I bought a stolen car from a dealer. I was stopped by the police. Need advice. *** Refund by Dealer***

[FabledFabia]

Hi, 

 

On 7th July 2022 I went to Shefford to Test drive a Nissan Qashqai. https://www.jpautomotivebedford.co.uk/used-cars/nissan-qashqai-1-5-dci-acenta-2wd-euro-5-5dr-shefford-202204184768440/. After test driving the car, I did some checks on my phone to see MOT history and to check if the car was stolen, also checked the dealers reviews and history on autotrader, all came back clear. I paid the dealer £500 deposit via debit card (he didn't accept credit card payments). The Qashqai's radio was damaged (audio worked, but the radio screen did not turn on). Dealer agreed to fit in a new radio, I was to collect the car the this week on Wednesday. 

 

The next day 8th July 2022, I told the dealer I would get the car radio replaced myself, if he knocked £200 off the asking price, I also agreed to part exchange my skoda fabia (failed MOT) for £250. 

 

Saturday 9th July I collected the car from the dealer and exchanged documentation. I also paid the remainder of the balance and left my part exchanged skoda with him. I got apple car play fitted in for around £550.

 

Sunday 10th July, on the way to Tesco my wife and I were stopped by Warwickshire police. 2 hours later the police said the vehicle was reported to Lincolnshire police as a stolen vehicle. Apparently, Person 'X' bought the car from Dealer 'A' with a stolen credit card, person X then sold the car onto JP Auto Bedford. They advised me to return the car to the dealership I bought it from. They also gave me an s66 notice (attached). 

 

I emailed the notice to the dealer, I then called him and asked for a refund, the dealer said he will speak with his local police to try to get to the bottom of the issue. 

 

I drove the Qashqai to the dealer's garage, whilst I was with the dealer I tried ringing both Warwickshire police and Lincolnshire police, wasn't able to get through to anyone, "Your call will be answered in 47 minutes time". I have the number of the officer in charge of the case, but it kept going to voicemail.

 

The dealer says he paid for the car, and he showed me the ID of the seller on his phone. After some discussion, we came to an agreement: he gave me back my skoda fabia (with all relevant documentation, keys , e.t.c), I left the qashqai with him.

 

Between now and Thursday, the dealer will try and get in touch with the police, to find out exactly what's happening. If he's able to resolve the issues with the police and give me written confirmation that the issues are resolved, he will drive the Qashqai to my home. If he's unable to resolve the issues with the police, he will give me a refund.

 

I wanted written confirmation but there was no pen at hand, so he sent me a text message

 

"Hi FabledFabia thank you for bringing the Nissan back. I do apologies for what is going on. Please allow me 2 days from today to fix this issue with the police. If they say there is no more issue I will bring the car to you. If they say there will be an issue I will refund you your money back."

 

Ideally I would have preferred some kind of written agreement (not sure how legally binding text messages are), but so far the dealer does seem to be acting in good faith so I don't want to get hostile / unreasonable.

 

If the dealer does not give me a refund on Thursday (e.g. says "police investigations are ongoing" or "I need more time") what can I do to recover my money? Chargeback or small claims?

My wife is pregnant and will be giving birth any day now I also desperately need a car for work. I cannot keep using my skoda because it's failed it's MOT and needs around £1000 in repairs. 

s66_redacted.pdf

[FabledFabia]

Thanks, I will start drafting these today. If by Thursday I have no good news from the seller, I will look to send out these letters on Friday. 

[FabledFabia]

MOT valid until  28 July. Currently not insured, I paid for 3 hour insurance to drive skoda from dealer to my home. I don't plan on using the skoda without insurance. 

[FabledFabia]

Hmmm ok. 

 

I was going by this 

 

"If your car fails the MOT TEST before the previous MOT certificate elapses, you can drive it away – but only if the none of the faults are classed as ‘dangerous’ and the minimum standards of roadworthiness are met."

https://www.motoringresearch.com/advice/drive-mot-fail-car-expired/

 

 

edit: I've checked the MOT again and you're right. It cannot be driven.

[FabledFabia]

Do not drive until repaired (dangerous defects):

• Nearside Front Tyre has ply or cords exposed cut in tread + tyre is below legal limit inner and outer edges (5.2.3 (d) (ii))
• Offside Front Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm inner edge (5.2.3 (e))

Repair immediately (major defects):

• Offside Front Track rod end ball joint has excessive play (2.1.3 (b) (i))
• Offside Power steering component leaking leaking from rack inside gaiter (2.1.5 (a))
• Offside Front Coil spring fractured or broken (5.3.1 (b) (i))

Mechanic told me it would cost around £800 to fix all these issues. We're expecting a child so I got a loan to get a bigger car, then all this happened  

 

I have terrible luck with cars, when I first bought the Skoda in 2019, I came to these forums for help, because I had issues with that purchase too (see my post history) 

[FabledFabia]

@Manxman in exile

Thanks, I didn't know this. For now, I will take my chances, the car is just parked on a private drive. Will see how things go, if it looks like I'll be in for a legal battle I will insure the car and pay the 1K to get it back on the road.

 

@dx100uk I am drafting the letter of claim now, looking at this 'pre action protocol' , is it relevant to me as an individual? I am not a business . 

From the introduction "This Protocol applies to any business (including sole traders and public bodies) claiming payment of a debt from an individual (including a sole trader)."

 

Please could I have a review of my refund request letter? I plan to send this out on Thursday (assuming I haven't heard anything good back from the seller). 

 

After 14 days, if I still hear nothing, I will send a letter of claim. 

redacted of Qashqai Refund Letter.pdf

[FabledFabia]

Last Thursday, I called the officer in charge of the case and asked him to speak with the dealer.

 

He called the dealer and explained the situation. The dealer refunded me my money in full on Friday.

 

This was a bad experience for me, but I don't think the dealer acted maliciously, to that end I will try to remove their name from this post.