Sold a car and getting grief!

[adgie]

I recently bought a clean vauxhall corsa with no tax or mot.It was from a freind of mine who has had it for the last year and it runs and drives perfect. I booked the car in for the mot and it flew through with only an adjustment to the handbrake needed. So I cleaned the car up and put it for sale. A woman came round 2 days ago and gave me £650 for the car and wrote me a note which we both signed saying sold as seen. She taxed the car yesterday and has driven it 5 miles with what seems to be no water in the car and now the headgasket has gone and the car will not run. I have had her and her husband on the phone all day saying they want thier money back. Now I understand how mad they must be as I would be myself but then I thought that I have just sold them a car that was perfect when it was in my possesion and it I take it back im loosing out. Now should I give them the money back as I would feel bad if I were in thier shoes or do I just say sorry its bad luck?? Sorry for the essay but I just dont know what to say to them. Thanks, Ash

[Ollie_bwoii]

Sold as seen! Tell them to bugger off!

[pac1982]

Its a private sale at the end of the day, no warraty the same thing could have happened to a Bently or a rolls

This is why i also write sold as seen on the reciept.

Some people will try anything, i sell motorbikes as a side line and one lad came off his the frist day he had i then had his mum calling me saying they wanted the damage fixed under warranty!!

Some people are just muppets

[maf260]

Sold as seen is exactly that. You should only refund them if you believe you are at fault and knowingly sold them a dodgy car. It was up to them to check it over and look after it. Some people are really good at wrecking what were previously perfectly usable cars. My uncle is one of them!

[Simon13]

if your sure it had coolant in it before you sold it tell um to shove it. Sold as seen and they are probably trying it on

[adgie]

Thats what im thinking, I didnt check the coolant to be honest as it had been sat a few weeks. Theres a small hold in the top of the water bottle that I hadnt noticed and the only thing I can think of is maybe I had mice in the unit? But even so she hadnt checked the water before she drove it. Cheers guys

[andyclient]

I think the signed piece of paper saying sold as seen relieves you of any real obligation as far as warranty or guarantee is concerned .
Whether your concience suggests otherwise , only you can decide ?

Personally if i bought something as seen then that is how i would understand the deal and would not expect my money back (otherwise what is the point of signing the piece of paper )

A tough lesson learned for the buyer maybe

[billgatese30]

Thats what im thinking, I didnt check the coolant to be honest as it had been sat a few weeks. Theres a small hold in the top of the water bottle that I hadnt noticed and the only thing I can think of is maybe I had mice in the unit? But even so she hadnt checked the water before she drove it. Cheers guys

About the only fluid level i check when i buy a car si the petrol level, so saying she didn't cehck it when she bought it is a bit unfair

What you are prepared to give her back is up to you, it must of been on the edge when you sold it (all be it without you even knowing this) for it to go after only 5 miles

What (if any) money you decide to give her back is entierly up to you, your not obliged to by law or anything (as far as I know)

[leeparkes]

Did they check the car over,ie test drive/look under the bonnet ect...when they came to view it?

Either way its sold as seen



How big is the husband

[Alex]

sold as is, was fine when you had it

unlucky for them, tell them to buy a proper car next time

[Speedtouch]

You say that she wrote the note: tell her "read it and weep"

[Benho]

is not your fault. sold as seen as said before. if they start threatening you or anything then take note of what was said etc just incase they decide to play billy big bollocks and pressure you to take the car back.

[triggerhappy21]

How big is the husband

Lol that would be my only concern!

If they're giving you grief over it tell them to shove it. Sold as seen means sold as seen.

If you feel really bad about it maybe you could consider sharing the cost of repairs, but you really shouldn't.

[steve_k]

i know how you feel,

i sold a "mate" of mine a tech1 sport a while back which i had turned into a track/road car & a few day's ago he comes round shouting the odd's that i sold him a "dodgy f%cked car" & that he want's his money back or i paid for the head gasket to be fixed.

he soon saw sense when i remined him that he was there when i took the car in to get the head gasket changed & there again when i serviced the car 3 day's prior to him buying it.

how is it my fault if he drives like a total tw$t & can't look after the car?

the way i look at it is the same as everybody else,

if it's sold as seen (& she wrote the note stating that & signed it) then she or her husband ain't got a leg to stand on so don't worry about it.

if need be tell them you are seeking legal advise as you feel you are being haressed & that if they try to give you a bad name you will do them for slander.

that should be enough to put them off trying their luck any more.

[ShakeyC]

I would give half the money back your fault or not, then if she takes you to court you atleast tried to rectify the situation and she will be lumbered with court costs for trying it on any further and court would look at you with more evenly rather than purely bias towards the buyer.

[cecotto479]

5 miles is an awfully short distance to have driven and overheated to the extent that the head gasket went. There must have been very little coolant in it before you sold it? I can see not checking it before you buy it, but surely self respect means that unless you're selling a project (and even then, if it's running) you make sure all its essential fluids are topped up before a prospective buyer sees it. Otherwise you risk looking like a tit when the prospective buyer points out there's no coolant in it?

What exactly could this old dear have done to it in 5 minutes to kill it? Did she look like the boy racer type? Are you absolutely sure your conscience is clear?

Go halfers on the repair?

