Private car sale Small claims results
Discussion
I am very aware there are plenty of threads out there discussing cases where a private seller has sold a vehicle in good faith only to be harassed and even taken to small claims when the cars has broken down.
Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
zxc23 said:
I am very aware there are plenty of threads out there discussing cases where a private seller has sold a vehicle in good faith only to be harassed and even taken to small claims when the cars has broken down.
Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
You understand taking the car back could lead to a whole world of stress - one possibility is they bought your relatives car because their car had a blown turbo and the seat motor was bust and the car will be returned with a different turbo and seat.Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
Just block and ignore the number.
All I see is an 18 year old car with 180K miles on the clock, if someone expects it to drive like new with zero faults they're having a laugh. For £800 I don't think it would be worth the hassle or the expense for the buyer to actually go to court, they're just either having buyers remorse or they are trying to wangle a few hundred off.
Have a read of this Wiki: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
zxc23 said:
I am very aware there are plenty of threads out there discussing cases where a private seller has sold a vehicle in good faith only to be harassed and even taken to small claims when the cars has broken down.
Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
As a seller, you don't go down this road and 'win', you go down this road and don't lose. Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
There's never any 100%'s in law, but from what you describe, this isn't a problem I'd be worrying about.
As has been mentioned, there's a whole raft of people who get cars cheap by doing exactly what you're describing and buying something, then demanding more money back to cover 'faults'
Block and ignore. Only respond if something formal comes through.
Countdown said:
Report the car stolen.
Great idea. No reason not to make false reports to the police and waste their time. Why not make up some other good stuff about the purchaser too? If you claim he had a gun and threatened to shoot you, then I'm sure the police will take it seriously and it'll all go well.Just reply saying that the vehicle was "sold as seen", and that as an 18 year old vehicle with 180,000 miles on the clock, any wear and tear is commensurate, and that since legal action has been threatened you are not going to enter into any further discussions informally.
Then block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Then block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Durzel said:
Just reply saying that the vehicle was "sold as seen", and that as an 18 year old vehicle with 180,000 miles on the clock, any wear and tear is commensurate, and that since legal action has been threatened you are not going to enter into any further discussions informally.
Then block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Never seen a caravan with a gearboxThen block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Back to the op, just ignore unless court papers land on the doormat
zxc23 said:
I am very aware there are plenty of threads out there discussing cases where a private seller has sold a vehicle in good faith only to be harassed and even taken to small claims when the cars has broken down.
Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
If you have to ask, such a well covered topic, so well covered by law (on your side), I suggest you tuck your tail between your legs, buy the car back and give him some extra cash for good measures. Plus a kiss, too.Having read through many of these threads, the buyer is either delusional, a bully or a scammer. All cases I can see that have ended up in small claims court have gone the way of the seller.
So my question is, does anyone have personal experience where the seller has ended up in court and lost?
Reason for asking is a family member recently sold their 18 year old, 180,000 mile estate car for £800 on EBay. It had been extremely well looked after, fresh MOT, ran absolutely fine and had no known faults. Add was factual, cash paid, no receipt given. Car drove a few hundred miles with no issues. Few days later the buyer is kicking of that the engine lost performance and seat motor stopped working. Buyer is claiming the seller must of known and he wants his money back or he’s going to court.
I’m thinking it might just be easier for him to buy the car back than to deal with the stress and potential costs of the court. For those that have been down this road and won, was it worth the hassle?
richhead said:
Durzel said:
Just reply saying that the vehicle was "sold as seen", and that as an 18 year old vehicle with 180,000 miles on the clock, any wear and tear is commensurate, and that since legal action has been threatened you are not going to enter into any further discussions informally.
Then block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Never seen a caravan with a gearboxThen block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Back to the op, just ignore unless court papers land on the doormat
Found the thread in question: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/51... Court case result on page 28.
(still don't know where I got "caravan" from)
Edited by Durzel on Friday 29th November 14:17
OverSteery said:
Countdown said:
Report the car stolen.
Great idea. No reason not to make false reports to the police and waste their time. Why not make up some other good stuff about the purchaser too? If you claim he had a gun and threatened to shoot you, then I'm sure the police will take it seriously and it'll all go well.
Countdown said:
OverSteery said:
Countdown said:
Report the car stolen.
Great idea. No reason not to make false reports to the police and waste their time. Why not make up some other good stuff about the purchaser too? If you claim he had a gun and threatened to shoot you, then I'm sure the police will take it seriously and it'll all go well.
OK, so I'd had a bad day 
Durzel said:
richhead said:
Durzel said:
Just reply saying that the vehicle was "sold as seen", and that as an 18 year old vehicle with 180,000 miles on the clock, any wear and tear is commensurate, and that since legal action has been threatened you are not going to enter into any further discussions informally.
Then block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Never seen a caravan with a gearboxThen block & ignore.
To answer the broader point - I remember seeing a thread on MSE forum where someone sold a caravan with a dodgy gearbox and the buyer won, but it was largely seen as an errant decision.
Anything can happen in a court room with a district judge deciding on a case, but absent misrepresentation a claimant ought not to succeed in claiming against a private sale.
Back to the op, just ignore unless court papers land on the doormat
Found the thread in question: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/51... Court case result on page 28.
(still don't know where I got "caravan" from)
Edited by Durzel on Friday 29th November 14:17
Bad news I'm afraid. Well technically anyway.
A judge finally went through the case and we each presented our arguments.
I had to inform the judge that the claimant hadn't met deadlines and had sold the car on.
They also brought with them no evidence of the repair being done (£700) or being sold for a loss of £200 on their original purchase price, claiming that is was a cash job.
I thought things were going really well at this time because the judge was asking lots of questions they couldn't answer including what they were claiming for now (because things had changed) and I really couldn't believe my ears (nor could my partner) - at this stage I kind of expected to win despite the water works being turned on by the claimant.
When the judge delivered her verdict it was that the fault was with car before sale even though that I was honest and probably wasn't aware of it. She went on to say that I said the car drives well and even though I could engage reverse that the fault was probably there. As I clearly volunteered the information I don't see how this was my fault but hey she's the judge.
As she couldn't use the claimants evidence for repairs, she used the information I had given based on the labour quote from her mechanic and availability of second hand parts on ebay (which she didn't know were used or not) which was circa £500.
As a footnote, at mediation I did offer a without prejudice offer of half (£250) toward repair when she asked for £1500. I am aware I was not obliged to do this but in the interest of not going to court and the fact when I advertised the car at £2500 I was really expecting £2000/£2100 so was effectively £250 up.
The judge also awarded the court fee of £115 but did not award the hearing fee because I was reasonable and clearly followed instructions and I guess made an offer beforehand.
Therefore I have to pay £615 within 14 days which I will do so today because even though I disagree (and I did tell the judge politely) I need to move on with my life.
My partner is livid tbh but it just goes to show how the law "Caveat emptor" is not always applied.
Thank you very much for your kind input and help over the past 5-6 months and it's defintely made me thing about selling a used car in future.
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