Vehicles and Motoring
Cars misdescribed at sale, deposits on vehicles never delivered, and repairs paid for that did not fix the fault.
Vehicles are the highest-value consumer purchase most people make outside a house, and the protection available depends heavily on how they were paid for and who sold them.
Buying from a trader brings the Consumer Rights Act: the vehicle must be of satisfactory quality accounting for age and mileage, fit for purpose and as described. Within 30 days you have a short-term right to reject. For the first six months, any fault is presumed to have been present at delivery unless the trader proves otherwise.
Where a deposit went on a credit card, Section 75 becomes powerful. The cash price only needs to exceed $100 for the provider to be jointly liable, and that liability can extend to the entire purchase, a substantial exposure on a vehicle, and a strong incentive for the provider to engage properly.
These claims usually justify an independent inspection report. It is a real cost, and where the value warrants it we will say so plainly rather than proceeding on photographs alone.
The problems that come up most
Drawn from the claims we actually run in this area, not from a generic list of consumer complaints.
Vehicles sold with undisclosed damage, mileage discrepancies or outstanding finance
Deposits taken for vehicles then sold to someone else
Repairs charged for that do not fix the reported fault
Traders characterising a genuine fault as fair wear and tear
Private sales, where the protection is far narrower than buyers expect
What clients in this sector achieve
These are the outcomes engagements in this sector are scoped to produce. They are written into the proposal so success is defined before the work starts, not assessed afterwards.
- Whole purchase price recovered through Section 75 from a card deposit
- Short-term right to reject exercised inside the 30-day window
- Independent inspection evidence used to rebut a fair wear defence
- Deposits recovered on vehicles sold to another buyer
Where sector programmes usually start
Faulty or Misdescribed Goods
What arrived is not what was advertised, or it broke almost immediately, and the seller will not put it right.
Section 75 Claims
On credit card purchases between $100 and $30,000, your card provider is equally liable with the retailer. That is statute, not a scheme rule.
Services Not Provided
Work paid for and never done, or done so badly it has to be redone. Builders, installers, courses, memberships and professional services.
Engagements in this sector
$11,500 used car rejected and refunded after an undisclosed write-off
The dealer described the car as having no accident history. A check run when he changed insurer showed a recorded structural write-off. A $250 card deposit did the heavy lifting.
- Total recovered
- $12,020 Total recovered
- Card deposit that engaged Section 75
- $250 Card deposit that engaged Section 75
- Recovery versus the dealer's first offer
- 12x Recovery versus the dealer's first offer