I'm a bit surprised too.
It may help to make it clear what the Sale of Goods Act implies and what it doesn't.
A private seller of goods has to have title to the goods, and also the goods have to correspond to any description given (e.g. in an advert). There was a celebrated case in the 1960s where a car was advertised as a Triumph Herald 1200. That was true of the back half; but it was a cut-and-shut weldng of two damaged cars, and the front half was from a 948 cc Herald.
For a trade seller, in addition to the above, it is also implied that the goods are of satisfactory quality (the meaning of this varies depending on the age and previous use of the goods, and the law upholds that which is reasonable), and that they are fit for the purpose (the normal purpose that one would expect the goods to be used for).
For a private seller to sign, and get the buyer to sign, a statement as suggested above 'as seen, tried and tested' makes sense as it emphasises to the buyer that the seller gives no undertaking as to condition.
Other than that, as Tony says, a buyer can sue a seller if he believes the seller has made a misrepresntation.
Edited by Avant on 23/03/2013 at 23:43
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