Buying a used car: your rights if it is faulty

A used car is a big purchase, and if the engine starts knocking a week later, it helps to know your rights. In the UK they depend on who you bought from: a dealer (a professional trader) or a private seller. The key law is the Consumer Rights Act 2015, and we check its main sections against the official text on legislation.gov.uk.

What protects you when you buy from a dealer?

If the seller is a trader, the Consumer Rights Act requires goods to be of satisfactory quality, as described, and fit for purpose. A car with a serious hidden fault fails those tests, and the buyer gains rights to a refund or repair.

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What is the short-term right to reject?

Section 22 gives a "short-term right to reject": within 30 days of taking ownership, you can return faulty goods and get a full refund. The period is shorter for perishable goods, but that does not apply to cars — they get the full 30 days.

What if the 30 days have passed?

After that, under section 19, you can ask for a repair or replacement. If one such attempt fails, you can claim a price reduction or exercise the final right to reject and hand the car back. For a refund after six months, the seller may deduct an amount for your use of the car.

Who has to prove the fault was there from the start?

An important rule in section 19 applies: goods that do not conform at any time "within the period of six months beginning with the day on which the goods were delivered to the consumer" are taken not to have conformed on that day. In plain terms, for the first six months it is the dealer who must prove the car was sound. The exceptions are if it is established the car did conform that day, or if the rule is incompatible with the nature of the fault. After six months, the buyer must prove the fault existed at sale.

How should you act if it is faulty?

Tell the seller about the fault as soon as possible, and ideally in writing, so you have proof of the date you reported it. Keep the contract, the receipt and any messages: these are what you will need if it comes to a dispute. And remember the seller has, in effect, one chance to repair or replace — only if that fails do the right to a price reduction and the final right to reject apply.

And buying from a private seller?

Then you have far less protection. The Consumer Rights Act covers trader-to-consumer sales, not private ones. A private seller only has to sell a car that matches its description and that they have the right to sell; the "satisfactory quality" test does not apply. So a private used car is worth checking especially carefully: buyer beware.