Sold Car for Cash Now Buyer Wants to Return It

Sutra on 11/02/2020 - 10:57
Last edited 11/02/2020 - 11:38 by 1 other user

Hi, Yesterday we sold our car. The buyer came with his friends and drive test the car. After they came back from testing the car, he decided to buy it.

We did all the paperwork and today I went to Service Tas to give the paperwork to them.

Now I just got a message from the buyer saying that he wants to return the car and his money back. Saying that the car is not safe to drive (the car is old but I have not had any issues before and I don't know if he did something to the car yesterday)

Any ideas? We are in Tasmania.

Thanks in advance

Automotive

Comments

  • oscargamer on 11/02/2020 - 10:59
    +139

    Car is sold.

    DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES take it back. They may well have done an engine swap, trannie swap or any other number of things…

    Just no.

    • RM on 11/02/2020 - 11:07
      +62

      They also may have racked up fines/tolls/hurt or killed someone…

      JUST NO..Not your problem anymore

    • HighAndDry on 11/02/2020 - 12:26
      +40

      OP: Don't even reply to the buyer, anything you say could make it more complicated.

  • Pecan on 11/02/2020 - 10:59
    +30

    Ignore, not your problem anymore.

  • Ash-Say on 11/02/2020 - 11:00
    +41

    The private sale has no warranty.

    The buyer was responsible for doing pre-purchase checks. You are not obliged to get car back and refund.

    • skillet on 12/02/2020 - 09:06
      +4

      Private sale of used items has No Return unless you stated in a contact.

  • dust on 11/02/2020 - 11:04
    +7

    Did his friends look like bikies?

    • dust on 11/02/2020 - 11:25
      +6

      Asking in case you're worried about this situation occurring.

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 11/02/2020 - 11:07
    +18

    Reply to the message saying "New phone, who dis?"

    Same as everyone above, ignore.

    If they manage to contact you directly say the sale is complete and you've filed the transfer. It's done. Be firm that you won't accept a return and say that you already spent the money (whether you have or not).

    You'll really only face a possible issue if you blatantly lied about something concerning the car.

  • [Deactivated] on 11/02/2020 - 11:08
    +24

    All sales are final.

    Who knows what has happened to the car since. Parta could have been swapped. Car could have been abused. Used in illegal activities. Speeding fines. Parking fines.

    • pegaxs on 11/02/2020 - 11:14
      +16

      Taken a loan out and used the car as security.

    • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 11/02/2020 - 15:17
      +1

      Not 100% final. Like 99%.

      If OP blatantly lied about something that significantly changes whether the buyer would buy, and can't be easily determined (ie. visually) then the buyer may have a remedy in misrepresentation among other things. Likelihood of the buyer winning would be low. Hard to prove as most of the misrepresentations are verbal. But still a chance. Buyers have won before.

      • [Deactivated] on 11/02/2020 - 15:30
        +1

        Fair enough.

      • trapper on 13/02/2020 - 11:32

        The buyer still needs to sue in this case though. So best advise is still ignore him for now.

  • TheBilly on 11/02/2020 - 11:29
    +11

    Just respond a one liner "sorry no returns" and then block the number. Simple. If they come after you or to your house and act threatening just call the police.

  • carlJack on 11/02/2020 - 11:40

    Just ignore

  • pantsparty on 11/02/2020 - 11:44
    +13

    You have no obligation to accept the return. Per the Tasmanian government: https://www.cbos.tas.gov.au/topics/products-services/buying/…

    “ If consumers buy privately:

    there is no legal requirement for a written contract
    there is no statutory warranty protection
    the seller is not required to:
    fix anything that goes wrong with the car
    inform consumers of any faults
    guarantee clear title on the car (free of any unpaid debts)
    it is the consumer’s sole responsibility to check that the car:
    is not stolen
    has money owing on it
    is on the written-off vehicles register.”

