed her that I will be coming to their shop to collect my car next day which she agreed. Monday evening when I called the dealer in evening to collect the car he again started talking dodgy asked me to collect the car from garage which I refused and he disconnected the phone, I informed police and got log reference from them. Later that night after dropping my wife to work for her night shift I decided to check where my car is parked at that time so when I got to his place my car was still standing in private car park s I decided to take few pictures of it for future reference. While I was taking pics I noticed there is a big dent in front passenger side door and scratches on the mirror frame as well which was shocking for me. Immediately after getting home I informed to police and updated my log reference. Now he refuses and says he didn't caused the damage and the car is still with him till now.:mad2::mad2: Guys can you please advice me what to do next as it really difficult for me to survive without two cars as we got a 20 month old baby and it is really uncomfortable in this weather t o take him with me when I go to drop my wife for night shifts and pick her up early morning and then go for my work everyday. Please advice me.:-):-)

Hi so 5months ago i bought a 54 plate vauxhall astra from a dealer for 2495 after a few mistakes with the finance we came to a verbal agreement to this day i have paid 1900. After leaving the garage the transmission light came on i called and he agreed to fix it so we went back up and he said it was a sensor and it had been changed again on route home the light came back on he agreed to fix this but was super eager for the final 595, i toldhim i was reluctant to pay this until the light was fixed he agreed. Now my car broke down on the bypass and after having it towed to a garage i was informed that my car has been running with an open gasket for months and my engine was now done. Looking for advice on what i should do now, where i stand, should i repair it with a new engine or leave it and try get a refund? Any advice would be appreciated thanks.

Hello all, I am hoping you might be able to help me. I bought a SIM free iphone 4 from the Carphone Warehouse a few months ago, and put my existing SIM card into it. All fine. When I came to the end of my contract with T-Mobile a month or so ago I gave notice to cancel, and took out a new cheaper contract (with no phone attached) with 02. However, I have not been able to use the 02 SIM card in my phone, as the phone has automatically locked to T-Mobile. Here's the difficulty: - T-Mobile won't unlock the phone as it was not bought through them; - the Carphone Warehouse won't unlock the phone and deny all responsibility for the situation; - if I were to go to some backstreet operation to get the phone unlocked I would void my Apple warranty; - I can't use my 02 contract, although I am still paying for it; and - I am still paying through the nose for my T-Mobile contract, even though the two year term has expired and I want to leave. I'm therefore left with a situation where I cannot use my new contract with 02 in my existing phone because I can't unlock it from T-Mobile without voiding my Apple warranty, and I'm paying for two mobile phone contracts, one of which I do not need, and the other which I cannot use. I have spent literally hours on the phone to 02 (not really anything to do with them), T-Mobile (who say they can't help, although I have had so many different and conflicting answers from them it took forever to establish this), the Carphone Warehouse (who point to their terms and conditions and deny all responsibility - by far the worst customer service BTW) and Apple (who have been lovely, but ultimately unable to do very much). I have a legal background, and so am reasonably aware of consumer protection legislation (though this really isn't my area). From my limited knowledge, it seems to me that I have a number of justifiable complaints: - I was not sufficiently warned when taking out the phone that it would lock to the first SIM card provider, and that I would not be able to change networks without immense difficulty and voiding my Apple warranty (apparently this is noted in the Carphone Warehouse's terms and conditions, though having just located them I cannot see that it is). The term (if indeed there is a "term") is therefore unfair and not binding on me. - The new 02 contract is not fit for purpose - I bought it for use in my existing iphone, but cannot use it due to the difficulties I have described. I should therefore be entitled to damages and rescission under the Sale of Goods Act. - According to something I found on the internet, the regulators looked into the practice of "locking" phones, and concluded that it was justifable because network providers subsidise the cost of phones, and so were entitled to tie customers into contracts for a certain period in order to recoup that cost. Now, given that I bought the phone outright it would seem to be that this reasoning does not apply to my case. If there is no subidy to recoup then charging for unlocking is simply a restraint on my freedom to transfer between network providers, which is exactly the kind of thing the regulator is there to prevent. Currently my plan is to write to the Carphone Warehouse to make a formal complaint, and if that does not work, to go to the regulator. Do any of you have any advice that might help me? Thanks in advance for your help. Liz

