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@Inchcapeuk Burton Upon Trent avoiding their consumer obligations


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I bought a car from Inchcape in January this year and on the drive home noticed some things that I felt weren’t quite right,

 

I emailed the dealer upon returning home with the issues and felt quite confident all could be resolved as I had taken the extended warranty offered for 3 years.

Inchcape told me to book the car in anywhere local at a reputable garage so I did but because I needed a loan car I waited 1 month, in this period I travelled 6k miles as I do a lot of mileage for work.

 

The garage inspected the vehicle and advised, worn anti roll bar link, brakes needing a run out check, incorrect service done at Inchcape meaning service was due which includes cam belt change, all of which would not be covered under my extended warranty and totalling nearly £2k.

 

I sent the report to Inchcape and they advised it should be done under warranty but I explained this is all wear and tear issues which warranty does not cover and they should have carried out these items before releasing the car and taking £17k of my money.

We then went into lockdown and the dealers closed

 

I decided to change all the brakes myself as I still needed the car and wanted to be safe,

changing all the brakes resolved part of the issue which was vibration under braking and I could live with the other issues due to the circumstances and after discussions with the garage the anti roll bar link would not cause any issues.

 

As soon as the dealer opened after lockdown I resumed the conversation regarding getting this resolved and am now getting the finance company to mediate the situation as they are only offering £200 towards the costs I have had to repair the vehicle.

 

Am I still within my rights to return this vehicle, my understanding was 6 months which we have passed but we were locked down for 3 months.

Any help or advise appreciated.

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Nice to see someone else falling for the extended warranty trick. How much did you pay for the extended warranty? What advantages do you think the extended warranty gives you over your statutory rights?

You would be entitled to take advantage of the provisions of the consumer rights act, if you had asserted your rights in writing within the six month period. I gather you haven't done that although you have complained that you haven't specifically referred to your right to repair or refund within the first six months under the 2015 act.

Even if you had, it needs the retailer to recognise those rights and to respect them – and as far as we can tell, that doesn't happen very often – especially in the second-hand car business.

If you have to take them to court then you will have to sue them for £17,000. On the basis of what you say I think your chances of winning are excellent and I can imagine that they would be stupid not to put their hands up. However, an action for £17,000 would take you well outside the small claims limit and that means that in the unlikely event that you lost, you would then be liable for their costs which could be reasonably substantial.

You have paid £17,000 for the vehicle. Although it is not in good condition – it's obviously not an old banger – and maybe the best thing you could do would be to get a thorough appraisal of it and its defects, it quotes for the work and then tell Inchcape that you want them to pay up immediately or else you will see them. I'm quite sure the bill would be less than £10,000 which means that you would be comfortably in the small claims limit and that means that you could sue without any risk – and with a near certainty chance of success.

Despite the lapsing of the consumer rights act six months period, you would still be entitled to reject the car if you have been deprived substantially of the whole benefit due to its poor condition.

From what you say, there are serious faults with it including brakes and the rollbar which would affect the steering and stability of the vehicle and on that basis it seems to me that they have sold the car in unroadworthy condition which of course is an offence contrary to the Highways Act  Road Traffic Act– and it would be a good idea to make them aware of that.

So there are your choices. If you want to get rid of the car then I think you are in a good position to do so. If you would like to hang onto the car but have it properly repaired then I think you are in a good position to do so.

One thing I should say, though is that if you want then to take the car back and refund you then you need to stop driving immediately. Your continued driving of the car would probably be taken as an acceptance of it in its condition – subject to repair.

The least complicated solution for you will be to get the cost of repairs et cetera as I have suggested and then proceed for that.

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  • BankFodder changed the title to @Inchcapeuk Burton Upon Trent

Fantastic quick response Bankfodder, thanks.

 

I paid £300 for the 3 year warranty and to be fair a shock absorber has failed on the rear of the car as well which will be claimed for and because the pair need to be changed it’s £1800 cost so has been worth it already.


I didn’t think it would help with statutory rights at all

however they have sold me a warranty that would be immediately invalid as they only did an oil change when releasing the vehicle to me, if the cam belt had snapped on the drive home I’m sure the warranty company would not have covered it because it states the vehicle must have the correct and appropriate service schedule to be valid.

 

Its a great car And I would be happy if Inchcape took responsibility and covered these costs which I believe is due to there negligence. 


I don’t really want to take it to court although will do if needed as I am currently £1275 out of pocket and they have so far offered a token £200 gesture.

 

The finance company have said they will investigate to come to a satisfactory resolve.