    It goes on to say that the customer should ensure “the car is mechanically sound, by getting an independent inspection from a qualified person.”

  • chumlee on 11/02/2020 - 11:45
    +8

    Tell him there's a 40% restocking fee for returns

  • godofpizza on 11/02/2020 - 11:46
    +1

    buyer's remorse..

    • pegaxs on 11/02/2020 - 11:49
      +13

      More like "buyer got the parts they needed, now they want to give it back"

  • Fysh on 11/02/2020 - 11:53
    +8

    Say sorry you spent the money on a new car deposit and dont have it anymore. Easy way to get out as they know you dont have control over the money anymore

    • [Deactivated] on 11/02/2020 - 12:16
      +8

      I wouldn't lie.

      It is convenient but it damages one's self respect. OP has done nothing wrong.

      • Fysh on 11/02/2020 - 12:23
        +5

        Some people arent confident enough to say no , having a small white lie to avoid conflict can be better in these situations

        • [Deactivated] on 11/02/2020 - 12:27
          +7

          You're not wrong. It avoids conflict but it does come at a cost.

          Personally, I'm at a point in my life where I am consolidating the sum of choices. It is not nice to know one has been a coward. I'm glad I can say I've generally been upfront but I am still pretty disappointed at myself for all the times that I took the coward's out.

          • Fysh on 11/02/2020 - 12:42
            +6

            @[Deactivated]: being a coward is buying a car and not accepting a mistake they made as an adult

            • [Deactivated] on 11/02/2020 - 12:54

              @Fysh: That's not a coward.

              That is being entitled. Just as bad.

          • Duff5000 on 24/02/2020 - 21:09

            @[Deactivated]: Ok, transfer funds into a term deposit, then reply the funds have already been used? :)

  • 0FoxGiven on 11/02/2020 - 11:59
    +3

    Just saw post title. Here is my 2 cents :

    NO RETURNS

  • godofpizza on 11/02/2020 - 12:04
    +2

    saying the car is not safe is one thing, not sure what the RWC rules apply in TAS.

    But i assume that this car was sold without RWC? the buyer may have tried to get a RWC and been knocked back with a huge list of repair items and wanted a refund.

    • Euphemistic on 11/02/2020 - 12:13
      +13

      Doesn’t matter what the buyer wants. The buyer bought the car in the condition it was at the time of sale. they now own the car.

    • Nice one baby on 12/02/2020 - 18:55

      No RWC needed for a car sale in Tasmania (far a car thats already on the road).

  • JimmyF on 11/02/2020 - 12:47
    +4

    he decided to buy it.
    he wants to return the car and his money back

    2nd hard item such as cars when sold privately is purely buyer beware, no returns or refunds on private sales.

  • Ryanek on 11/02/2020 - 13:03
    +5

    Just play Violin.mp3 next time he calls.

  • TheMindsetTraveller on 11/02/2020 - 13:51
    +4

    caveator emptor

    enough said.

  • Bob Svargis on 12/02/2020 - 07:12
    +2

    Do not respond with anything other than NO.

    If s/he threatens you, contact the Police. I know someone who's been in your situation and was threatened. He stood his ground and you should too. And get the rego transfer done ASAP.

  • theguru1 on 12/02/2020 - 08:01
    +2

    You are under absolutely no obligation to take a return. It is 100% sold.
    They are just trying to play on your emotions by saying it's unsafe. Even if it is, it is their problem now. Personally I doubt it, they have just changed their mind. Either way, it is irrelevant, no refunds apply to a private sale.

  • [Deactivated] on 12/02/2020 - 09:03
    -5

    Give them a 50c coin, and tell them to call someone who cares - 131114.

    Explainer: the coin is for the pay phone, and the number is for lifeline….

    • AdosHouse on 12/02/2020 - 13:52

      No no, tell him to call 1300 655 506, and get help on reading what the return conditions are on a private sale.

