I bought a van privately that turned out to be clocked - where do I stand?
I bought a van off eBay which stated it had done 72,000 miles. When I went to collect it the owner said it was hard to find one with such low mileage. It turns out that the millage is closer to 200,000. Looking at the MoT history in 2011 it had 143,000 miles and in 2013 it had 56,560. At the last MoT October 2018 it had 72,377. Clearly the clock has been changed. I messaged the seller questioning this and his response was 'Sold As Seen.' I pointed out that had I been aware of the correct millage I would not have bought the van or certainly not paid what I had. I said I was trying to be pleasant in the hope we could resolve this issue but he just repeated: "Sold As Seen." Could you please advise on how I stand legally.
Asked on 17 September 2019 by Paul Gibson
Answered by
Dan Powell
When you buy a van from a private seller you do not get the same legal protection as you would from a trader or dealer. However, if the seller has misled you on the mileage (and you have proof of this) you may have a case under the Misrepresentation Act.
Tell the seller that you want a full refund or you will take legal action because he has breached the contract and misled you on the van's description. Tell him you will also inform the police and Trading Standards.
If he still refuses to budge after that, get legal advice and seek to sue him via the small claims court.
Tell the seller that you want a full refund or you will take legal action because he has breached the contract and misled you on the van's description. Tell him you will also inform the police and Trading Standards.
If he still refuses to budge after that, get legal advice and seek to sue him via the small claims court.
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