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Just thought I would share the fact that we have set up a small Mentoring Group for Independent Car Dealers if anyone on here is interested in becoming a Mentor or being mentored then please contact me jim@jimreidvehiclesales.co.uk Even if it's just to have the availability of someone experienced in the trade to pick up the phone to rather than use a forum this is maybe for you! There has already been a large interest in this , but if you contact me I can email you the information and links. kind regards Jim Reid

I put all my cars on that are going to be retailed! Saves any issues if the ANPR picks up any cars on test drive , and i suppose if there was any issues with insurance cover they are fully aware what vehicles I have in stock at all times ! Maybe an over kill but safe than sorry !

The auctions at times can be like a box of chocolates, "You never know what your going to get" Lottery!

Chess cafe Sparky, you know it works! Make sure you don't get too busy and miss our Champions League games. * we both support the same football team and play for the same chess team in the same chess league in case anyone thought this was a randomly insane post!

If the vehicle is local is always has to come back to us. If it is a distance away I explain to the customer that the warranty is with ourselves but if its a minor fault (upto £100) get it fixed locally and I will be happy to pay but if its a major fault the car will need to come back to us. It's not really been a problem, I did pay out about £700 to a BMW dealer in N.I for a fault of a BMW 320 and a goodwill payment of £1000 on a RS6 gearbox but in the 4 year I've been running my own warranty that's the only big payouts I've had. If you put aside £100 for every car you sell the warranty account soon becomes a healthy back up fund. Saying all that lots of the cars I sell are around 3 years old so should have the same kind of warranty come backs like older cars will.

There was once a rumor that Autotraders unofficial motto was "THEY NEED US MORE THAN WE NEED THEM" and they did/do have an arrogant attitude dictating how to run your business how to price stock etc etc and laughing when we questioned annual double figure price increase, fortunately the competition has gained ground on them and personally having stopped advertising with AT we sell just as many cars without them as we did with them but have £3500 a month less overheads so now there motto must be "WE NEED THEM MORE THAN THEY NEED US".. Previously it was only a handful of dealers with big balls that left AT and advertised elsewhere but talking to the trade and ex autotrader employees it is the norm for dealers to jump ship and not look back, hopefully AT execs will realise before it is too late that there arrogance and unaffordable price hikes are killing a brilliant market leading product..

Hi Ken have you considered running your own warranty? I use Lawgistics warranty books and put £100 for every car I sell into a pot. I find it give me 100% control over the warranty process but as I have said I have my own workshop so that helps alot. As for 'know faults' I would guess that in most cases that go to court the judge will side with the customer despite what the truth is. Cars are a mechanic minefield and I guess most judges don't understand (or choose not to care) the complex nature of a car. Always feel free to ask me advise !! You seem to be wanting to do the job right but don't try and over do it....customers smell blood sometimes and will take advantage.

Ken, a bit of advice, make sure any warranty or aftersales book you give them states the procedure for getting work done under warranty. Mainly that you need to be informed before work is started. There was a case a few years back when a dealer was handed a £3000 bill for a Discovery gearbox, this first he heard was when the car was repaired and the bill was sent to him. It went court where the dealer didn't dispute that there could have been a fault but claimed if has was made aware of it he could have rectified it at a lower cost to himself. The judge ruled in the favour of the customer on the bias that when the car was sold the customer was given no clear guidelines of how a claim under warranty should be made (despite the OTF saying the dealer should be the first post of call). Since reading that I've always made sure my warranty books (which the customer signs) state I need to be informed. Also on the 6 month time limit, the law is that within the first 6 months the dealer must prove the fault wasn't present at 'time of sale' after 6 months it is the customer who has to prove the fault was present. Have a read of the links i've posted above, they help an lot in educating us to what the law is !!!

The car has to be 'fit for purpose' as has been stated earlier (the 6 months isn't correct and a bit of a myth) . The feel of a clutch alone wouldn't be cause to reject the car, if the customer drove the car prior to sale as he should have noticed how it felt then. If he claims it felt different on a test drive it's proving that the 'fault' wasn't noticable at point of sale. A lot depends on the age and mileage of the car and also how long the customer has owned it. It's not unreasonable to expect a used vehicle covering X number of miles to have sign of wear. Did the 'specialist' garage claim the clutch was worn or worn to excess?? Sometimes you have to be firm with customers and explain its not a new car. This shouldn't be used as an excuse to try and wriggle out of paying for aftersales claims but is a good way to start negotiating a resolution. Drive the car yourself with the customer and be honest, it the fault is clear repair it, if its not explain your opinion and listen to the customers, I understand it's a lot easier for us dealers who have our own workshops to repair cars under warranty as the costs are much lower. Look at these two links, whilst it still leaves 'grey' area's it gives you a good understanding of how things should work http://www.norfolk.gov.uk/view/NCC094699 http://www.norfolk.gov.uk/view/NCC094700

In reply to you post. A lot depends on the age and the mileage of the car you sold, which you have not stated but I think you did the right thing, had the clutch been slipping or had it gone within a short period of the customer owning then you would have had to replace it completely free but given the circumstances you have done right by your customer by offering a compromise by supplying the parts. I think the customer (if he takes independent advice) , will accept your offer of goodwill as the clutch is worn, and as a car is full of parts that move and wear there has to be an acceptance of wear and tear from the buyer. If you are buying a 5 year old car don't expect a car with a 6 months clutch in it! If he refuses to accept this and goes for the return unfortunately you have an extra owner on the V5C unless you can convince the customer to write a letter to send along with V5C to the DVLA explaining that the car had been registered in his name and address in error, this may get DVLA to remove the details, but more often than not returned cars will have an extra owner! Best of luck Jim

I wouldn't worry about the customer service, pay more attention to the complex pricing structure which changes by the week and requires a Enigma machine to decipher !!

I have a Cmax in at the moment with the button that you press, and then it parallel parks for you. I thought YAY can't wait to try this... It ran over a traffic cone that it didn't "see" and kerbed the rear wheel. What a load of crap.