Since our firm specialises in Consumer Law, we are regularly contacted by consumers complaining that their car is defective. If the defects become evident in the first six months after buying the car, we contact the seller and usually demand that the sale be cancelled and the consumer’s money be paid back. The seller is usually a second-hand car dealer and it’s been a challenge to persuade them to obey the law.
However, in the last few months, we’ve settled three car claims to our clients’ satisfaction, and completed a court case for a fourth vehicle owner. We are also trying to settle a case for a client where the damage to the vehicle was at least partly caused by our client’s negligent driving. What can we learn from these cases?
- Make sure as the car owner, that you’re not at fault
Read the vehicle’s instruction manual. Whenever a warning light comes on, read what the manual instructs you to do in response and don’t wait to respond. Don’t rely on your garage to give you instructions before you act.
Whenever the heat gauge moves to the right of the middle, you need to respond urgently to prevent major damage to your engine.
Ensure services are completed at the correct intervals and that the workshop signs your service booklet.
If harm is caused to your vehicle because of your actions or omissions, any repairs will be for your account.
- Get a specialist to check out the car early in the process.
We’ve previously tried to save the consumer’s money by avoiding obtaining an expert mechanic’s input until it’s unavoidable- that’s not the best approach. We have had much more success by obtaining a report diagnosing the defect and what it’s caused by from an expert in the field early on, and then playing open cards with the dealership from whom we’re claiming, by sharing the report with them. Our firm can assist with recommending reliable and cost-effective experts.
We have found that Dekra reports do not always identify defects in a vehicle, as the report involves a more superficial check of the vehicle.
- Deal with the right person at the dealership / workshop
The dealer principal is the decisionmaker- don’t mess around by talking to other employees first.
- Be tenacious
In each case where we had success we had to take detailed instructions, draft a lengthy letter of demand, follow up, respond to the initial response by the dealership and then stick to our guns until a suitable settlement could be reached. This takes a few months.
- Be flexible as to what solution you will accept
Our clients who are willing to accept repair of the defect are much more likely to obtain relatively quick success in negotiations with a dealership or manufacturer, than those who insist on returning the vehicle and claiming their money back.