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You had all those rights anyway under ordinary contract law or under the consumer rights act and you didn't need to pay for a warranty. You simply been sold a set of duplicate rights and so far we don't see that you have had any particular advantage from it – and in fact you have suffered a disadvantage because it has allowed the dealer to cook up an excuse for passing the buck and denying your remedy for your defective vehicle and in the event that there had been a defect covered by the warranty, it would simply allow the dealer to get the repair carried out at the expense of an insurance company.

You point out that Inchcape didn't do a very good job on checking out the vehicle. Of course they didn't. Why should they bother to incur the expense when they knew that many defects would be simply paid for by an extended warranty insurance company and that where those defects weren't covered by the extended warranty, they would then simply use that as an excuse for telling you that it's nothing to do with them – and "you're on your own, Jack".

For somebody who is prepared to spend £17,000 on a used vehicle, you seem to be very trusting – and we can see this again in your expectation that you will be treated fairly by the finance company. In fact what's going to happen is that the finance company and Inchcape will probably cut some deal. I notice that they say that they are going to attempt to get a "satisfactory" resolution. In my book, "satisfactory" means "good enough".

You paid for the finance and you are paying probably quite high rate of interest. You should make sure that you get at the very least your pound of flesh out of it. You are completely covered by the consumer credit act which means that the finance company carries absolutely equal responsibility for the vehicle. Paying interest on a loan doesn't only mean that you're paying for the money that you have borrowed. You are paying also for the full package that comes with it – which includes legal liability and legal responsibility for the condition of your vehicle.

I'm sure if you went into a restaurant and ordered meat and potatoes and they only brought you the meat, you'd probably start complaining about – where are  my potatoes - and even challenging the bill. Yet with a much larger sum of money, you seem to have a different approach.

If I were you I get the vehicle inspected very quickly. Has it had an MOT? I get the whole thing MOT to, inspected – by an independent source – nothing to do with Inchcape and find out exactly what the state of the vehicle is.

That should be your bottom line for resolution by the dealer or by the finance company – you don't care which. Once all faults in the vehicle have been identified, if it is confirmed that the vehicle was sold to you in a condition which was contrary to the requirements of the Road traffic act in respect of roadworthiness, you should make sure that both the dealer and the finance company are notified of this in writing.

As I've already suggested, it would be best practice to get two assessments of the condition of the vehicle and quotes for repairs and send them both to Inchcape and to the finance company. You need to make sure that the finance company understands that you are somebody who is going to set standards for the resolution and that you will stand your ground.

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Just to add, don't forget you've spent £17,000 on a vehicle and that means that you have a fairly long term relationship with Inchcape in respect of support, responsibility for defects – et cetera.
If you don't set the rules down now, you can have difficulty in the future if anything else occurs

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Thanks Very much, your right maybe I am to relaxed and it is a large amount of money, I appreciate your time and comments.

 

I have already got and submitted the 2 independent garage reports which states what needed doing, I must add that I have had the work done and paid for it due to the nature of the work and safety of the vehicle.

 

Would you like me to post the latest email from the finance company With Inchcapes response?

I will edit appropriately 

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I think you should charge fully for the work that you have carried out. Even though you went ahead and did it off your own initiative, from what you say, it sounds as if it was a sensible and very reasonable thing to do.

So you should include the cost of this in the money that you are looking for. If they start to quibble about the cost then you should try and get an estimate from an independent source for the same work and then settle for the cheaper of the two. You certainly shouldn't be fobbed off with a lousy £200.

I don't think we need to see anything from the finance company the moment – but what would be useful would be to know exactly what the value of all the necessary repairs are including the losses that you have incurred so far making sure that the car was in a reasonably safe condition.

Once again, don't forget that if it is in an unroadworthy condition then they have committed an offence by selling it to you – and once again, you are stuck with Inchcape for as long as you keep the vehicle and that means that they need to understand that you are going to be pushed around – but that is what they seem to be doing so far.

It's a shame, because looking around Inchcape seems to have quite a decent reputation so I don't know what's happening here that they are suddenly cheapskating on your consumer rights.

Once again, they will only be motivated to do a better job if they are held to account

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Just to clarify, the offence of supplying a vehicle in  an unroadworthy condition is under section 75 of the Road Traffic Act, 1988, not the Highways Act mentioned above. When taking legal action it is best to be accurate. 

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My time as a Police Officer and subsequently time working within the Motor Trade gives me certain insights into the problems that consumers may encounter.

I have no legal qualifications.

