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i bought a car a couple of weeks ago, a little runabout for me to get to and fro work (Vauxhall Vectra.....go on, laugh)
I purchased it from a reputable garage from their trade in's but their website boasts a 104 point safety check and the saleman assured me that the brakes had been checked, brakepipes pads and discs had ben replaced on the back.
I put the car into my usual garage for a timing belt change (very trustworthy, my family has used them for 15 years and even get a christmas card from them) they put it up on the ramps, a brakepipe burts quite dramatically. The rear discs and pads are also well and truly shot and have to be replaced. The owener said i was lucky because i was looking at a complete brake failure.
I'mgoing to phone the garage tomorrow and tell him very politely that he sold me unroadworthy and i wasnt reimbursed for the supposed work that they were supposed to do.......what official bodies can i complain to if it goes badly?
By Law a dealer cant sell you an unroadworthy and adangerous car.
i.e if the engine goes bang...tough luck, but if the brakes do (within a time period) then the dealer is liable.
Also there is some false advertising there!!!
Get advice from CAB
The 104 check usually means - we sent the office kid out to kick the tyres..
we checked the door hinges were greased, we checked the log book and removed the price tag out the windscreen
What they said.
thats what i thought - i'm going to speak to the bloke tomorrow, kick up a fuss then try to bill them for the work that had to be done on the brakes. If i don't get anywhere then i'm heading to the police to report them for selling unroadworthy cars
CAB usually are enough.
I'm not sure you'll get far with billing them for the work. You have to give them the opportunity to repair it themselves. Worth a try though.
I'm not sure under what law you'd reporting them to the police either. They just claim the brakes work when they drove/tested it and it failed after unexpectedly.
I think you might have scuppered yourself by getting the work done elsewhere, tbh 🙁
A decent report from your mechanic will come in use whatever you choose to do.
Yet another example of why not to trust car st(d)ealers, I feel for those who have no other choice.