Returning a car to a car dealership: help from a lawyer

Procedure for returning a car to the seller

To do this, you, of course, need to terminate the contract for the purchase and sale of a car (hereinafter referred to as the product). The grounds for termination may be significant violations of quality requirements, violation of the terms of the contract regarding the transfer of documents for the car, etc.

This can be done both extrajudicially and in court, on the grounds provided for by the contract or legislative acts. The procedure itself includes the following points:

Send a written, reasoned claim to the seller to terminate the contract. As a general rule, contractual relations terminate from the moment the claim is received (clause 1 of Article 450.1 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). Such a claim must necessarily contain: arguments for which you decided to refuse the contract, references to the law or relevant clauses of the contract, details of the contract; in the petition part it is important to indicate your intention and ask to return everything transferred under the contract, the period of such transfer.

Since the above claim is a legally significant document, it must be sent in such a way that the direction can be proven - by registered mail with a list of attachments, by telegram, delivered in person, using a courier service.

Recipient's address is the address specified in the contract or an extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities/Unified State Register of Individual Entrepreneurs, which can be obtained on the official website of the tax service.

If the seller refuses to answer you, or is inactive, that is, does not respond at all, the dispute will have to be resolved through court.

Is it possible to hand over a new vehicle to an authorized dealer and under what conditions?

Success depends on how long ago the car was purchased. If problems can be avoided when returning within 14 days from the date of purchase, then returning a car late is possible for a good reason (read about whether you can return a car within 14 days or within the warranty period and how to do it here).

As a rule, the periods for returning a car to the dealership can be divided into :

14 day period;
guarantee period;
post-warranty period until the end of the service life.

Within 14 days

If the car owner immediately after purchase notices a malfunction in the car, visible defects and improper operation of the mechanisms, he should immediately submit a written complaint to the dealership where the vehicle was purchased.

The car dealership must send a written response within three business days . Salon employees usually try to convince the car owner in a written response that they are not involved in the defect. Of course, returning the vehicle to the dealership will only bring losses - you will have to either fully compensate for the cost or replace the vehicle.

If there is no proper response from the dealer, all breakdowns should be recorded and the dispute should be sent to the courts. A strong argument in favor of the buyer will be the conclusion of an independent expert commission, which will confirm the presence of defects.

During the warranty period

When purchasing a new car, a warranty card is issued for it. It indicates the date and amount of the purchase, as well as the time frame for troubleshooting.

If the damage has not been repaired within the period specified in the warranty, you must file a claim in court. An independent expert assessment is also needed here. The report will record the breakdown and the amount required to fix it .

If the dealership does not have an exchange fund, the car is simply returned and the buyer is paid the full amount. Read about the nuances of returning and exchanging a car, if the car was purchased at a showroom or second-hand, here.

After the warranty period

You can return a faulty car even after the warranty expires. If, within 2 years after the end of the warranty period, the car owner discovers a defect in the car due to the fault of the manufacturer, you must first contact the manufacturer or an official representative, and then make claims to the dealer.

Practice shows that manufacturers themselves often take the buyer’s side rather than car dealerships.

If a direct appeal to the manufacturers is unsuccessful, a claim should be filed in court.

Due to marriage

If a car is found to have a manufacturing defect, the buyer has the right to return it to the dealer within 15 days.

The condition for return does not have to be some serious breakdown (for example, in the engine). The cause may be a simple malfunction of the windshield wipers.

In addition, a car dealer may offer to repair a faulty part or mechanism - and a month later it will fail again. If this situation repeats several times, you need to demand a replacement car.

You can find out whether it is possible to exchange an old or defective car for a new one at a car dealership and how the procedure is carried out here.

Used car

A warranty card is also issued for used cars. Therefore, the buyer has the right to demand that the breakdowns be repaired in the same way as when purchasing a new car. The scheme here is the same: the salon most often refuses to repair the vehicle , so it is necessary to conduct an independent assessment and go to court with its results.

