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Dispute over a Polo
I purchased a new Volkswagen 3 door 1.4 Polo from a local dealer in Hampshire (using VW Solutions Finance) in September 2011.
Upon handover we noticed that the instrument panel didn't fit properly and that there was a indentation on one of the spot welds on the sill, just behind the front wheels.
Upon investigation the garage determined that the instrument panel fitted was for a left hand drive vehicle.
The vehicle was returned to the workshop and a correct, right hand drive panel was installed.
The garage also looked to repair the indentation but said that they would have to strip the paintwork back to repair it and respray the sill, which they then suggested may not look as it should do new.
They could see that we were not happy so they offered to order a replacement vehicle, which they did.
When it arrived there was a similar fault but they still offered us the new car.
We asked if all 3 door Polos had this fault and upon research they said that 7 out of 10 did.
We asked them to look for a faultless one and to speak to Volkswagen, who said that they did not recognise this problem as a fault.
We also spoke to Volkswagen, who further said that it was up to the dealer to resolve the issue but the issue was not a safety concern.
We asked the delear to look for a "perfect" car and the main salesman initially offered to order a 3rd vehicle but this was withdrawn after he spoke to the MD of the company.
We eventually reverted to the dealer to accept the offer of the 1st repayment but they withdrew the offer as they said that the change over would cost them £1,000 unless we could come up with a good reason for them to honour the offer.
We do not feel that we have been supplied with a car that matches the one advertised, as the car is not perfect.
We are also concered about the eventual resale value and potential insurance postion should we be involved in an accident. What can we do to try and resolve the matter ?
Upon handover we noticed that the instrument panel didn't fit properly and that there was a indentation on one of the spot welds on the sill, just behind the front wheels.
Upon investigation the garage determined that the instrument panel fitted was for a left hand drive vehicle.
The vehicle was returned to the workshop and a correct, right hand drive panel was installed.
The garage also looked to repair the indentation but said that they would have to strip the paintwork back to repair it and respray the sill, which they then suggested may not look as it should do new.
They could see that we were not happy so they offered to order a replacement vehicle, which they did.
When it arrived there was a similar fault but they still offered us the new car.
We asked if all 3 door Polos had this fault and upon research they said that 7 out of 10 did.
We asked them to look for a faultless one and to speak to Volkswagen, who said that they did not recognise this problem as a fault.
We also spoke to Volkswagen, who further said that it was up to the dealer to resolve the issue but the issue was not a safety concern.
We asked the delear to look for a "perfect" car and the main salesman initially offered to order a 3rd vehicle but this was withdrawn after he spoke to the MD of the company.
We eventually reverted to the dealer to accept the offer of the 1st repayment but they withdrew the offer as they said that the change over would cost them £1,000 unless we could come up with a good reason for them to honour the offer.
We do not feel that we have been supplied with a car that matches the one advertised, as the car is not perfect.
We are also concered about the eventual resale value and potential insurance postion should we be involved in an accident. What can we do to try and resolve the matter ?
Asked on 17 January 2012 by Mike Glover
Answered by
Honest John
It's more than a small claim so you would have to take the matter to the full county court, which will be very expensive. The dealer knows this and thinks he'll get away with you backing down.
Our honest used car pricing is a little bit different to all the others. You can get to our values through make or model - you don’t have to follow a prescribed route. Plus, it’s live, which means we can react to changes in the market quicker than any printed price guide.
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