    • [Deactivated] on 12/02/2020 - 16:00
      -5

      Cats are out today… thanks neggers…

  • skillet on 12/02/2020 - 09:09

    Forward this forum topic link to the buyer!

    • michaelTito on 13/02/2020 - 09:40

      Haha I love this idea. Do it op

  • Mark1159 on 12/02/2020 - 10:26
    -1

    Ignore

    These days with amount bad people think I would only trade a car in To dealer or sell wholesale. The extra few grand - in most cases - is not worth the potential downside and risk of grief/buyer remorse.

    Don’t want my home potentially vandalised, replacement cat keyed or baited meat tossed in direction of my puppy.

    Ive bought and sold privately many times but not so sure today.
    Good luck

  • nafe on 12/02/2020 - 10:27

    Yeah, nah.

  • afah0447 on 12/02/2020 - 14:40

    Second goods market. You don't need to give him shit. He is trying it on. don't be a sucker.

  • GoldenDragon888 on 12/02/2020 - 15:23

    Please update OP.

  • Tigercjn on 12/02/2020 - 18:21

    It is not your car to take back if you filed the paperwork as its now his car.

  • S2 on 13/02/2020 - 09:11
    +2

    Waiting for the next forum topic;

    Yesterday, I purchased a car. I came with friends to test drive the car. After I came back from testing the car, I decided to buy it.
    They did all the paperwork and today they went to Service Tas to give the paperwork to them.
    Now I just sent a message to the seller saying that I want to return the car and get my money back. I said that the car is not safe to drive (the car is old but they claim to not have had any issues before and I definitely did not do something to the car yesterday).
    Any ideas? We are in Tasmania.
    Thanks in advance

    I think this has happened before right? Two OzB members squaring off in forums?

  • frostman on 13/02/2020 - 09:30

    Unless you deliberately hid a major issue with the car, you are not obliged to return it.

    • CocaKoala on 13/02/2020 - 10:00

      Unless you deliberately hid a major issue with the car

      Even so, how is the OP obliged to return it? I'm not saying that it's OK to do hide a major problem with the item being sold, but the OP is not obliged to return the money after the sale is complete, no matter what.

      The onus of verifying the roadworthiness/safety of the car is entirely on the buyer, and that needs to be done before completing the sale.

      Should I be be missing something here, please help me understand that.

      • frostman on 14/02/2020 - 08:28

        If the guy rolled back the ODO from 250,0000 to 70,000 and the guy bought it and then realised the engine is dying wouldnt that warrant a return?

        Im not saying sellers should go around and point faults.
        Im saying if there was a major issue with the car, don't conceal it.

        (general statement, no reference to OP)

        • CocaKoala on 14/02/2020 - 08:38

          If the guy rolled back the ODO from 250,0000 to 70,000 and the guy bought it and then realised the engine is dying wouldnt that warrant a return?

          No, it wouldn't. Odo rollback check is easy to perform, and needs to be done as a preliminarily check among other things.

          The onus is entirely on the buyer to check everything they have to before parting with their money.

          After the transaction is complete, the car belongs to the buyer, and the money is the seller's to keep. Warranties apply as per legislation only if purchased from an used car dealer.

          We're not talking morals here, but legislation. The OP isn't obliged to do anything.

          • pegaxs on 14/02/2020 - 10:42

            @CocaKoala:

            Odo rollback check is easy to perform

            How? If it's so easy, maybe make a thread to let people know how to do it.

            • CocaKoala on 14/02/2020 - 12:04

              @pegaxs:

              How? If it's so easy, maybe make a thread to let people know how to do it.

              This could be accomplished with a REVS check / carhistory check / carfacts check. I'm sure there are more options, but these things cost somewhere between $25 to $35 if memory serves right.

              I'd not run that report to begin with though, because I could always do a PPSR check first for $2.5 or something to check that the car was never reported stolen, written off, been in an accident, or has any money owing on it. You wouldn't believe the amount of crap cars that I've been able to weed out with a simple PPSR check.