Was stupid and took out a Wonga loan to get through a dodgy month about 18 months ago; according to my credit file the original balance was £205. It defaulted at £450~. Wonga passed this on to Moorcroft whom sent a few letters, tried to ring, gave up and went quiet. (This was around 9 months ago) Well, I've just had a missed call (or did at 0812) from a number that is registered as MacKenzie Hall. They've tried to leave a message but I know it's going to be a computer voice telling me to ring them, so I haven't even bothered listening to it yet. I'm fairly sure this is going to be about the above account though. I've done a little research and can see these are unscrupulous turds. There's a thread in this very sub-forum for around 2 weeks ago where someone has uploaded their threat-o-gram, and I'm trying to get a feel for how MH work. I'm just musing at the moment but: Threatening to issue new defaults (and actually doing so) I wouldn't mind them doing this; as I'm not trying to gain any credit - and were they to try this I would fight to have it removed and would demand financial redress. Would also make a nice complaint to the OFT/ICO. Adding a whole lot of interest This is a bit of an issue; I don't mind paying what I originally borrowed (£200) - but I refuse to pay for any of their trumped up charges or fees. Using "Meritforce" (?) as a doorstep collector I know they have no powers, but living in a block of flats it not only has the potential to be embarassing - I also don't live alone, and refuse to allow them to subject anyone else to their idiocy. Harassing phonecalls Meh. At one point I was getting around 15+ phonecalls a day from 3 or 4 companies, this isn't anything I'm unable to ignore! Considering this, after they make first contact proper, I assume it may be a good idea to inform them that: All correspondence should be kept in writing (be it electronic or hard) there is no convenient time for a doorstep collection, any attempt to send someone will be taken as a form of harassment and the police will be called Now this very debt is my last one, and it's one I would love to see cleared off - even though it's been defaulted already and it's from a PDL; it would mean quite a lot to see the £0 on my credit file. However, I object to paying off their interest fees and other charges - I honestly do not mind paying off what I actually owed. (Even though it does leave a bad taste in my mouth knowing that even if I paid off what I owe that will be primarily be profit for these crooks - but if that's the price I pay for a £0 and some satisfaction then be it.) Is there anyway I can pre-empt their exuberant fees, bearing in mind this account has indeed defaulted 18 months previously? Lastly, I'm also aware that they have a nasty penchant for refusing payment plans - I remember from previous dealings with another DCA (Cougar.) that simply quoting the OFT guidelines for the collection of debts, there was a good bit in there about accepting payments, and it got them to shut up. I'd be looking at £60-£75 p/month, which I think is actually a very good offer. Knowing they don't like to be told how much they can have though, am I right in saying that only a court can order a breakdown of incomings/outgoings? (Sneakily, when I paid Robinson Way £150 and told them they would have £75 the next month - for an account totaling £225, they asked me to complete paperwork to "ensure you are able to afford these payments".. ignored obviously.) Now forgive the brain dump here; I'm just planning where to go next. Have I missed anything, or is there anything I should know about the pondlife who will be harassing me over the coming weeks?

just a quick one, i done the full HPI check on a car a few days ago , All came back ok so i purchased the car for 8k but i tried to call the seller a few times since to see if he had a spare key as when i picked the car up he said the company he buys from sometimes finds a spare and then he would pass on but the phone is permenetly off or turned off, He has also closed his Ebay account from which i first seen the classified add on , he also had zero feedback and had only opened his account the day before the car was listed , like i said i have had the full works hpi check and even went to a local garage for them to do which they did for £10 and all came back good, just a bit suspicious with him closing of the account on Ebay , Can anything come back and kick me in the ass after all the checks ive done

Hi everybody, first of all, thanks for looking into my thread! i bought a car from a dealer located in Edlesborough, and i paid in full 10 days ago. when the car got delivered on last tuesday, i found that there are a few things i wasn't expecting at all. 1. there is a dent in the rear bumper. my guess is that it was caused because of reversing towards a pole or something like a pole. 2. spring of the left hand side of storage cover / roller blind is broken, so when it is applied there is no tension on the left hand side, but looks like too much tension on the right hand side. 3. in the advert they put on autotraders, it said 35000 miles on the clock. but when the vehicle arrived it has got 36118 miles instead. i tried to communicate with the manager called alan, but he has got a really bad attitude regarding this. after he admitted that they didn't check the functionality of the roller blind, i said 'oh my god', then he had to give a 5-minute lecture about how improper he thought for me to say omg. he also said that no dealers will check the roller blind even the bmw main dealership wouldn't do it. before talking to him i have been to mercedes-benz which is just 5 minutes walk from my house. i told a dude working there about the dent about the roller blind. i asked him if they would sell a car with problems like mine without telling the buyer before delivering out. he said they definitely wouldn't advertise it! i haven't driven the car on any street at all yet, and except the only time that i turned the engine on was to get the car parked in my parking bay on delivery day. i coudn't go there and pick it up myself, because it will take me 10 hours on the road and i have a dog living with me. i contacted citizen advice bureau, but there's not much they could do to help. as they advised i have sent a formal email to the dealer and asked for a FULL refund. the manager of the company, alan, replied that it would be my liability for the cost of delivery, collection and ROAD TAX. after calling citizen advise bureau again, i was told that if i want to get those cost back, i have to get a solicitor, and it will be the Judge's call about who should pay for the cost. hence i do need a good solicitor now, and does anyone know how much will it cost me? most importantly, would i win the case??? please advise!!! thank you guys so so so so so much!!!!!!!!!!!!! car details: BMW 09 plate X3 SE Auto, price paid £16400. pictures: roller blind h ttp://i1348.photobucket.com/albums/p722/icanotellu/rollerblindright_zps1126a5cf.jpg h ttp://i1348.photobucket.com/albums/p722/icanotellu/rollerblindleft_zps4d8d152a.jpg dented rear bumper h ttp://i1348.photobucket.com/albums/p722/icanotellu/bumper_zps2687f5b5.jpg mileage h ttp://i1348.photobucket.com/albums/p722/icanotellu/bumper_zps2687f5b5.jpg i don't know if legally i am allowed to reveal the name of the dealer so i can't post the screenshot i have saved of the listing on autotraders.co.uk.