Returning a car purchased on credit

Like almost any product, a car purchased on credit can be returned to the seller if deficiencies are identified during its operation, but not within fourteen days, but fifteen (clause 1 of Article 18 of the Law on the Protection of Consumer Rights). However, the shortcomings identified during this period may be insignificant.

In addition to the return, you have the right to exchange the car, with an additional payment on your part if it is more expensive, and on the part of the seller if its value is lower.

If the above period has passed, then you can return the car if significant deficiencies are identified, for example:

The car was under repair for a month or more over the course of a year (certainly not as a result of an accident). In this case, this period is summed up.
Repeated occurrence of the same fault.
The vehicle's passport parameters do not correspond to those stated - for example, fuel consumption significantly exceeds that stated in the documents.
Troubleshooting will take significant time or money.
And so on.

In the cases stated above, the car can be returned to the seller under warranty.

Return procedure:

A claim outlining your position and the corresponding requirement. The seller has 10 days from the date of receipt for her satisfaction.

If the claim is refused, ignored or the deadline is violated, go to court with a corresponding application.

Important : during the consideration of the claim, the seller has the right to conduct an examination, which must be paid for by him, you have the right to be present at it, and the seller himself is obliged to notify you of the place and time of its conduct in advance!

What is the basis for returning a car?

Returns are possible, but please pay attention to the deadlines. If you made a return request within 15 days from the date of delivery of the car, you can indicate as a basis any defects that were not disclosed by the seller when completing the transaction. In this case, it does not matter whether the production defect can be eliminated or not - clause 5 of the Review of the RF Armed Forces.

Please note that at the same time the following conditions must be met:

The presentation of the vehicle has been preserved - there are labels/stickers and other information from the seller/manufacturer placed in the interior, on the body and windows.
The car has no chips, scratches, dents, etc.

In what cases can a vehicle be returned?

If you contacted later (the 15 days have long expired), you can return the car in the following cases:

The seller deceived/misled you at the time of the transaction.
At the time of signing the purchase and sale agreement, you were not provided with information about the car or its technical characteristics.
You have discovered a significant flaw.
The dealer refused to perform warranty repairs/failure to correct the defects within 45 days.
You were unable to use the vehicle due to repeated repairs - more than 30 days during each warranty year.
The examination confirmed that the defect was significant or that it could not be technically eliminated.
The same defect was identified more than once during the warranty period.
The manufacturer (authorized organization/individual entrepreneur, importer) violated the 20-day period for carrying out repair work on the vehicle during its service life.

How to determine if a deficiency is significant

A deficiency is significant if it is clause 13 of the RF Supreme Court No. 17:

Unrecoverable - cannot be eliminated through repair and makes it impossible to use the vehicle. For example, the geometry of the body is broken/there is a defect in the car’s painting (if the composition/sequence/technology/conditions for applying coating layers, etc.) are violated.
We can eliminate it, but it requires disproportionate expenses - and such costs are close to the cost of the car or exceed it or the benefit that would be received by the buyer when using it. Disproportionality is determined by the court.
Cannot be eliminated without disproportionate time costs - the time spent on repair work exceeds the period established by agreement of the parties (but not more than 45 days), and if it is not determined, the minimum period required to eliminate the defect.
It is detected repeatedly (more than once) and manifests itself in the form of various breakdowns. Moreover, each of them individually makes the car not comply with the mandatory requirements of the law/contract and leads to its impossibility/inadmissibility of use.
It appears again after repair - and exactly the defect that has already been repaired should appear.

If the identified defect turns out to be significant, you have the right to return the car to the dealership and demand a refund of the money paid.

Claim to return the car to the seller

If the shortcomings are not specified in the agreement between the buyer and the seller, then from the moment of receiving the car, the client has the right to return the car on all legal grounds. You can receive cash or a car of a similar model, but without defects. Another option is to exchange goods of inadequate quality, i.e. exchange of a car for another with possible recalculation. But the defect may be very small, and then the application to return the car may not be satisfied.

