Problem with reputable dealer

I'm sorry, but I see this as a very simple case. The OPs friend buys a motorhome supposedly fit for purpose and finds it isn't.

Firstly what does the advert say? Is there anything here that implies that it is not in good working order?
Secondly what did the OP's friend sign up to when he bought the MH? Did he buy it "as seen" for instance, in which case there is little comeback.

If the MH is still with the dealer and the buyer has refused to take it, the 30 day period has not yet come into effect. This starts when the buyer takes actual possession. (CRA 2015, section 22, part (3) )

Next comes section 28. The dealer must deliver the goods on the agreed date, or within 30 days of the contract being made if no date is arranged. This means the goods must be delivered in a condition which is fit for purpose as defined in the act.

As for the £4000, that is simply a joke. If the MH needed servicing and preparation before it could be sold, then it clearly is not fit for purpose anyway.

The OP's friend needs to refuse to take the MH, leave it at the dealers and contact a good solicitor specialising in consumer law, or as I did, go though my legal aid cover.
 
Is this ‘friend’ one of those ‘a friend of mine caught something whilst on holiday what do you think he should do stories’? Come on friend man up and give your story direct to clear up this one. Third party conversations are open to misrepresentation.
 
Has this subject and now been resolved and deleted?
 
thebriars said:
Which is exactly what I will be doing with my cowboy dealer. They have until Thursday to pay up in accordance with the legal contract drawn up and the CRA. I'm not holding my breath though.
Click to expand...

Living up to their reputation as a cowboy dealer, I didn't get my money today despite being a legal requirement under the Consumer Rights Act. Its really unbelievable that a large dealership should behave in this way.
 
thebriars said:
Living up to their reputation as a cowboy dealer, I didn't get my money today despite being a legal requirement under the Consumer Rights Act. Its really unbelievable that a large dealership should behave in this way.
Click to expand...
Name and shame.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Just had a phone call from the solicitor. The money has come in to them, just within the time limit by an hour or two.

I'm not sure I should name and shame in this topic, after all the topic title is "Problem with a Reputable Dealer", if you get my point.
default_ph34r.png


The "dealer" is The Leisure World Group/Catterick Caravans. I will put a full review on their page when I have half an hour or so! Its a long sad story. It has taken exactly 5 months since we rejected it to get to this point.
 
Check your rights first.
Speak to local Trading Standards
Check County Court procedure
If that process fails Tell him The Sheriff's are coming.
Name the dealer.....
 
pandas said:
Is this ‘friend’ one of those ‘a friend of mine caught something whilst on holiday what do you think he should do stories’? Come on friend man up and give your story direct to clear up this one. Third party conversations are open to misrepresentation.
Click to expand...

No reason to lie. This is genuinely a request for information for a friend. I thought i would ask my knowledgeable friends on here what their thoughts were. The case is still ongoing.
 
pandas said:
Is this ‘friend’ one of those ‘a friend of mine caught something whilst on holiday what do you think he should do stories’? Come on friend man up and give your story direct to clear up this one. Third party conversations are open to misrepresentation.
Click to expand...
That is not a nice accusation. You should be ashamed of yourself.
 
125BEER said:
Check your rights first.
Speak to local Trading Standards
Check County Court procedure
If that process fails Tell him The Sheriff's are coming.
Name the dealer.....
Click to expand...

Sorry but its not as simple as that!

Speak to local Trading Standards - Get redirected to Citizen's Advice, who may or may not pass on to Trading Standards.

Check County Court procedure - You've got to go through the court system first, which means lots of letters back and forward before employing a solicitor. Even then its not simple. If the dealer makes an offer which you reject, you have to weight up solicitors and court fees, and ponder whether the court will say you should have accepted their offer.

If that process fails Tell him The Sheriff's are coming - The dealer will know full well there's a lot of hurdles to get through before that happens, and he will smile sweetly at you and do nothing.


Trust me I've just been through the process, its not easy and could take between months and years.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
The process has to start somewhere and the request was asking for direction.
No it is not simple but nor is the sum of money involved.
..........
 
Yorick said:
That is not a nice accusation. You should be ashamed of yourself.
Click to expand...
This is not an accusation. I simply thought as there was so much ambiguity on this subject that it would be far better if the friend could respond directly. Apologies if I offended anybody which was not my aim.
 
125BEER said:
The process has to start somewhere and the request was asking for direction.
No it is not simple but nor is the sum of money involved.
..........
Click to expand...

I outlined the process to him way back.
 
People keep saying talk to trading standards.....

You CANNOT talk to trading standards you have to have the case referred to trading standards by such as citizens advice in the same way your GP has to refer you to a surgeon, you can't just ring one.
 