Hi, Can anyone help me? I bought a car from a private seller 2 weeks ago from a classified ad on ebay. My partner and I went to the seller's house after messaging on ebay and agreeing a price and asking questions about the car etc. The registered keepers boyfriend took care of the sale and took us for a test drive and answered all the questions we asked about the car and its condition. She turned up before we left to sign the paperwork and take the money. We had driven over 200 miles to buy the car and he constantly reassured us that the car was in perfect working order and had just passed its MOT with "flying colours" 12 days prior to the sale. He said they had never had a problem with the car whilst it had been in their possession. The car had also had numerous modifications to the turbo and body etc which he informed us had been declared and that when we insure the car they would have the details of all modifications (I have never had a modified car before so thought that was ok). On arriving home the engine management light came on and by the time we got it to the garage the next day steam was coming out from under the bonnet and we were told the turbo pipe had split and it had been heavily taped to conseal it. They also told us that it should not have passed its MOT due to various problems such as loose 12volt wiring etc. I have now opened a complaint with VOSA with regards to the MOT and they informed me that the car did fail but passed on the retest. The bottom line is the vehicle is not roadworthy and is uninsurable due to me not being able to inform them what modifications it has had. Is it possible for me to get my money back or take them to court? I know I have been very stupid in not doing my research first but as a layman as far as cars are concerned I thought they seemed genuine, trustworthy people. Thank you in advance for any advice you can give.

bought a mercedes 2003 diesel car ,trader described car as perfect, 2 weeks later i have had the car checked by a garage and the turbo is faulty .the car makes a whistleing sound while driving. was making whistle sound when i bought it. trader refusing to refund or fix the car. trader denies being a trader, he now says he is a private seller. what should i do. i want to take the dishonest trader to court. do i need to get an estimate from a garage,or do i need an expert opinion. also i have evidence that the trader is in fact a trader as he has 2 more cars for sale from his home address. any advice would be appreciated.

Hi there Today i went to a garage close to newbury to look for a car. The car was there and as I am no mechanic it looked alright to me. Drove fine as well. So I decided to buy the car. I paid 4170 pounds for the car by my card. On my way back in this car (its 2007 Mazda 6), after 20 odd miles driving on the motorway, the car suddenly lost power and went into limp mode and I had to quickly stop on the hard shoulder. It was dangerous as I was on the middle lane and there was a lot of traffic. Anyways, I switched the car off and back on again and it was oki for few miles and then went into limp mode again. The cars engine warning light and DFP is on now. I made it home which is almost 70 miles from the garage where I bought the car from. Now, I cant drive this car on the motorway because its very un reliable. Please tell me how can I get my money back from the seller as I dont want to keep the car. He has given me warranty on the car but as I said I dont want the car. Please tell me what my options are. Thank you

