hi guys, not sure if I’ve put this in the correct forum but I need some advice. One of my friends purchased a big around a month ago. He had the bike delivered from a private seller and paid cash. He hpi the bike for finance and stolen when he bought it but just found out it was subject to a total loss cat D 2 years ago. Where does he stand? Previous owner says he didn’t know about it, as it is my friend no longer wants the bike. Can sell it on but will loose half the value. Can he send it back to the private seller for a refund? What is the law? FYI he paid £5.5-6k for the bike.
Hopefully member @T.C. will see your post and provide the best information. In his absence, I am fairly sure the seller must guarantee clear title - which he did. As far as the seller not knowing the bike was Cat D is contentious; but he could also have purchased it without being told. However, I believe that the CAT must be disclosed at the point of sale. The seller will hardly be likely to refund; this smacks of your friend having to rely on legal recourse.
Unfortunately Nige I thought that would be the answer I was looking at. So to clarify, as a private sale he has no legal comeback except if he explicitly asked it was subject to a total loss and told no. So far it seems he has lost his money
I cannot give a definitive answer, but there is a case to be stated that the seller has misrepresented the goods. There is an old legal maxim that 'ignorance of the law is no defence', however, there is an equal maxim for the purchaser: 'caveat emptor' (Latin: buyer beware). As stated, your best advice will be from T.C. I am sure, given the circumstances, that he would not object to a PM. Cheers.
Are you saying the HPI check that your friend carried out didn't show the CAT D loss? Even the very basic checks for £1.99 show write offs https://www.mycarcheck.com You normally have to pay a bit extra for outstanding finance checks etc. Who did he HPI it with? - some of the companies offer a guarantee that the data is correct and compensation if it is wrong.
He told me he did a cheap check to confirm no outstanding finance and not stolen but either didn’t get a total loss report or didn’t look. Weird thing is bike is in my garage, noticed the other day a home made bracket as such holding a fairing on. Also a dent in the tank. Tbh he bought blind, didn’t view the bike paid full asking and had it delivered. To me from a private seller that is a big no no. Dealer maybe, dependant on age etc. My dad bought a bike from a dealer like that and it was perfect (although only 6 months old and low low miles (talking sub 200))
CAT D is the lowest category and can often be light cosmetic damage etc. OK seems odd - the cheap checks I have used cover write offs. How has he found out now that the bike is CAT D?
I know. It’s the first thing I look at. I’m not sure. I find it odd he didn’t check especially as he done finance and stolen checks
It's a shitty position to be in. He could probably pursue through the small claims court, but I would guess time and money wise it probably wouldn't be worth it. As a CAT D it would probably cost him less to put it straight and keep it. If it's kept for a few years the loss over time and depreciation would be far less than trying to offload it now. As mentioned, a CAT D is usually the cosmetic damage, that could be anything from a chipped wheel to a mark on the frame. I had an insurance assessor try to write a bike off for exactly those reasons. Front wheel had a chip in the paint and the frame had a none structural scratch near the headstock. As the bike was in mint condition pre-accident they stated that it needed returning to the same condition.
Unfortunately this is not my area of legal expertise as it comes under sale of goods act and consumer protection rights and regulations which is somewhat different to road traffic law that I usually deal with. However, I am pretty sure that if an HPI check was carried out and it is proved that the HPI check got it wrong, then the buyer has a case against HPI for compensation and there ay also be a case of miss selling against the previous owner although in civil law there is always the caveat of "Buyer Beware" But the fact that every reasonable attempt was made to guard against this very scenario this is why I go back to a possible claim against HPI. I think you may need to pay a visit to your local CAB and speak to the duty solicitor (which costs nothing) Sorry I cannot offer you anything further.