If you have found my post helpful, please enhance my reputation by clicking on the Heart. Thank you

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Yes, thanks. I had a senior moment in the first post that I made the correct reference in my later post

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This is the email to Inchcape detailing costs and for the first time advising the finance company:

 

Quote

 

From advice I have received I am requesting full compensation of my expenses due to the following reasons listed below:
 
Westover 4x4 £154.80 - Initial inspection fee to identify faults (Inchcape agree to pay)
 
Brake discs and pads £170.88 - The vehicle should not have been released to me with faulty brakes, due to covid 19 lockdown and garages being closed I purchased the parts and changed the brakes myself to ensure the car was safe, vibration reported to Inchcape resolved.(Inchcape do not agree to pay as considered wear and tear)
 
Near side anti roll bar link worn quoted £165 Inchcape agreed to pay this (I have had the works complete for £76.35 included on Hypermotive bill attached)
 
Full service including timing belt change £845.69 (Quoted £1112.95) - Whilst I have been told by Gary at Inchcape that this service will not be reimbursed I would like to remind you that I paid for the extended warranty with Inchcape as attached and page 13 clearly states that vehicles with timing belts must be checked and changed in line with the manufacturers recommendations or warranty will not be covered. I therefore have to question why Inchcape sold me a vehicle and warranty knowing the timing belt was not changed and this would invalidate my warranty?
 
I am now copying Toyota finance on this correspondence as my contract is with them and have been in touch with them to advise on the situation.
 
Can you please arrange the reimbursement for the above costs which now total £1,247.72 or I will be left with no option to take action towards returning the vehicle to Inchcape for full and complete refund including any finance payments made to date. 

 

 
 
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Inchcapes response via the finance company is still offering the Health check fee and anti roll bar link, I have responded again to each of there points and requested full refund. The finance company this morning have said they expect a response today.

 

Yes Inchcape have a great reviews but they get the reviews done whilst your in picking up the vehicle, how do you feel when picking up your new car? I have a friend also having issues with Inchcape Leicester, vehicle released with faulty brakes and wheels cracked.

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Thanks.

Just to point out once again, wear and tear has very little to do with it. You purchased a car which should be in satisfactory condition and remain that way for a reasonable period of time.

Particularly at £17,000, satisfactory condition it certainly means that it should come without any of those defects and so Inchcape's excuse that they are "wear and tear" is simply a feeble attempt to escape their responsibilities.

Of course there is a sort of urban mythology around "wear and tear" and the majority of people will end up accepting it – unless they get to this forum.

Don't accept "wear and tear". Wear and tear would apply to you in the event that you had done 20,000 or 30,000 or 40,000 miles and then these parts had started to show deterioration. That would be wear and tear and that would apply to you and that wouldn't be reimbursable. This kind of defect which appears within weeks of owning a £17,000 vehicle are – defects – and they are clear evidence that the vehicle has been sold to you in breach of contract

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Get your friend to come to this forum.

Inchcape won't be used to being pushed around. Start showing a bit of muscle to them – to the extent of threatening and even starting a court claim for the money you want and I can imagine they will soon come to heel. How far away from your home are they?

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  • BankFodder changed the title to @Inchcapeuk Burton Upon Trent avoiding their consumer obligations

Incidentally, tell the finance company that if you issue proceedings against Inchcape, you will join them – the finance company – as a co-defendant.

Remind them that they have equal responsibility and you are prepared to enforce it in the County Court. That should make them sit up

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Come back here when you get the response and will decide what to do.

I would suggest that you sent a cautionary note to the dealer and also to the finance company and warn them that they are both going to be named in proceedings and you give them five days to change their mind.

After that you send a letter of claim and follow it through with the papers.

You would only do this if you are intending to go ahead with your threat. Don't bluff. If you bluff then you will lose credibility and you will be at their beck and call for the remainder of your ownership of the vehicle

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By the way, did you know that your friend had these problems before you went to inscape for your own vehicle

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If you go to the financial ombudsman it will take ages. It can easily take more than six months and nobody will really take you seriously.

Banks and finance companies love the FOS. They hate the County Courts. If you go to the County Court they have to take you seriously, they have to observe timescales, they have to set things out in the open. The County Court is the equaliser.

It's encouraging that you are starting to get angry about it because it is the element of grudge which will motivate you and which will help you dominate them.

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Thanks once again, I won’t take any more of your time until the response comes back.

I will post it edited if required.

 

Such a great help you guys are, this is my second time using CAG with the first in completely different circumstances and massive success.

 

I feel another donation coming 😂

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Morning, just a quick update that I have just noticed, not had a response yet but on the pre delivery inspection sheet sent to me, tyre weld has been used (tyre weld is a temporary roadside fix to get you to a garage for a permanent repair), there inspection sheet states replace brake linings if less than 70%, rear brakes 40% front brakes 50%, this has been sent to me as it was requested by the finance company

Clowns

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Who carried out the inspection

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So it seems that Inchcape's own inspection identified a tyre with only a temporary fix that has not identified any other problems and seems to be at odds with your own findings. Is this correct?

The reference to the brakes is simply a standard observation that brakes should be replaced if there is a certain level of wear.

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