I was told by my solicitor that if my case went to court his legal fees, and court fees would amount to £11,000 if we lost. He has been very good throughout the process and I have come to realise it can be a real minefield. The first thing he did was to check whether the company had sufficient assets to meet our claim. However, as I have found, with a good case and an equally good solicitor then one can recover most if not all one's money.
 
I have a similar type of problem with a MH we bought in France from a well established dealer who is also a concessionaire for the brand of MH we bought. Within 2 months there was a fault with the control box for the habitation area making the MH unfit for purpose. The dealer has tried to fix it three times but due to their complete ineptitude have failed on each occasion. The first two times they didn't have the parts required to fix it due to sheer incompetence. Fortunately I can prove that beyond all doubt.

After five months of this I started to explore means of getting our money back. Being in France and not knowing the country's legal rights on consumer goods I had quite a bit of research to do. Anyone who has lived in France will understand when I say that retailers in general do not embrace the concept of after sales service. Once you've bought it, don't try and take it back as they regard it as being your problem, not theirs.

But digging deeper I found that the Code Civile actually gives much the same rights as the UK's Consumer Rights Act that replaces the Sale of Goods Act in 2015. Under French law there is an understanding that any fault that manifests itself within 6 months of purchase is deemed to have existed at the time of sale. Also, there is a 2 year period whereby any faults that seem the item unfit for purpose can trigger a claim for a refund or exchange.

There is also umbrella legislation under EU laws that offer a minimum level of protection throughout the EU which may exceed that offered by some member States. And, the EU have a department that will fight your case for you if you have bought something from another EU country other than the one you reside in, totally free of charge. You send them details and a Power of Attorney and they do the rest.

In our position we had exhausted the process of pleading for our money back from the dealer and with no fixed date of repair on the table we have had to resort to legal means to claim a refund. In the event our motor insurance had cover for legal matters such as this. We were quickly referred by our insurers to a company that has been appointed by the Magistrate's Court to act as a mediator to try and resolve these sort of claims without resorting to a full trial. The company have limited legal powers, but their report is taken into consideration by the Judge if the matter goes to court. They are basically experts on vehicles and the motor trade and usually are acting for people who have suffered scam sales, misrepresentation and bodged up repairs. There are similar companies who deal in other consumer areas such as electrical goods and furnishings.

So, yesterday after downloading and printing the 7 page PDF form, completing the relevant sections and emailing it back to them along with the registration document, CT (MOT) and Sales Agreement plus details of emails, etc, to support our claim we are now awaiting them to approach the dealer to get their side of the case and offer some sort of solution to our problem.

Under the Code Civile we should under these circumstances be able to demand a full refund in return for the vehicle, a partial refund to cover the costs of any repair that we need to undertake or a replacement vehicle, although that is somewhat more difficult with second hand goods. According to the law the choice is ours to make and we do not have to justify it.

So, the TL : DR part of this is that if you are in a similar position check your vehicle insurance for legal cover (y)
 
pappajohn said:
People keep saying talk to trading standards.....

You CANNOT talk to trading standards you have to have the case referred to trading standards by such as citizens advice in the same way your GP has to refer you to a surgeon, you can't just ring one.
Click to expand...
Sorry, you are very wrong...
Broken Link Removed
 
Yorick said:
Sorry, you are very wrong...
Broken Link Removed
Click to expand...
Might I humbly suggest that you call the number and see if you get TS . In my area you don’t, just like the op said, you get an intermediary
 
This a very sorry tale. For those, like me, who are new to motorhoming, its less tricky if you buy from a dealer. It is a no leg to stand on if like me you accept assurances of a private seller, (I was assured there were no damp problems VERBALLY, ( so nothing in writing)), and that they rarely used it in the rain, and pay the money.

I bought from a member of this Forum who had not carried out a pre sale hab check ( and they are of course not obliged to do so) nor had they done gas and electricity checks for me. I should have walked away there and then. But having just viewed a motorhome days before which was a dump, this one looked gleaming, I acceped, like an idiot, the private seller's verbal assurances.

I drove it back to South Devon and had both Marquis and Alan Kerr carry out hab checks. And of course, both, independently of each other, found damp and dry rot.

I now face a potential bill of some £5k.

Sorry if this is off the title thread, but the lesson to newbies like me is, if no gas or electric certs, and no hab check has been done - then walk away. We can't, he has our money and it's too late for us.

Not the entry to the ( for us, new) world of motorhoming we were so hoping for.
 