If more time has passed, then you can return the car to the dealership only if certain conditions are met:

violation of deadlines for eliminating defects
repeated elimination of deficiencies
detection of a significant malfunction that cannot be repaired even in a service workshop

If you have taken your car in for repair several times already, you can return the car to the seller legally and resolve the dispute with the car dealership. Repeatedly occurring faults that can only be repaired for a disproportionate amount are already a reason to contact the salon and issue a return. There should be no obstacles to performing such actions.

USEFUL : watch a video with advice from a lawyer on filing a claim

When is it legal to return a car to a dealership?

The car can be returned within the following periods:

In warranty - set by the manufacturer and ranges from 2 to 5 years from the date of transfer of the car to the buyer (depending on the brand of the vehicle). If it is not established, a special period specified in the law is applied - 2 years (Clause 5 of Article 19 No. 2300-1 of the Law of the Russian Federation).
Service life is set by the manufacturer and averages 6-7 years. And in its absence - within 10 years from the date of transfer of the car to the consumer - clause 6 of Art. 19 No. 2300-1 Law of the Russian Federation.

Claim for car return

As we mentioned earlier, first of all you need to send a pre-trial claim to the seller. As a rule, the buyer is an individual, so if you are dissatisfied, you should contact the district court, and today the claim can be filed at the buyer’s location.

NOTE : no state fee is paid when filing an application for consumer protection.

The statement of claim must indicate:

Details of the seller, buyer;
Data about the agreement – date, time, place of its conclusion;
The essence of the dispute, the nature of the violation (identified malfunctions), relevant evidence;
The pleading part is to terminate the contract and eliminate violations of rights by returning money or exchanging (this is at your discretion or in accordance with the purchase and sale agreement);

In addition, you have the right to ask for a penalty and a fine in accordance with the law on the protection of consumer rights, as well as reimbursement of legal costs (if any).

How to return a credit car to the dealer?

Even if you took out a car on credit, you can still return it to the dealership. Moreover, you have the right to demand compensation for payments that you have already paid to the bank.

First you need to go to the center where the car was purchased. In this case, the official date of purchase is the moment when the car dealership receives money from the lender. As you understand, this may happen much later than you expect, which significantly reduces the period for returning the car.

If the car dealership has agreed to return the money for the car, the first thing you should do is get a certificate confirming the termination of the purchase and sale agreement. After this, the bank will be obliged to return the amount paid to you, leaving only interest for using the loan.

If you go to court, payments will have to be made until a decision is made on the case. And only if it is positive, the contract will be terminated, and the bank and you will receive your money. At the same time, practice shows that it can be very difficult to achieve repayment of interest on the loan if the car is returned to the dealership.

Sample statement of claim for termination of a car purchase and sale agreement

In the Verkh-Isetsky District Court of Ekaterinburg, Ekaterinburg, st. Malysheva, 2 B

Plaintiff:

Respondent:

Limited Liability Company

Statement of claim

on the collection of funds under a car purchase and sale agreement

Between me and the LLC, a purchase and sale agreement No. 82/14 was concluded for a FORD Ford FOCUS car worth 480,000 rubles. Cash in the amount of 480,000 rubles as payment for the car was transferred to the seller at the time of conclusion of the specified agreement.

After purchasing the car, during the diagnostics, significant defects were identified:

The automatic transmission housing is broken (needs replacement),
steering rack replacement, broken housing, oil leak,
replacement of all SDC anthers,
replacing front brake discs,
replacing the engine block,
replacement of attachment belts,
the headlights are screwed on with self-tapping screws,
replacement of spark plugs with cleaning of fuel injectors, throttle valve,
malfunction of the electrical cooling fan control circuit,
malfunction of the output amplifier stage or the fan electrical circuit,
malfunction of the alternator load input circuit,
break or short circuit of the electrical monitoring circuit,
IMRC output signal is incorrect.

