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Can I claim compensation for a cam belt failure?
My Ford Fiesta 1.0-litre EcoBoost, registered/made in early 2016 with 67,000 miles, has just had a cam belt failure which has destroyed the engine.
The guidance from Ford is to change the cam belt at 150,000 miles or 10 years. We are under half of the guidance.
Ford have made a final offer of £1,100 (excluding VAT), stating that we are out of warranty so they are not obliged to offer anything.
The cost for a new engine I am told with fitting is more like £7,000, which is more than I paid for the car.
My question is: what are chances of winning a small claims court process?
The guidance from Ford is to change the cam belt at 150,000 miles or 10 years. We are under half of the guidance.
Ford have made a final offer of £1,100 (excluding VAT), stating that we are out of warranty so they are not obliged to offer anything.
The cost for a new engine I am told with fitting is more like £7,000, which is more than I paid for the car.
My question is: what are chances of winning a small claims court process?
Asked on 18 November 2021 by chris bowen
Answered by
Dan Powell
Cam belts are considered general maintenance items and this means it can be very difficult to prove a failure is linked to a manufacturing problem. Especially when the car is 5+ years old. However, in the case of the Ford Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoost, the cam belt runs in oil and this means it is designed to last the lifetime of the car (up to 150,000 miles or 10 years, whichever comes first).
If you have owned the car from new then you may have grounds to claim against the dealer that sold you the car. But you will need to identify the exact cause of the cam belt failure. The statute of limitations means you have rights for six years after buying a car (five years if you bought the car in Scotland), but it’ll be harder to prove how it was described as time goes on.
If you take legal action then you should seek professional advice before proceeding. Citizen's Advice is a good place to start, their legal help is free.
If you have owned the car from new then you may have grounds to claim against the dealer that sold you the car. But you will need to identify the exact cause of the cam belt failure. The statute of limitations means you have rights for six years after buying a car (five years if you bought the car in Scotland), but it’ll be harder to prove how it was described as time goes on.
If you take legal action then you should seek professional advice before proceeding. Citizen's Advice is a good place to start, their legal help is free.
Tags:
compensation
cam belts
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