[adgie]

The car was for her daughter, she had a "pimped" up rover that had just been writeen off. She had the car for 2 days before it broke and says she has only driven it once but she drove it home with no tax so im unsure? I have seen the car and there is a hole in one of the pipes on the coolant bottle. Her husband seems to think I have put this hole in to relieve pressure. I didnt noticed the hole and although it had been sat for a few weeks the whole was at the top of the bottle so I cant see it leaking out. She sent me a note saying shes taking me to court so I will see what happened. Im not bothered about her husband, just dont want him coming round to my girlfriends house and causing her family grief as I work away a fair bit. Ash

[Benho]

make sure you keep that note. sold as seen. tell them to have fun paying the court fees

[fuzzy]

5 miles must seem to them like it was a set up but sold as seen is just that, unlucky for them this time.

[adgie]

She kept the note

[fuzzy]

hole at the top of a cooolant bottle doesnt get there itself mind you. that would look like it had been put their to relieve pressure but unfortunately it would also relieve it of water probably quite quickly and if you hadnt checked it might not have had much in it before she left . she should have checked that sort of thing herself before driving off but saying that i didnt check a van i bought the other week either.
such is life.

[Falkster]

I would be fu**ed off myself but as been said before it was sold as seen so unless your conscience causes you sleepless nights then you dont have to do anything.

[heavybelly]

Have a look at this,

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/index/you ... ate_seller

"You bought the vehicle from a private seller

You have very few legal rights if you have bought the vehicle from a private seller rather than a dealer.

The vehicle doesn't have to be of satisfactory quality. However, if the seller offers a description of the vehicle, it must match the description given. It must also be roadworthy and the seller must have 'good title' to the vehicle. This means that they must be the legal owner in order to sell it to you.

If the vehicle doesn't match the description given, you may be entitled to compensation. You may also be entitled to compensation if you have bought an unroadworthy car from a private seller, which has caused injury to someone. However, it may be especially difficult to get compensation from a private seller.

You will only be able to claim against a private seller for one of the following reasons:

* the vehicle doesn't match the description they gave you
* the seller broke a specific contract term
* the seller was actually a dealer posing as a private seller
* the seller did not have good title to the vehicle
* the vehicle is unroadworthy."

From that I would say they have little chance of getting anything.
Without going through any legal process it is merely your own moral standpoint that will decide whether or not you tell them to stick it.
Personally if I buy a car or anythind else privately and it breaks, I either broke it or didn't check thoroughly enough. If as a buyer you are unsure of what you are buying or what you should be checking for, you should have it checked by someone who does. Lesson learned for them I think.

[cecotto479]

Two days is different. Anything could have been done in that time. I got the impression it was 5 miles after leaving you. No responsibility on your part - unless you know different.

Two days is well outside the legendary Bavarian Retro 5/50 warranty. 5 minutes or 50 yards whichever comes first.

[bdx]

Tail light warranty

[jamie325isport]

As said 'sold as seen'. Thing is you had it MOT'd so it must have sat there running for a while. It must have had some coolant in it then? The hole in the expansion bottle doesnt sound good though. Some people should take someone thats knows something about cars when they view to buy. The first checks I ever do are coolant and oil levels, if there low theres either a problem or the current owner doesnt look after the car. Either way walk away. Tough lesson learned, but I wouldnt believe the 5 mile line they have given. Im sure they would have driven it further than that to get it to the point where it now wont start.

[pacerpete]

If you sold a car that wasn't in your name for financial gain you will be deemed a trader .In that scenario sold as seen is of even less use than it is written on a receipt for a sale between two 'private' parties.........

[B7]

Petes right. If not registered in your name, it could get messy. The car owes you naff all. Give them their money back, swallow hard and either dump the sh1tter or repair it and try again.

[murran]

sold as seen is sold as seen!

soon as they give you the cash, sign the sold as seen receipt..... its their problem!
why on earth is it your problem if they cant be arsed to keep an eye on the temp guage???????

[gareth]

i suspect it had a slight leak (though that usually gets mentioned as an advisory on the MOT if it's dripping) and they went on a motorway trip, lost the coolant, kept on going not looking at the temp gauge and came a cropper.

what was the mileage on the MOT (the test centre should have records of this) and what's the mileage now? would be very interesting to know....

[hongkongfuey]

when ever i look at a car to buy or for someone else too, i check all fluids on the car that you can, if you drive away with the car without checking as much as poss or get the aa or rac in, and it breaks because of one of the things you didn't check(that you could have) your fault. to check the rest test drive, and if you don't know what you are looking for, take someone who does.

i sold a car about 4 years ago, everything was fine 11months mot 4 months tax, no issues, apart from a bit of rust, he said cash deal no recipts

bloke came back to me about a week later saying the clutch was knackered and i had to pay for it, i told him to show me the recipt for the car, gave him a wink and told him to jog on. there was nothing wrong when the car left me.

if you get grief from the bloke or his wife take the note to the police and ask their council

[Jhonno]

If you sold a car that wasn't in your name for financial gain you will be deemed a trader .In that scenario sold as seen is of even less use than it is written on a receipt for a sale between two 'private' parties.........

Only if they can prove the fault was there when the vehicle was sold..

[spook]

Be a good Christian a give the coonts their money back.

[sweep]

Do you still have the spare key???

[appletree]

She kept the note

I dont get this why would she get you to sign a note she brought saying sold as seen, get you both to sign it then keep it her self? Whats the point? Shorly it should be the other way round, for the sellers protection.
Not some scam is it?

Get you to pay for the 'repair' and pocket it?

How did the hole get there? If it wasn't you was it your mate who had it before?

Sounds dodgy to me.