How to check a dealership is a legitimate company

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
View Threaded
Sun 12 Apr 2015 22:31
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - ulysses

Hello

I went to see a used car I found through Auto Trader at a Bristol Dealership today. I liked that car and went home and looked up the dealership to check out their credentials. It was Tiley Motors (on the business card), also known as Tiley of Bristol (website). According to Companies House they are "dissolved".

How do I check this out for certain? Can I ask them?

Is it possible that they are trading illegitimately?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 12 Apr 2015 23:34
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - focussed

A quick google for this company reveals that you would be well advised to look for a car at another dealership.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 12 Apr 2015 23:39
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - Graham567

Read reviews here:-

www.thomsonlocal.com/Tiley-Of-Bristol/309780

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 12 Apr 2015 23:40
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - Smileyman

They could be a sole trader or a partnership, there is no compulsion to be a limited company - it's not unusual for someone independant to buy the name from the liquidator and use it for their own business purpose, especially if it is a well known name.

Have you checked with any trade bodies or Chambers of Commerce, have you seen any signs in their premises eg insurance certificates.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 10:14
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - oldtoffee

Both companies show up as non limited in my credit check, both still trading. Tileys of Bristol's event history shows six CCJs recorded and one at least is outstanding so that would be all I needed to see. If I didn't have a credit checker the reviews would steer me away.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 13:50
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - Gibbo_Wirral

A quick call to the UK HQ of the marque should tell you.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 14:52
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - ulysses

Thanks Gibbo. You mean call Toyota to trace the car?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 14:04
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - ulysses

Thanks everyone, that's great advice as usual.

I have a bad feeling about this now.

However, I called the Insolvency Service and they said "Tiley Motors Ltd" ceased trading 3 years ago. They said whoever I dealt with would be responsible for the warranty, and they could just be a partnership, sole trader now.

It did seem like a nice car, and the Yaris doesn't have major faults. They said it was one owner from new, and gave me a printed HPI check report, but obviously I have no guarantee that that is real. CAB said always get your own done, and an AA/RAC inspection.

They had the car in 2 weeks ago and on the ad it said it had an MOT but they hadn't done it yet and also promised a service as standard which sounded good.

Could the bad reviews be out of context, i.e. a small number of mishaps? They said staff were rude on aftersales, but they seemed polite to me. Happy customers don't often write reviews.

Could I ask them ouright if they are a sole trader, etc? Which trade bodies they are members of. See how they respond.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 14:18
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - jgrahampo

Why ask for advice then when given it completely ignore what folks say beacuase it is not what you want to hear?

(Edit - that's not fair. The OP has been grateful for the advice and is simply putting a point of view.)

Edited by Avant on 13/04/2015 at 21:09

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 15:25
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - RobJP

Every dodgy (and non-dodgy) garage is polite to prospective customers.

However, it's what happens when you have problems that matters.

People here have searched out information for you. It appears that :

1. The old company went bust/into administration/whatever

2. Reviews aren't that great from previous customers.

3. The old company (possibly run by the same people) had CCJs - that is court judgements - against them.

You've no idea if those are the court ordering them to refund customers, or not settling finance on cars that were part-ex'ed in, or not paying suppliers, or whatever.

But ask yourself, seriously. Do you REALLY want to do business with someone like that ? If the answer comes back as 'Yes', then go for it.

But don't say you weren't warned.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 15:42
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - ulysses

Yes that is exactly what I am saying. I do not feel happy doing business with a company that has a potentially dubious background.

They are one of the first dealer's I have walked into. I've never bought a car from a used car dealer before. For this exact reason.

And they are so brazen, it's hard to believe because the government Insolvency Service were quite adamant that I should not write them off as illegitimate.

But yeah gut says walk away.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 15:33
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - ulysses

This is a forum for discussion. A balanced view is helpful to come to an important decision. Any helpful insight you might want to contribute would be delightfully accepted.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 22:18
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - alan1302

This is a forum for discussion. A balanced view is helpful to come to an important decision. Any helpful insight you might want to contribute would be delightfully accepted.

If in doubt, walk. You have doubts so walk away and find another car from elsewhere.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 15:44
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - ulysses

Thanks for the credit check oldtoffe! Great help.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 21:12
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - Avant

Car buying is a bit like overtaking - if in doubt, don't.

If it's a Yaris you're looking for, there should be plenty around from better-known dealers: look in Autotrader for ones in your area. Go for the 1.3 by the way.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 13 Apr 2015 23:32
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - ulysses

Thanks Avant. I am getting good at walking away from cars! (It's an art is seems).

Yes I like the 1.3.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 14 Apr 2015 13:10
How to check a dealership is a legitimate company - Andrew-T

Thanks Avant. I am getting good at walking away from cars! (It's an art is seems).

You've said that you are a novice at visiting dealerships. After reading all the reports about others' experiences when doing that, you can easily suspect any dealership to be shysters.

There will be plenty of places to buy a Yaris, so try asking some friends where they may have had a good experience, and if you find one, try asking one of them to accompany you. In the end you may have a corner to fight while haggling. As Quentin has said many years ago, you don't have to be too nice to the salesman, as you will probably not meet again.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Our honest used car pricing is a little bit different to all the others. You can get to our values through make or model - you don’t have to follow a prescribed route. Plus, it’s live, which means we can react to changes in the market quicker than any printed price guide.

Honest Used Car Prices

From which small car to buy at which price point to the best UK-built cars, our Top 10s have the lot. Click now for your shortlist.

Unsure of what to buy? Our Top 10s are here to help you....