Audi Withholding Deposit.

[Edward Harrison]

Hi guys, long story short I placed a deposit on a car in november after being pressured into the sale by one of the salesmen working at an audi dealership (don't want to use any names at the moment). Fast forward a few days I backed out of the sale as I had time to think and I realised that 1). The deal I had singed up for was awful and, 2). My insurance would be sky high due to a non fault accident I had earlier in the year.

Since the order form was all that was signed and no finance documents were completed, am I totally out of my mind to expect some if not all of the deposit back? My family and friends have purchased many cars from there,having no problems whatsoever.

The dealership has flat out refused to hand back any of my £1000 deposit and the sales manager ignores all calls.

Anyone have any suggestions as to where I stand? I'm out of pocket and left with a sore feeling - the garage has made a quick grand and taken advantage of me! I for one will not be going back to this dealership again.

Thanks for reading,

Edd.

 

[voorhees]

Maybe go in person or ring another sales person to speak to the manager,I would think you would have it in small print on the agreement
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/c.../can-you-change-your-mind-about-buying-a-car/

 

[mister.c.]

Have they explained to you how/ why they can withhold the deposit? Is there wording in the order form that refers to the fact you may not be eligible for it to be returned?

If so, then no advantage may have been taken. And they have every right to withhold monies.

Being pressured or otherwise into the sale - that's what salesman do, and especially trying to get as good a deal for themselves. Its irrelevant to your main consideration. That's life. Take that bit on the chin. And Learn from that part of it for the next car purchase you make and 'screw them' for as much as you can.

 

[Edward Harrison]

Thanks for the reply guys, I've been in numerous times and the dealer in question tries to make a fool out of me.

There's nothing in the small print that I can see and I've had a solicitor proof read it for me. Having spoken with another dealership within the same parent group their policy is to hand back deposits to avoid any bad relations - it would seem they are just being hard faced.

 

[Scottyg]

Go in person and politely ask for it back. If they mess you about just quote from above link and get CAB and TS involved. They'll relent and hand it back. They'll be something written in the paper work which will allow a cooling off period.

 

[Andy Crooks]

There is always something in the small print for getting your deposit back. Good luck

 

[cabbychris]

Go into the dealership and ask them would they like watchdog to come and visit them,have you tried contacting audi uk im sure that when you put a deposit down there is usually a 14 day cooling off period,just out of curiocity how did you pay the deposit,if by card contact your card supplier and let them deal with audi.

 

[jdp1962]

When I paid my deposit in March, I asked if it was refundable if I changed my mind. I was immediately told no because on the strength of my deposit, they were placing the order for the car I'd chosen. It doesn't sound to me that anyone's trying to make a fool of you.

 

[jdp1962]

Go into the dealership and ask them would they like watchdog to come and visit them,have you tried contacting audi uk im sure that when you put a deposit down there is usually a 14 day cooling off period,just out of curiocity how did you pay the deposit,if by card contact your card supplier and let them deal with audi.

Firstly, this advice only applies for credit cards, not debit cards. Secondly, your right to involve your credit card only applies if there's been a misrepresentation or a breach of contract. It doesn't sound like either would apply here. The original poster has simply changed his mind.

 

[Edward Harrison]

Cabby Chris - yes I paid on my card but like said it was a debit not credit so I'm not covered there.

Jdp1962 - I understand what you are saying however the car was in stock and not one I had personally ordered/specced up.

Furthermore the car is still in stock/for sale - 7 months down the line with more miles on than it had and a slightly lower price so it would appear that it is being used as a demo etc.

 

[jdp1962]

Cabby Chris - yes I paid on my card but like said it was a debit not credit so I'm not covered there.

Jdp1962 - I understand what you are saying however the car was in stock and not one I had personally ordered/specced up.

Furthermore the car is still in stock/for sale - 7 months down the line with more miles on than it had and a slightly lower price so it would appear that it is being used as a demo etc.

That may make a difference, but ultimately, it's down to what was agreed in the contract you signed. If there's no provision for a deposit to be refunded, it's up to the dealer to decide how much hassle it's prepared to endure over £1,000. Whether you get the money bsck or not, there's a lesson to be learned here. Fingers crossed you do get it back.

 

[mister.c.]

At the risk of being a tad blunt. We may have views/ have been told things verbally when paying a deposit.
But surely its very simple. You signed a piece of paper. The t&c's of that piece of paper then 'drives' whether the deposit should be returned.
You will have read the paperwork. You will have asked what you were signing up for before signing the paperwork. Now you do not have a meeting of minds then Audi should be able to clearly give you a reason, with reference to those t&c's, on the basis they will not return the money. You can then appraise whether that explanation is reasonable. And appraise the paperwork.

If after that there is nothing there that gives Audi the right not to return the money, then fight fight fight. Obviously you may want to fight even without the full paperwork backing you up. Good luck and let us know how you get on.

 

[cabbychris]

Have you had any consultation from a law person regarding your problem a lot of them do 1hr free consultations

 

[Bristle Hound]

@Edward Harrison - As some of you will remember, I cancelled two S3 saloon orders

The first one I cancelled, the car was built & in the Uk. The Dealer, Coventry Audi, refunded my £500 deposit without question

The 2nd one I cancelled ended up being from the supplying Dealer of my new S4. That S3 had been allocated a build week but was way off from being built. That Dealer moved my £1000 deposit over from the S3 to the S4 again without question

I can't see why the Dealer is being so uncooperative.

Try Audi Customer Services and see what they say. There's always social media too. Facebook, Twitter etc
You will get Audi's and the Dealers attention that way if you are getting no joy

 

[Edward Harrison]

@cabby Chris- I've had my solicitor send them a letter but they're being hard faced and have seemingly ignored it - the next step is for him to issue county court proceedings - I'm hoping in doing so they may pay up!

@Bristle Hound - I've no idea why they are being so unco-operative either, I have considered sending a letter to customer services but on the basis of being treated like this by the dealer I feel It will fall on deaf ears! Facebook and Twitter are a good idea however, I may resort to that! I did initially post the garage name on here in order to drum up "attention" but a mod changed it as that was against the rules which I respect as rules are rules.

 

[mister.c.]

Made any progress Ed?

 

[Simon91]

Hope you get your money back mate.

Just FYI, I've never paid the full deposit upfront and all dealers I've dealt with have been happy with that. Usually just stick £300 - £500 in as a commitment then the rest on collection. Might help in the future if you ran into any issues to mitigate any losses.

 

[sliced]

Hi mate did you try to speak to the head of business as opposed to sales? They are a lot more helpful to say the least

 

[gordie1973]

I'm in the same situation where I need to pull out of the car I placed a deposit on.

Tried to speak to the sales guy today but he was on leave, however just looking back at the order form I was sent, and there are no T&c's on it.... Seems he only scanned and emailed the "front" of the two sheets, if that's the case and they have never provided me with t's and c's can I use that as leverage?

Not sure about you Ed - is this somethinh for you to look at it?

I'm potentially going down the line of - "never mentioned to me that it was a non refundable deposit" line.

I'll let you know how I get on tomorrow - it may be easy enough and that could give you a bit of leverage, but then again they could also stand firm with me too......

The final hope (if necessary) I have is that they could retail the car for about £4k more than I've paid for it, such is the discount via the broker, and potentially they give you the deposit back after the sale (or part of it even is better than nothing) everyone is a winner......

We'll see.....