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Tue 10 Jul 2012 22:25

Non-Refundable Car Deposit - Hecatebel

I have put a £500 deposit on a car at a dealership. I live some distance from the the dealer and have therefore not seen the car. An independent inspection of the car found a number of issues which need to be addressed before the car is purchased. The dealer has told me the deposit is non-refundable. How am I going to be sure that the dealer has rectified the faults and what are my rights if I want to pull out of the sale? Can I claim my deposit back?

Am I right in thinking that as I paid the deposit over the phone I have a 7 day cooling off period as it is classed as distance selling?

I have not signed any contract at all either.

Help!

Edited by Hecatebel on 10/07/2012 at 22:26

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 23:18

Non-Refundable Car Deposit - RT

Oh dear - don't ever place a non-refundable deposit on a car - or anything else come to that.

Hopefully others can advise how to mitigate your losses.

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Wed 11 Jul 2012 00:01

Non-Refundable Car Deposit - tony g

Hi,
It's reckless to agree to buy a car in this way ,however you are probably covered by distance selling regulations so should be entitled to a refund .The difficulty is getting the dealer to refund your deposit ,you may have to use the small claims court to recover your deposit .

Alternatively did you pay the deposit by credit/debit card ,ring your card company ,in some circumstances they can recover the money from the sellers account and return it to yours .

Finally are you sure that the faults identified by the inspection are serious ,if they are , you would need a second inspection to confirm they have been rectified ,if they are minor could you negotiate an extra discount to cover the cost of repairing them.The condition of the car is dependant on its age ,be realistic .

It's not that easy to resolve .From the dealers perspective ,you agreed to buy a car now you changed your mind .He's bound to be irritated .

Tony g

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