              If this gets cleared, I'll go inspect the car in person visually first. Do a cold start, and then test drive it under varying circumstances (rattles, transmission proper shifting, shudder, acceleration, braking, etc. too many things to mention).

              If I'm happy, I'll do one of those $35 checks which includes odometer check. If that gets cleared, I'll book a stateroads comprehensive inspection for $350 or so. If this gets cleared, the car is mine.

              Not sure if it's worthy of a thread, but I'm happy to make one with elaborate details if needed.

              • pegaxs on 14/02/2020 - 12:31

                @CocaKoala: And where do REVS, carhistory, carfacts get their odometer verifications from?

                I am not asking about PPSR or any of the other things you went on about, I am asking where you get the accurate (or even a reliable approximate) odometer reading from?

                In all the years I have been buying and selling vehicles, I have never found a website, paid or not, that will give me what the odometer reading of a car should be. It may have a "guestimate" based on average use for that model, but never for a particular car.

                The only way this may be achieved is through rego checks, as each time the vehicle has a rego inspection, the km are noted. But I have never found a state vehicle registration authority that is willing to divulge this information.

                Service books are also able to be doctored and dealerships will seldom give information, so even they are not a good indication of actual km travelled.

                I can assure you that I can roll back the km of a vehicle and there is absolutely no way you could get the actual mileage for that vehicle.

                • CocaKoala on 14/02/2020 - 21:51

                  @pegaxs:

                  And where do REVS, carhistory, carfacts get their odometer verifications from?

                  I don't know for sure. I could however state that this is just about the only avenue available to verify that.

                  The only way this may be achieved is through rego checks, as each time the vehicle has a rego inspection, the km are noted. But I have never found a state vehicle registration authority that is willing to divulge this information.

                  This is inaccurate as the various trades like car service centers, petrol pumps (while using a lease-provider-issued fuel card) are required to note down the KMs. I am not sure where this is collated, but I suppose this is somehow collated somewhere, and revs, carhistory, etc. are all possibly pulling their data off there to verify that the readings make sense.

                  I can assure you that I can roll back the km of a vehicle and there is absolutely no way you could get the actual mileage for that vehicle.

                  Well, in that case, if I may take this discussion back to its point, the point of odometer rollback has lost its plot here. This is because the premise was that the buyer somehow ascertained that the seller had tampered with the odometer reading. If there was no absolute way to say that, then the buyer could of course not ask to return that car.

                  • pegaxs on 14/02/2020 - 22:42

                    @CocaKoala:

                    various trades like car service centers, petrol pumps (while using a lease-provider-issued fuel card) are required to note down the KMs

                    These are private entities that keep that data. While a few might hand over this data, I doubt many of them would. The other thing is that a majority of the vehicles owned in Australia would be through private ownership, not through lease companies or would have fuel cards with easily accessible data free from the provisions of the privacy act.

                    Car service centres are also not obliged to pass on this data to anyone other than keeping their own track record on where the car is up to, and would seldom divulge this information to just anyone who was "curious". (I know this because I was a service advisor and I have also tried to buy motorcycles with a dubious service/odometer history and the dealers all say the same, "No, sorry, against privacy laws".)

                    A car could be purchased new by a private buyer, serviced its whole life at the local mechanic and be sold some 10 years later, never hitting any of those fuel cards, service centres or road worthy checks. It would therefore be impossible for anyone to ascertain the legitimacy of the odometer reading.

                    Most cars, once they are outside their warranty/lease agreements, (where km tracking may have be stored and accessed.) may never come in contact with a way of having this data recorded ever again, especially on vehicles that would benefit from an odometer rewind… (a 3yo ex-lease vehicle with 65,000km with all this "history" isn't as important as a 10yo car with 300,000km, wound back to 105,000km that would have almost ZERO history on record.)

