Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand | Motoring discussion | Back Room Forum

Sun 20 Apr 2014 11:34

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - NickyR

On 20/12/13 we took delivery of a Merc Sprinter used van on an 09 plate, having done just over 48 thousand miles from Anchor Vans Reading on finance. Came with a 3 month/3000 miles warranties whichever came first. Husband uses it for his local delivery job involving newspapers and magazines via Smiths News.....a 7 night a week contract, so the miles creep up quickly.

Tuesday morning 15th April the van failed.....banging and then the clutch went. He was AA'd to local Merc van dealership where his vans have always been serviced. They diagnosed the shattered clutch and broken fly wheel and ordered parts in for it.....we hired a replacement so husband could carry out Wednesday mornings work....as previously said the contract is 7 nights a week. On putting everything back together on Weds evening and a bill of 1,500 the van was started and a terrible knocking could be heard and an awful vibration.

Thursday morning....Suspecting bottom engine failure they removed the oil filter to be greeted with metal swarf......pointing to a bottom end failure of massive proportions. We are now Thursday lunchtime with a 4 day weekend approaching for the Easter Bank Holiday and the possibility of a new engine needed or a 15 grand van sat terminally ill !!!!

We contacted the dealer and explained......threw the warranty back at us and wanted everything in writing. We emailed this over. The Merc garage where the van is told us to contact Merc head office as they may be able to help us resolve this problem....again this is afternoon of the Thursday. 5.45pm we get a call from the dealer we bought it from, but the big boss this time....he argued that we are a business and we have no rights like 'normal' buyers!!!!! Husband is self employed and a Sole Trader as per his VAT cert.......

By now everyone is shut up for the Easter break and we are forking out for a hire van and will be continuing to pay the finance on a vehicle that is sat useless.

Anyone shed any light on what our rights really are. We have been told thast to take them to small claims would entail us proving the van had the engine fault prior to us buying it??? Which I am sure an experience mechanic could tell how long a crankshaft etc has been wearing before it fails???

Any help muchly appreciated :) are you out there Honest John

Edited by NickyR on 20/04/2014 at 11:35

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 12:18

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - bazza

We have been told thast to take them to small claims would entail us proving the van had the engine fault prior to us buying it???....

That's basically right, Sale of Goods Act. There's been a time lapse since then, so I feel it will be difficult to prove this. The bottom end can fail catastrophically very suddenly, oil starvation etc. An independent engineering report is an option. Your warranty has expired by the looks of it. I'm not being much help but can't see an easy way out of this. I'd be looking for a used or re-conditioned engine myself and probably put it down to really bad luck.

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 12:29

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - pd

You don;t have to prove that the van had a fault when purchased, but it helps your case if you can. To be honest you can't in this situation.

How many miles have you actually done in it? The sellers responsibility reduces with time and mileage after purchase. Any legal case will take a long time and need supporting evidence with no guarentee of success if you've done a fair mileage. The fact that you are a business makes little difference apart from the amount you have used it. Has it been serviced on schedule since you bought it? All these sort of things are factors.

I wouldn't use a Merc dealer for ths, it will cost a fortune. Try and find another engine and get a cheaper garage to fit it.

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 14:44

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - NickyR

You dont have to prove....

We have owned it just shy of 4 months and not needed a service yet. This would have been the 4th we have owned and went for a more expensive 2nd hand with lower mileage, We have done 8 thousand miles since day after boxing day....fisr day he used it after having it on 20/12/13. He has a 7 night a week contract with Smiths News delivery papers and mags to supermarkets and shops in our local area and has done the same job for 15 years. The dealer that has it now is not a rip off merchant and the same dealer we have used for years re servicing etc. Other half kicking himself for just not waiting for them to get vans in....at time ours was due MOT and would need money thrown at it....he found this one on line from a van dealer. We have bough 2nd hand engines before for a small van we have as a run about and fitted ourselves but we could end up in just the same boat. 48 thousand is no mileage at all on a van.

Just a pain it happened just before a 4 day weekend!!!

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 14:38

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - NickyR

Thanks for the reply......we have only had it just shy of 4 months!!! And went for lower mileage so paud a bit more. His previous Sprinter had done 350 thousand!!!!

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 13:27

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - Auristocrat

You have the van on finance - is this HP?

Extract from Which? advice on SOGA:

However, the Sale of Goods Act doesn’t apply to goods you've bought on hire purchase (HP). Instead the Supply of Goods Implied Terms Act 1973 applies, which makes the HP company responsible for the quality of the goods supplied and gives you slightly different rights.

So if it is HP you have comeback against the finance company under the above act, in which case you need to contact them.

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 14:47

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - NickyR

You have this on HP......

Yes we do and I am sure Stu called them Thursday afternoon to keep them in the loop. I will show him these replies. And I shall be googling this Act. Thank you

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 21:13

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - Brit_in_Germany

The provisions of the SOGA do vary between trade purchases and consumer purchases. You appear to be a trade purchaser and your rights may be limited accordingly.

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Sun 20 Apr 2014 23:32

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - NickyR

The provisions of the SOGA....

How can we be trade if other half has self employed status as a van driver and classed as a sole trader on his VAT cert......role on Tuesday when everyone is back at work I say

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Mon 21 Apr 2014 00:32

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - Avant

There seems to be some muddle here. The main issue about sale of goods is whether the SELLER is acting in the course of a business or not.

The four implied terms in a contract for sale fo goods are:

- title, goods as described, satisfactory quality, fitness for purpose.

If the seller is acting in the course of a business, all four apply; if the seller is selling privately, only the first two.

There is no requirement in SOGA 1979 as to the status of the buyer.

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Mon 21 Apr 2014 01:22

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - Auristocrat

If the vehicles is on HP, the Supply of Goods Implied Terms Act 1973 applies and not SOGA.

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Mon 21 Apr 2014 09:37

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - Brit_in_Germany

There is no requirement in SOGA 1979 as to the status of the buyer.

That is not correct. SOGA gives additional rights to consumers, defined in the Unfair Contract Terms Act as:

"consumer contract” means a contract in which —

(a)one party to the contract deals, and the other party to the contract (“the consumer”) does not deal or hold himself out as dealing, in the course of a business, and

(b)in the case of a contract such as is mentioned in section 15(2)(a) of this Act, the goods are of a type ordinarily supplied for private use or consumption;

A business purchase, especially for a Sprinter, may not have these additional consumer protection rights.

The commonly quoted six month rule, for example, applies only to consumer contracts.

Edited by Brit_in_Germany on 21/04/2014 at 09:44

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Mon 21 Apr 2014 18:06

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - Avant

Quite right - the Unfair Contract Terms Act give extra rights to cusumers, but I was talking about the implied terms in the SOGA, two of which apply to all sales, all four to sales by a business.

The implied term of satisfactory quality is the one where a buyer, even though a business buyer, may have a case against the seller. Anyway in this case as mentioned above the situation is slightly different as it seems that the van was bought on HP. The problem may still be that some months elapsed bewteen the purchase and the mechanical failure.

Edited by Avant on 21/04/2014 at 18:08

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Mon 21 Apr 2014 18:28

Mercedes Sprinter - Warranties and where we stand - Auristocrat

Van purchased 20.12.13 and fault developed 15.04.14 - so approx 4 months

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