NSW Private car seller lied...can I get money back

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Hdjaime

Member
1 March 2021
4
0
1
OK so I know all about"buyer beware" but I was a sucker. Was looking at a first car for my son and came across this one which sounded good. When we got there the car looked clean and he assured me that it's in perfect condition, no problems whatsoever and on and on. He seemed quite nice and genuine. Being a Sunday and having driven an hour and forty minutes to get there, we trusted him and left a deposit as he said he had many others coming. We couldn't take it that day as he had to go into Service NSW to do the rego and it was closed. So I took the train today and went and picked it up. An hour later on the freeway, I heard a noise and it just died. I had no power steering, couldn't accelerate or steer. I was so lucky that there was one of those emergency bays right there because I could have been in real trouble. Managed to get it off the road. I called the guy I bought it from who said he had no idea what could have happened and said to tow it to the mechanic, find out what's wrong and let him know. I should also mention that the tow truck driver pointed out when he was loading it that there were some dodgy wires attached underneath to the steering column that didn't belong there and looked like a home job.
So now we wait until tomorrow to find out what happened and see what he offers.
If he decides he's not going to take it back or pay for repairs do I have any recourse? I know I didn't have the inspection (kicking myself now) but I'll post what his ad said. I believe from his ad and from what he told me, that he behaved fraudulently. Has anyone had any experience with this? I'm feeling sick that it could have been my 17 year old driving and also we're out a big amount of money for us. $4000 (plus any repairs) might not be a lot to some people but it's massive for us.

Here is what he said in his ad:

2002 Mazda 323 Protege Hatch
Auto Km 132000
Excellent Cond
Mechanically Perfect
No Oil Leakage or overheat and nothing owing on car .
Updated Log Book
Very Low Km 132000
Timing Belt done at 107502Km date 15-05-2018 Rego till 28 May 2021
Complete service History
Still Original Floor Mats
Very Clean Engine
New Tyers
Power Doors
Auto Windows
A well-maintained car ready for a new owner! Excellent Interior well cushioned seating
Non-Smoker Car Tinted Windows Air conditioning
 

Robert755

Member
2 September 2021
2
0
1
Hi Hdjaime
Do you have any update ?
Exactly this , happened to me 2 days ago .
Please , let me know .
Thanks
Daniel
 

Hdjaime

Member
1 March 2021
4
0
1
Hi Daniel, I got lucky and he agreed to take it back but we had to pay to have it transported back to him which was $500. Lesson learned for sure.
So I guess I can't be of much help because it didn't progress further than that.
Although I will say, he already had it relisted with the same ad for $1000 more before he even had the car back. Can you believe it? Such a scammer. I kept getting alerts every once in a while that it was still for sale and that went on for months. I wonder if he eventually sold it again? I actually reported his ad but nothing came of it so this is a real lesson to anyone buying a car, pay the extra for an independent inspection.

I hope it works out for you.