When concluding the purchase and sale agreement, the seller did not inform me about the listed defects of the vehicle. With these deficiencies, it is impossible to safely drive the specified vehicle. Due to the identified deficiencies of the car, the repair of which is technically complex and time-consuming, I sent a claim to the defendant asking for a refund.

In accordance with Part 1 of Article 1005 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, under an agency agreement, one party (agent) undertakes, for a fee, to perform legal and other actions on behalf of the other party (principal) on its own behalf, but at the expense of the principal, or on behalf and at the expense of the principal. Under a transaction made by an agent with a third party on his own behalf and at the expense of the principal, the agent acquires rights and becomes obligated, even if the principal was named in the transaction or entered into direct relations with the third party for the execution of the transaction. Having analyzed the agency agreement, we can come to the conclusion that, in fact, a relationship has developed between the parties under a commission agreement.

By virtue of clause 1, 3 tbsp. 990 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, under a commission agreement, one party (the commission agent) undertakes, on behalf of the other party (the principal), for a fee, to carry out one or more transactions on its own behalf, but at the expense of the principal. Under a transaction made by a commission agent with a third party, the commission agent acquires rights and becomes obligated, even if the principal was named in the transaction or entered into direct relations with the third party for the execution of the transaction. The law and other legal acts may provide for the specifics of certain types of commission agreements.

The buyer has the right to refuse to fulfill the sales contract and demand a refund of the amount paid for the goods. In this case, the buyer, at the request of the commission agent and at the expense of the commission agent, must return the goods with defects.

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In accordance with Article 450 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, amendment and termination of the contract are possible by agreement of the parties. At the request of one of the parties, the contract can be changed or terminated by a court decision only: 1) in the event of a significant violation of the contract by the other party; 2) in other cases provided for by this Code, other laws or agreement. A violation of the contract by one of the parties is considered significant, which entails such damage for the other party that it is significantly deprived of what it had the right to count on when concluding the contract.

In the event of a unilateral refusal to fulfill the contract in whole or in part, when such refusal is permitted by law or by agreement of the parties, the contract is considered respectively terminated or modified.

Also, Article 18 of Law N 2300-1 “On the Protection of Consumer Rights” establishes that after the expiration of the 15-day period, the requirements specified in the article must be satisfied in one of the following cases:

detection of a significant defect in the product;
violation of the deadlines established by this Law for eliminating product defects;
the impossibility of using the product during each year of the warranty period in total for more than thirty days due to repeated elimination of its various deficiencies.

I also believe that I suffered moral harm. I estimate moral damage at 100,000 rubles.

I believe that in my favor a fine must also be collected from the defendant due to his failure to voluntarily comply with the consumer’s requirements.

Since the defects of the car are significant and arose before the car was handed over to me, therefore, I consider it possible to refuse to fulfill the sales contract and demand a refund of the amount paid for the goods.

Based on the aforesaid and guided by Article. Art. 450, 431, 990, 1005 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, Article 18 of the Law of the Russian Federation of February 7, 1992 N 2300-1 “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”, paragraph 29 of the Rules for Commission Trade in Non-Food Products

ASK:

terminate the purchase and sale agreement dated June 27, 2014, concluded between me and LLC No. 82/14 of the FORD Ford FOCUS car worth 480,000 rubles;
to recover from the Defendants in my favor the amount paid for the car in the amount of 480,000 rubles jointly and severally.
to recover from the Defendants in my favor compensation for moral damage in the amount of 100,000 rubles jointly and severally.
to recover proportionately from the Defendants in my favor legal costs in the amount of 4,000 rubles.
recover from the Defendants in my favor a fine in the amount of 50% of the amount of the stated claims.

Date, signature

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Actions to take if a car dealership refuses to accept a car

If the car dealership refuses to accept the car, citing the fact that the case does not fall under warranty or the problems are not significant, your next step is to conduct an independent examination. This may be at the dealer's expense or at your expense.

When an examination determines that the warranty case or malfunction is significant, you have the right to demand repairs or a refund from the dealer. If the car dealership ignores the expert’s conclusion, you have every right to go to court.