Kerry9 said:
This a very sorry tale. For those, like me, who are new to motorhoming, its less tricky if you buy from a dealer. It is a no leg to stand on if like me you accept assurances of a private seller, (I was assured there were no damp problems VERBALLY, ( so nothing in writing)), and that they rarely used it in the rain, and pay the money. I bought from a member of this Forum who had not carried out a pre sale hab check ( and they are of course not obliged to do so) nor had they done gas and electricity checks for me. I should have walked away there and then. But having just viewed a motorhome days before which was a dump, this one looked gleaming, I acceped, like an idiot, the private seller's verbal assurances.

I drove it back to South Devon and had both Marquis and Alan Kerr carry out hab checks. And of course, both, independently of each other, found damp and dry rot.

I now face a potential bill of some £5k.

Sorry if this is off the title thread, but the lesson to newbies like me is, if no gas or electric certs, and no hab check has been done - then walk away. We can't, he has our money and it's too late for us.
Click to expand...


So sad to read this. Shame on those who sold it to you (n)
 
Kerry9 said:
This a very sorry tale. For those, like me, who are new to motorhoming, its less tricky if you buy from a dealer. It is a no leg to stand on if like me you accept assurances of a private seller, (I was assured there were no damp problems VERBALLY, ( so nothing in writing)), and that they rarely used it in the rain, and pay the money.

I bought from a member of this Forum who had not carried out a pre sale hab check ( and they are of course not obliged to do so) nor had they done gas and electricity checks for me. I should have walked away there and then. But having just viewed a motorhome days before which was a dump, this one looked gleaming, I acceped, like an idiot, the private seller's verbal assurances.

I drove it back to South Devon and had both Marquis and Alan Kerr carry out hab checks. And of course, both, independently of each other, found damp and dry rot.

I now face a potential bill of some £5k.

Sorry if this is off the title thread, but the lesson to newbies like me is, if no gas or electric certs, and no hab check has been done - then walk away. We can't, he has our money and it's too late for us.

Not the entry to the ( for us, new) world of motorhoming we were so hoping for.
Click to expand...

That’s a real shame, I’d have no hesitation to sell my Motorhome to a funster or friend which I will be doing soon..... if they wanted checks done it wouldn’t be a problem .....

However I too had a bad entry to motor homing and wouldn’t want that for anyone...
 
Nope, its 100% the wrong answer. Please read back through this thread. There's ways of getting redress, but threatening Trading Standards is not the route.
 
Kerry9 said:
( and they are of course not obliged to do so) nor had they done gas and electricity checks for me.
Click to expand...

You said it. It was down to you, buyer beware.

But it looks a lovely van, pretty cheap so even with some repair work done good value.

Do not consider giving the work to those big names, they will probably farm it out and make a good profit, seek out an independent repairer or DIY. All vans have a bit of damp which dealers will use to their advantage.

Strictly speaking you have hijacked someone else's thread, it would be polite to start you own thread and that saves a lot of confusion.
 
thebriars said:
I'm sorry, but I see this as a very simple case. The OPs friend buys a motorhome supposedly fit for purpose and finds it isn't.

Firstly what does the advert say? Is there anything here that implies that it is not in good working order?
Secondly what did the OP's friend sign up to when he bought the MH? Did he buy it "as seen" for instance, in which case there is little comeback.

If the MH is still with the dealer and the buyer has refused to take it, the 30 day period has not yet come into effect. This starts when the buyer takes actual possession. (CRA 2015, section 22, part (3) )

Next comes section 28. The dealer must deliver the goods on the agreed date, or within 30 days of the contract being made if no date is arranged. This means the goods must be delivered in a condition which is fit for purpose as defined in the act.

As for the £4000, that is simply a joke. If the MH needed servicing and preparation before it could be sold, then it clearly is not fit for purpose anyway.

The OP's friend needs to refuse to take the MH, leave it at the dealers and contact a good solicitor specialising in consumer law, or as I did, go though my legal aid cover.
Click to expand...
thanks, this is very helpful. it is currently with the “directors” awaiting a decision. the vehicle hasn’t been collected, although they did their damndest to try to get him to drive it off and then bring it back. good job he didn’t eh!
He is a very naive chap who entered into his first foray into motorhoming, without taking proper advice first. hopefully he won’t pay the price for that mistake and will survive financially to fight again
 
Sounds to me like a multi branch dealer who has tried this type of thing before. I wonder if it’s.............? I do hope the dealer is named and shamed and the media informed.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Join us or log in to post a reply.

To join in you must be a member of MotorhomeFun

Join MotorhomeFun

Join us, it quick and easy!

Join us

Log in

Already a member? Log in here.

Latest journal entries

Back
Top