Poor quality crash repair - what are my rights? | Ask Honest John

Poor quality crash repair - what are my rights?

My daughter is having issues with a lease company. The vehicle, a Citroen C1, was leased for 12 months and involved in an accident after just a few week. The other driver accepted full responsibility and refunded her costs (£600)for the repair.

The actual repair was carried out by a bodyshop that was recommended by the lease company. After the work was done, she informed the lease firm that the quality of the work was poor, but after a vehicle inspection they assured her it was be fine.

Last week the vehicle was returned and Citroen UK has deducted £566 from her bank account to make good the repair. As you can imagine, she is very unhappy with this. She has contacted the lease company, but they are not interested in helping. What should she do?

Asked on 27 September 2016 by Bruce Bower

Answered by Honest John

If she physically paid for the repair and it was deemed not adequate then she can reclaim the £566 from the repairer using Small Claims, even though she recovered the £600 original cost from the other party's insurer. The fact is she paid directly for the repair so the repair contract was with her and the repairer was in breach of contract for the inadequate repair. This would not have been the case had the insurer paid the bodyshop for the repair.

Tags: paint and bodywork legal and consumer advice

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