hi everyone, I need so help from an expert on the Sale of Goods Act, as I bought a PC from comet in July 2011, it was returned as faulty in October 2011 with a faulty dvd drive, memory and hard drive which they then repaired under warranty it's worked fine ever since and has only had light usage but sadly it wont work at all since July this year. It's a packard bell all in one touch screen pc and the screen fails to work, at barely 2 years old and I think (though cant be sure as I am not an expert) that the graphic card has failed as the screen doesn't come on at all which makes the PC unusable. I didn't purchase an extended guarantee from comet as I've had numerous packard bell pc's over the years and they've all lasted well and have been of general good quality, in other words I've had no complaints about them until now. Comet obviously no longer exist I've emailed packard bell and asked them to undertake a free of charge repair as clearly the device is not fit for purpose as it's reasonable to expect more than two years/(18months approx since last repair) in lifepsan from a computer. Packard bell wont help and have referred me back to the retailer comet who of course no longer exist. I've threatened them with the SOGA in my previous emails and I'm certain though not sure that responsibility for repairs transfers to the manufacturer under the SOGA when a retailer goes out of business or ceases to trade. This is the part I'm not sure about! Does responsibility for the PC transfer to Packard Bell now comet is no longer trading. Also does anyone know what constitutes a fair and reasonable life span for a PC which would satisfy trading standards I've looked on the internet but cant find any consistent (read legally satisfying) references. Many Thanks for any help and advice.

Hiya, I'm wondering if anyone would be able to give me any advice. My brother bought a car at the beginning of May this year (£2250 + trading in his old car) from a garage. He's had nothing but trouble with it since but that's a different story! yesterday morning he received a note through his door from a repossesion company, after ringing them it turns out that the previous owner (who we believe to be the owner of the garage he bought it from) had taken out a log book loan on the car for around £2000 and they have said my brother must surrender the car to them. We have contacted trading standards among other people and they are going to look into it but have said it can take up to 5 working days which isn't much help as the repossesion people have said they are coming at 4pm tomorrow and if he doesn't surrender it they will tow it away, while I understand the loan company want their money back I don't see how they can just take it with barely any notice and leave my brother with nothing - aswel as what he paid for the car he has also spent around £1500 on fixing it (the gearbox exploded and even though the receipt for the car stated that there was a 3 months part warranty on the gearbox and engine, the garage refused to pay anything towards it). Sorry for the long post but any help anyone can give would be really appreciated!

Hi All, I'm looking for some advice please. We recently purchased a car from a dealer on finance for the sum of £10,500 around 6 weeks ago. After 1 week, a major problem developed with the car, the dealers took the car back to fix it and had the car for 14 days (a job i'm told should take 2 days tops) - the car was returned to us, the problem still present, and to add insult to injury, whilst rebuilding the car they had broken the turbo valve and glued it all back together (rather than replacing a £20 part) - needless to say, their workmanship is appalling. In the 6 weeks we have had the car, these are the problems we have had to date: 1. Vacuum pipes continually coming off the vacuum box at rear of engine bay was the first thing. No biggy.... 2. Fault codes relating to throttle malfunction - had a new throttle position sensor. 3. Popping/Rasp from engine bay & loss of power, turned out to be a broken bolt on the engine block/manifold which dealers took back to fix but havent rectified properly, it's now leaking and popping/crackling from piston 1 (plus leak around that area). 3.a (when car came back they'd broken the diverter valve nib off and glued the pipe directly onto the DV (no nib!) - So needed a new DV. 4. Rocker cover started leaking oil from seal and bolts. 5. Boost solenoid & MAF needed replacing following boost issues. 6. Exhaust rattling & blowing from various areas. 7. Front offside wheel nasty metal scraping noise progressively louder - Not discs/pads, not sure on this one. 8. Air con condensor shot, was blowing hot air, took to have it regassed, turned out to be condensor. 9. Gearbox started whining in 2nd/3rd (hasnt had ANY stick whatsoever with all these issues). 10. This morning came out to find a huge puddle of oil all leaking from turbo oil return pipe - see earlier post. 11. Really loud rattling from passenger side dash, no idea what it is but something is in there (i.e behind glovebox area). 12. Cruise control stopped working, been told this is likely a CIM fault which also controls ABS. Now, we contacted the finance company and they said they would speak to the dealer, following this, the dealer has contacted us and said basically, bring us it back, "we'll take a look at it" - now i'm sorry, but bearing in mind their quality of workmanship in not reparing the problem and breaking something else in 14 days when it first went back to them, we don't hold out much hope of anything else getting rectified. They've also suggested we drive the car 80 miles to them with a major oil leak from the turbo oil return pipe (this is fatal advice, and would destroy the turbo). In 6 weeks the car has been in the garage for 3 weeks, and for the remaining 3 weeks unusable to an extent due to the issues outlined above. We asked the dealership if they will take the car back off us and provide a replacement (as they have one on their forecourt of same age, same mileage, same spec, etc etc) - but they will not, they have simply offered to take a look at the car. All these problems in 6 weeks of ownership, and we no longer want the car, i feel it's a dud, a lemon, a bad un, whatever you want to call it, these are expensive (some major) issues, and i think the car has had a hard life. What's the next port of call please to get this situation sorted? Thank you for all help and advice anyone can offer.