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tonyg give good advice and I'd echo his comments on SoGA requirements.
I do much the same thing, depending on the value of the car, namely advise the customer that if they have a major problem with it actually functioning as a car then to bring it back but I won't cover niggles (I usually give the example of a sticking back electric window) on a car of tha age or price range. Obviously, if it is a considerably more expensive car then that wouldn't be reasonable but on sub £4-5k stuff and particularly sub-2k it is.
If you do get a problem car (and you will) be reasonable with the customer and hope they will be too. If you get a really awakward one who decides a £1500 car must be perfect just offer them a refund - most end up refusing realising they won't find anything better.
In the last 5 years I've only had one real big problem car/customer. The car broke down about 3 weeks after purchase and they took it to a local garage who charged £800 to fix it. About 3 weeks after that they contacted me out of the blue demanding I pay £800. I spoke to the garage concerned and I wasn't at all sure they'd found the fault but I told the customer I would pay them although I wasn't convinced they knew what they were doing and in the circumstances if they accepted the payment it would be full and final settlement on the car with no further comeback.
They took the money then about a month later it broke down again with the same fault which the garage had not diagnosed so that was £800 down the drain. I refused to pay on the basis of what we had agreed and that I wasn't responsible for the inaccurate diagnosis by a 3rd party.
The moral is that if you get a troublesome car get it back and if necessary give a loan car. Don't be nice to the customer if they are some way away and let them use another garage as then it gets into a mess if they don't know what they are doing. Take responsibility for your own workmanship but not others!
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