Dealer has gone - car a nightmare

A

Angrygirl

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Hi all
I'm gonna apologise in advance for this as its going to be a long post, i wanna post the history of my problem so u'll know all the facts...

I bought a second hand car from a garage at the end of march, was advised that the car was guarantee'd to pass the nct and if not they would pay to put it through again once any problems had been fixed..

Car failed first nct, after 3 weeks i finally got problems fixed, car failed second nct and garage took car to fix problems after me arguing with them to fulfil the conditions of the sale, didn't have car back in time for next nct appointment so fee charged and car finally passed, garage did not pay for cancellation fee or retest

Then my passenger door will not open so I have an auto electrician look at it as the garage i bought it off was hopeless, i got a call earlier today to tell me the car i bought is a nightmare, all the airbags in the car have been deployed, the car was rigged so the airbag lights did not come on to let me know there was a problem.. The wiring under the seat is submerged in water and this was the problem with my door, all the wires are green and have been submerged for some time, as i write this a report is being done up regarding the condition of the car and he is taking pictures for me, he said there is more problems that he'll discuss with me later when i go to pick it up.. as you can imagine i am upset and furious as i spent €14.000 on this car, i went online to get the garage's number as i recently lost my phone with their number in it and to my horror the garage is gone, i got my brother to drive to the garage and its empty!!!

I'm now left with a car that is a hazard and a bank loan

Has anyone else been in this position that might be able to give me some advise, is the whole thing a lost cause or do i have any options at all

Thanks in advance
 
1) Did you ask someone independent to assess the car?

2) Do you have an invoice for the car on which you can identify the name of the person selling it to you. In other words was it sold by John Smith trading as Watertight Autos or was it Watertight Autos ltd.?

3) It may have gone from its premises, but has it been liquidated?

4) If it's a person, then you can sue that person.

5) If the car is dangerous, then you should notify the Gardai as there may be other such cars on the road.

6) The Consumers Association can only advise you. They can't impose any penalty.

7) Was the garage a member of the SIMI?

8) You could try the Small Claims Court but the limit is too low.

Brendan
 
You'll probably get better advice than this, but you clearly have a case under the Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act. Trouble is, you need to find the other party! Was it a proper dealer or a two-guys-in-a-lockup type of garage? If the former, they'd probably be SIMI registered. If it's a company you can look up the owners (I forget where but others will know).

If it's not a limited company the liability of the owners is not limited you can pursue them even if the business folds as the assets of a sole trader or partnership can be used to repay you. The post office may be forwarding mail somewhere. Neighbouring businesses/residents may know something. The Guards may have advice. You could hire a private detective for a day or two to find the owners and their addresses. After that it's probably a job for your solicitor.

Good luck with it.
 
let me guess your car is either an a4 or a passat and theres aflood on the passenger side
 
Sounds like it was in a bad crash! Was the dealer in Dublin? Maybe if you post the name of the garage(not sure if allowed) some members from the motor trade might know what happened them?
 
Hi Angry

Was up with Keith the other night to drop off my car and he was working on the mini red with a check roof. Same car I assume.

Small world

He showed me a few things unbelievable.

I would be hopping mad if I was screwed like that.

What is the story on naming and shaming in the interest of saving others from these cowboys.
 
I agree, plenty of proof that it's a legit story, I say name em!!! It's an absolute outrage that a Dealer should jeopardize peoples lives like that..
 
Hi Folks

If you want to put your homes on the line defending a defamation suit, go right ahead. Get big placards and walk up and down outside the garage or the home of the owners. But don't name them on Askaboutmoney. That's putting my home on the line.

Brendan
 
Hi all

Yes Frank that was my car u seen the other night, i seen the recommendation on here to use Mark to so I went to him, he's a genuinly nice guy and after my experience i don't say that lightly

Well the update is, I went back to collect the car and the situation is worse than i could've imagined, he said that everything imaginable that could be wrong with the car is wrong with it..it would run into thousands to fix it and in his opinion with the total amount it would cost the car is a right off!!!

I bought the car from a second hand garage that was a ltd company, received a receipt and a six month warrenty so at the time had no reason to think that it wasn't a genuine sale

Brendan i appreciate that u don't want me to mention the place i bought the car so if anyone wants to know the name of the garage and the two sales guys that own the place please pm me and i'll let you know

I'm not sure of wat avenue i can take right now, the guy that looked at the door and found all these problems has given me some suggestions that i have taken on board and will be discussing with him again on monday, he's going out of his way to help me and i have to say fair play to him, he doesn't owe me anything so i appreciate all his help..

I'll let you all know how i get on, thanks for the advise and support...
 
do a companies office search [broken link removed] if the company hasn't been dissolved then you may still have some hope. If it has been dissolved there's little chance of any happy ending.
 
Re: Dealer has gone - car a nightmare - update

After warning a few people here of the garage i bought the car from through Pm's Peelaaa found their details online for me through solocheck.ie (thanks Peelaaa)
I paid the €4 to get the company details and the company is registered to two people whose names are no where similar to the two guys that i bought the car from..I'm gonna go and check out the address and see if the guys in question live there...

The advise i got from the independent insurance assesor that deals with these types of problems wasn't too good, my insurance company wont let me make a claim as I didn't buy the car through them and they don't cover for this type of thing, my only hope is to track down the guys and bring a claim against them..

The electronics in the car are failing fast, was driving home yesterday evening and the front windscreen completly fogged up and i couldn't see out it, had to open the drivers window and look out as i was on a roundabout and couldn't pull in, i put on the heating to try and clear the window and smoke is coming out of the vents on the dash, i'm scared driving this car now and will be taking my boyfriends car every chance i get, i have to get to work so might have to take my car sometimes...
 
Re: Dealer has gone - car a nightmare - update

could this car have been a car from the UK that was flooded?
 
Hi Angrygirl,

I too have sent you a PM asking for the details. I think the more people know the more likely these "cowboys" will be found. It galls me to see people getting away with things like this, especially when lives are at stake!!
 
Re: Dealer has gone - car a nightmare - update

Thanks everyone for all your help and support over the last week

This is the way things stand now...

The directors of the company are from Armenia and it seems the two monkeys that sold me the car were just a front for wat was really going on, i have gotten the directors checked out by a garda and there is no way i will be messing with them and thats if they are still in the country to be honest, i was speaking to their accountant and as far as they know they are no longer at their address and they owe them a fortune too so it looks like i am one of many people that got stung by these scumbags (thats putting it polite)

All i will say is if i was buying a car again i wouldn't trust the dealer unless it was a main dealership, and i would bring the likes of the guy with me that found all these problems in the first place for me, hindsight is a great thing and i am devestated i'm stuck in the situation i'm in but at the end of the day i have my health and no one was hurt as a result of the car..
 
Sorry Angrygirl, looks like my PM to you crossed with your post. Will they guard not chase them up for other matters? even report them to immigration?
 
Mers1 the garda are looking for them too, can't go into it but they have done alot of stuff and there is a warrant out for their arrest as it is, will be keeping an eye on if they are caught and if so i can fight it then as they will be in custody.. to be honest i'd say and the accountant agreed with me they are long gone unfort..
 
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