I have agreed a price and placed a deposit on an approved used 70 plate HSE from a JLR dealer. The car seems well looked after but after paying the deposit I went for a final look and noticed there was some serval areas of bubbling of the silver plastic trim under the rear window and a chip through to the Primer on a passenger door. Naively, I have assumed that approved used are prepared to a near new condition (apart from the normal wear such as small bumper stone chips) prior to delivery.

I have asked if these issues will be rectified by the dealer but they are saying no, not under our current agreement. If I want them fixed, we will need to work out another agreement. While I accept this argument in terms of I should have spotted them before, this has prompted me to better understand the garanteed standards of JLR approved used cars to better manage my expectations.

Does anyone have literature from JLR that specifies damage or defects to bodywork that is allowable under the approved used scheme so I can tell whether or not the dealer is being reasonable?

You may find this helpful:

'It has long been thought that if a consumer decides to pull out of a car purchase having paid a deposit, that the car dealer is automatically entitled to retain that deposit.

However, there are several important considerations that need to be met before that is allowable, the first of which is especially relevant.

The Consumer Rights Act 2015 says that a contract term may be considered unfair (and thus unenforceable) if it is “A term which has the object or effect of permitting the trader to retain sums paid by the consumer where the consumer decides not to conclude or perform the contract, without providing for the consumer to receive compensation of an equivalent amount from the trader where the trader is the party cancelling the contract. We are advising that your terms/conditions, order form and any document that makes reference to a non-refundable deposit, be reworded as below, followed (where possible) by the consumer’s signature:

“By paying a deposit you are entering into a legally binding contract. If you change your mind and do not pay the balance due, you will be in breach of contract and we will be entitled to retain the deposit in full and not return it to you. However, if we are in breach of contract and do not agree to sell you the car upon payment of the balance, we will return your deposit in full and you may be entitled to additional compensation from us up to the full value of the deposit amount”.

The amount of deposit is the most you can retain. You cannot retain a deposit and then on top of that seek losses such as prep time or having to re-advertise or re-selling at a lower value. The whole purpose of a deposit is it gives certainty as to what can be lost in the event of contractual breach – regardless of whether your actual loss is greater or less than the amount of the deposit. HOWEVER………

The deposit figure must be a proportionate to the value of the vehicle – you cannot simply seek to punish the buyer by making him pay a hugely disproportionate deposit and retaining it if he or she does not pay the balance. The Court of Appeal ruled in 2016 (and gave a new test of what is allowable) and removed the test of “reasonable pre-estimate of loss” and “penalty clauses” and replaced it with this, somewhat wordy conclusion:

“The true test is whether the impugned provision is a secondary obligation which imposes a detriment on the contract-breaker out of all proportion to any legitimate interest of the innocent party in the enforcement of the primary obligation. The innocent party can have no proper interest in simply punishing the defaulter. His interest is in performance or in some appropriate alternative to performance.[Emphasis added].”

Whilst the courts – and only the courts can decide – we think that a deposit that is greater than 10-15% of the value of the car might be seen as difficult to justify except in very rare circumstances. Maybe where something is being built to such an unusual, bespoke and personal specification that the sale to anyone else other than the actual buyer would be compromised substantially or could only be re-sold at a price significantly less than agreed with the intended buyer (who then did not pay the balance after the deposit was made).

Where a deposit is taken in contemplation that the car will be financed by, say a hire-purchase agreement, the deposit must be refunded if the consumer withdraws from the deal BEFORE all three parties sign the finance agreement – as set out by Section 57 the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (Withdrawal from a Prospective Agreement). This does NOT form an obligation to fund the purchase of the car by some other means.

Where the consumer cancels the credit agreement within 14 days of all parties signing the credit agreement, then there IS an obligation to buy the car by some alternative means BUT we will argue that this obligation is between the consumer and the finance company (not the dealer) as the finance company have bought the car from the dealer, has good title in it and the dealer is not in breach of contract. Again, though, some finance companies may, in their terms and conditions have a clause that states that the dealer has to indemnify them in the event that this happens!'

Source: https://www.lawgistics.co.uk/blog/legal_up...ed-advice/

Last edited by T on Tue May 21 2024 12:40pm. Edited 1 time in total

I have had a similar experience when buying an Approved Evoque. When we went to look at it, it was wet (I know, rookie mistake but it was dry when we set off, 150 mile round trip), and whilst I saw an obvious scab, which they agreed to fix, I missed a really bad paint repair to the door. I didn't give it a close check when I collected it, but saw it when we stopped for a coffee on the way home. The dealer tried the old, "it's a five year old car" argument which I countered with my expectation that an approved car should be in excellent condition and that it would either be clear of any obvious defect, or that it should have been disclosed at the time of viewing. I had to escalate it to the salesperson's manager before they agreed to have it rectified and not before I had to suggest rejection under the "100% SATISFACTION GUARANTEE
In the unlikely event that your vehicle has a demonstrable fault that cannot be resolved to your satisfaction – within the first 30 days and having covered no more than 1,000 miles – it will be replaced with a similar specification or a full refund offered."
Perhaps LR customer services (or whatever they call the complaints dept these days) may mediate for you?
Depending on how good a deal you got, and how scabby it is, you may want to play hard ball with them, but ultimately you may have to sort it out yourself.
That car is now back up for sale at the dealers, albeit there were other issues with it that didn't make it worth their while to sort out for me so we agreed that they refund me in full.
Good luck

I have found a copy of the JLR approved used preparation standards for the UK. It details that for a 3.5 year old car, chips on zone a panels must not detract from the overall appearance of the vehicle when viewing from 1m away. And chips on zone B panels should be smart repaired.

Now I just need to find a document specifying the zones on a RRS.......

In big letters at the top of the Land Rover Approved page:

WHEN YOU CAN'T TELL IT'S USED
IT'S LAND ROVER APPROVED

https://www.landrover.co.uk/approved-used/index.html

When I picked up my RRS recently, it was at the time when we had almost constant rain, so it was impossible to inspect the exterior properly. On the walk-around, the dealer pointed out one visible scratch that he'd say they'd rectify - which they did by simply dabbing at it with touch-up paint!

With stone chips, I'd really expect JLR to rectify these and not pull the "it's a second hand car" excuse - I really do expect the "can't tell it's used" treatment and stone chips should be rectified.

Also check the tailgate alignment - they have a habit of dropping, so get the dealer to sort that out as well. Basically check everything and get them to sort out any niggles. 2021 P400e Autobiography

I picked up the car and found several issues which I am trying to get resolved:

1. Tailgate trim is covered with bubbling
2. Dent with cracked in the door
3. Red stain on the drivers seat
4. Pulls left, and the steering wheel is not centred
5. Creaking from roof in hot weather
6. Small scratches all over - looks like it was polished with a brillo pad!

I pointed some if these out when on way out of the dealer after agreeing a price. Dealer said to rectify them we need to go back on our agreement. For the tailgate trim they wanted to paint it a non OEM colour.

I downloaded the approved used preparation standards from JLRs TOPIX site, attached it to an email to the manager and they were happy to sort the issues!

Here are some pics of the vehicle:

Click image to enlarge

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