Revving up for October

legal updates

The Sale of Goods Act 1979 will no longer be relevant to sales made after October 2015.

Read our disclaimer keyboard_arrow_down

This website content is intended as a general guide to law as it applies to the motor trade. Lawgistics has taken every effort to ensure that the contents are as accurate and up to date as at the date of first publication.

The laws and opinions expressed within this website may be varied as the law develops. As such we cannot accept liability for or the consequence of, any change of law, or official guidelines since publication or any misuse of the information provided.

The opinions in this website are based upon the experience of the authors and it must be recognised that only the courts and recognised tribunals can interpret the law with authority.

Examples given within the website are based on the experience of the authors and centre upon issues that commonly give rise to disputes. Each situation in practice will be different and may comprise several points commented upon.

If you have any doubt about the correct legal position you should seek further legal advice from Lawgistics or a suitably qualified solicitor. We cannot accept liability for your failure to take professional advice where it should reasonably be sought by a prudent person.

All characters are fictitious and should not be taken as referring to any person living or dead.

Use of this website shall be considered acceptance of the terms of the disclaimer presented above.

October 2015 brings the implementation of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 which will become the main piece of legislation on which consumers will be relying when buying a car.

Most of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 will no longer be relevant to sales made after October 2015.

The idea of course is that the new Consumer Rights Act 2015 will clarify and consolidate existing consumer law which is currently covered in more than 10 different Acts. However, to keeps things complicated, and so keep us lawyers in business, those 10 different Acts will not disappear completely and so the law in this area will still be pretty complex.

The two main Acts that are relevant to our dealers on a day to day basis are The Sale of Goods Act 1979 and The Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act 1973.

The Sale of Goods Act 1979 covers sales when the customer has paid the dealer for their car. The Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act 1973 covers sales when the customer has, what is commonly known as, bought the car on HP. In an HP sale, it is the finance company and not the dealer who have the legal liability to resolve the matter with the customer if anything goes wrong.

Both of those Acts will be chopped about come October. The Sale of Goods Act 1979 will continue to relate to business to business contracts and issues such as the passing of title in goods but, the main ‘business to consumer’ provisions will now be found in the new Consumer Rights Act 2015.

Similarly,  ‘business to consumer’ issues from the Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act 1973 will also now be incorporated into the new Consumer Rights Act 2015 as will the ‘business to consumer’ issues from the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977.

As we can see, much change is due upon us come October so do keep with us so we can keep you informed of what is without doubt, a major restructuring of consumer law.

Lawgistics members can get advice on the new Consumer Rights Act from the legal team.

Automotive ComplianceWE TALK YOUR LANGUAGE, WE KNOW YOUR BUSINESS

Need help with keeping on track with FCA Regulation and Compliance? Partner with Automotive Compliance

Nona BowkisHead of Legal Services / SolicitorRead More by this author

Related Legal Updates

A settlement agreement may not protect you

An agreement does not need to be in writing to be binding, but it is much easier to prove the terms of an agreement if there is a documented paper trail.

The customer isn’t always right…

As it was a defect he knew about, he cannot now claim it renders the vehicle not fit for purpose or not of satisfactory quality.

Implications, assumptions, and confusion – why being clear on your actions could be key to winning

The diagnosis showed the third-party garage had failed to repair the vehicle to a satisfactory standard and this was relayed to the consumer.

Burden of proof? Get your evidence while you can!

The burden of proof reverses for issues raised between 30 days and six months of ownership.

On your Marks… Get Set… Doh!

The TSO told our member that the consumer ought not to have experienced a failure given the age and mileage of the car.

Claim Dismissed: No Proof of Fault at Purchase

Our member argued that numerous issues could have caused the overheating and ultimate failure.

Court Rules Against ‘Serial Returner’ in Distance Selling Dispute

It is clear from his evidence that his true intention was that he wanted the ability to reject the car at a time of his choosing.

Get in touch

Complete the form to get in touch or via our details below:

Phone
01480 455500
Address

Vinpenta House
High Causeway
Whittlesey
Peterborough
PE7 1AE

By submitting this quote you agree to our Terms & Conditions and Privacy & Cookies Policy.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.