                    Your "easy to perform" search seems like it would only catch a very, very small part of the available vehicles for sale and only catch those vehicles where it wouldn't even need to have the odometer rolled back (low km, newish, lease plan cars), and it would totally be invalid for anything that would nearly, absolutely be at risk of odometer roll back (older, high km vehicles.)

                    So, I am asking, what is your "easy to perform" odometer roll back check that would actually be accurate or that would at least turn up reliable data on the segment of cars that would be most prone to having odometers rolled back? Because, from my experience in the automotive industry, it's pretty much close to "none".

                    • CocaKoala on 14/02/2020 - 22:51
                      -1

                      @pegaxs: You may be correct here. I am probably not at risk as when I purchase an used car. Because it's definitely not going to be a "high mileage" one, and most certainly will be from a dealer with detailed, and full service history.

    • GoldenDragon888 on 13/02/2020 - 11:54
      +1

      OP is in Tassie. Major fault or minor fault they don’t have to disclose any faults. https://www.cbos.tas.gov.au/topics/products-services/buying/…

  • Charlie Sierra on 13/02/2020 - 09:51
    -1

    Was the buyer by any chance an investment banker for Westpac?

  • Hangryuman on 13/02/2020 - 10:02

    without reading the thread I would presume sale of a used item was presumed to be 'as is' - the legal term for you looked it you bought it you can't just ask for your money back

    used items do not tend to come with a warranty unless you are a professional used car dealer offering that to attract buyers or perhaps required of professionals

  • CocaKoala on 13/02/2020 - 10:03

    The engine, transmission, stereo, windscreen, aircon, brake discs, tyres, etc. were removed and sold. And that was after it was used as a getaway vehicle in a bank robbery. The police is looking for this car now, and that makes it unsafe to drive (also the missing parts don't help). So, the buyer would like to return it for their money.

  • whorishmouth on 13/02/2020 - 10:41
    -5

    This may touch some nerves…. but are you able to tell us the ethnicity of the buyer?

    • yoshi864 on 13/02/2020 - 10:51

      How on earth is this relevant, what purpose would the answer serve?

    • GoldenDragon888 on 13/02/2020 - 11:51
      +3

      They were Ferengi.

      • whorishmouth on 13/02/2020 - 11:54
        +1

        Agh…see, that explains it.

  • knr21 on 13/02/2020 - 10:51

    Buyer Beware - they need to do their own research. I had the same situation, his mate rang up and asked questions about the engine and the history after he had the car for a couple of days, me being a person who has not a clue about engines had no answers but when they came to inspect the car I had a mate who was a car encyclopedia, not one single question was asked, he had his brother and his dad with him and they didn't ask me questions etc but just took it for a test drive. His mate asked started to tell me off, I said I would have been happy to answer any questions that they had but no questions were asked,I said"what you want me to sit them down and tell them a bedside story about the car". He went silent and said but why didn't you tell them the history and said why didn't they ask me any questions?? again silent and then he hung up on me… never to hear from them again. There was nothing wrong with the car, full service history etc wasn't going to hide anything from the guy, not that kind of person. If he had asked me if it had been in any accidents I would have said that a tree had fallen on it 8 years ago and all but 4 panels had to be replaced and hence why the engine may have been taken out of the car but no question was asked. called BUYS BEWARE!

  • trapper on 13/02/2020 - 11:36

    Just reply and say "well an unsafe car isn't worth much, best I can offer is $50" /s

  • WT on 13/02/2020 - 12:06

    out of interest, what is their reasoning?

  • wjb on 13/02/2020 - 13:01

    No refund, no warranty.
    Buyer can resell the car.
    Same goes for everybody.

  • trev likes bargains on 13/02/2020 - 15:09

    Saying that the car is not safe to drive 

    I bet the ANCAP rating must be low 🤭

  • GangGang on 19/02/2020 - 00:57
    +1

    What ended up happening?

  • lovetodiscuss on 20/02/2020 - 17:27

    Tell them it was the best joke you have heard for while.

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