We bought an electric car but it doesn't have the range that was promised - can we reject it?

My niece traded in a diesel 2013 Audi A1 for £6600 against a 2015 Nissan Leaf on PCP a week ago. This was on the basis that the Leaf would perform at least 70 to 80 miles driving. The car is supplied through a Nissan Dealer and the battery is showing as 12 bars, but she has had the battery nearly die at around 45 miles. She wants her old car back. They say they will sell to her for £8000 as they have serviced it and refurbished the alloy wheels plus are telling her that the Leaf is on finance and so not their problem. Please could you advise on how to proceed going forward.

Dominic Tattersall

Asked on 19 December 2017 by Dominic Tattersall

Answered by Honest John
That's fair enough. If they have refurbished her A1 then £8000 for it is fair. But if they sold her the Leaf on a PCP and the Leaf is "not of satisfactory quality" because its range is a mere 45 miles rather than the promised 70 to 80 miles then she can reject it to the selling dealer and the finance house jointly. See: www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/consumer-rights /
Similar questions
Smart provides a range figure of 99 miles for its Smart EQ. In the two weeks we have had ours, we have never had an indicated range of more than 72 miles and in reality, less. Temperatures have been moderate...
As recommended, I charge my electric car to 80% of capacity to save the battery. The chart on the car's panel shows a maximum charge to give a distance of 177 miles, so I charge to about 140 miles. However...
I live in a townhouse with no off-street parking. I have a garage in a block but it is unpowered. As I would like to buy an EV, I monitored my driving patterns over the last few months to work out the...
Related models
Chic and sporty looks plus a classy interior, efficient petrol engines, plenty of scope for personalisation.
An affordable mainstream electric car, practical and well-equipped, range extended to 155 miles with optional 30kWh battery from September 2015.
 

Value my car

Save £75 on Warranty using code HJ75

with MotorEasy

Get a warranty quote

Save 12% on GAP Insurance

Use HJ21 to save on an ALA policy

See offer