New Cars Don't Get Done Get Dom


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Transcript


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'I'm Dominic Littlewood

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'and I'm here to champion your consumer rights.

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'In fact, taking companies to task has become my goal in life.'

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Could you let her know I tried to call?

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She's probably quite keen to speak to me, actually.

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'Any problem, no matter how big or small,

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'I'll help you get the service you deserve.'

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Let us know if you don't get it sorted.

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'Whether you're bamboozled with technical jargon...'

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All they kept referring to was extraordinary circumstances,

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which is just pie in the sky, really.

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'..or chasing endlessly to get what you've paid for.'

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I have never had to make so many phone calls to a company before.

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'Whatever your issues, I'm here to help.

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On today's programme, brand-new cars -

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the second largest investment we're likely to make after a mortgage.

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I help a couple who are left far from experiencing

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the ride of their lives.

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When I took the car out, it felt as though it was struggling.

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It was starving of petrol. It just didn't want to go.

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Plus, the dangers of buying now then paying later.

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When I open this letter,

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it said I owed £930.20 and it was a final notice.

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And I couldn't believe it.

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And call centres.

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We are going to take you behind the scenes to show you

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what life is like on the other end of the phone.

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I'm tackling your consumer issues to make sure you don't get done.

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It's got to be a great feeling, buying a brand-spanking-new car.

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The paintwork will be all nice and bright and shiny.

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The interior will smell brand-new as well.

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And, of course, you can hear the purr of the engine

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for the very first time.

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But when you are spending thousands of pounds of your hard-earned cash

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on something like a car,

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I think you're entitled to be happy with what you bought.

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But, unfortunately, that isn't always the case.

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I've heard from Catherine and John, who bought a brand-new

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Vauxhall Corsa in 2013 and were unhappy with it from the start.

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It felt lumpy. It was juddering.

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And I just was not comfortable driving that car.

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The couple have made numerous complaints

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but haven't been able to reach a resolution.

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So, they've contacted me.

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'We just thought, "Well, that's end of the matter

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'"and we're stuck with a car that we feel isn't fit for purpose."'

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John and Catherine decided

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to treat themselves to a new car in April 2013,

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when Catherine's existing motor started to show signs of age.

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It was old and it was probably going to start costing money

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so I'd weighed everything up and decided to go for a new car.

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And top of their new car short list was the Vauxhall Corsa.

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I've always stuck with Vauxhalls.

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I found them to be very good, very reliable.

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I've never had a bad car yet.

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So, they headed to their nearest dealership,

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Bristol Street Motors in Newcastle

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and John took a Corsa out for a spin and it seemed to fit the bill.

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I just wanted a small car, economical, to get me from A to B.

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They signed on the dotted line

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and agreed to pay £9,200 for a one-litre Corsa S.

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Catherine only needs a car just to go to work and back.

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It just seemed the right type of car for her.

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Within weeks, their shiny, brand-new car was delivered.

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'When I sat in and drove it, it just didn't feel right.

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'I was never comfortable driving it from the first time I ever drove it.'

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It's very noisy, as you can hear. You've got a lot of road noise.

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It judders, hesitates, as you're changing from first to second gear.

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Unsure of the car's performance,

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Catherine asked partner John for a second opinion.

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When I took the car out, it felt as though it was struggling,

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it was starving of petrol, it just didn't want to go.

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They returned the car to the dealership

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for a mechanical inspection.

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So, we took it back to Bristol Street Motors who said that

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they changed the airflow sensor and they said the car was fine

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so I drove it away and it was still...

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The same problem was still recurring.

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After giving the dealer four attempts to fix the car,

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Catherine decided to get a second opinion.

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We took it to an independent mechanic

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and his senior technician took the car out.

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He's an ex-Vauxhall mechanic so he knows about Vauxhalls.

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And he road-tested the vehicle and he said it was really poor performance.

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He did a report which actually said the car was not fit for purpose.

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The report went on to say, in their opinion, the car had issues,

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drives poorly and has a worrying loss of power.

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They presented this report to Bristol Street Motors,

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who took the car back in for more diagnostic testing.

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Each time they came back, "We've fixed this, we've done this,"

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but the problem still remained.

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They basically said there wasn't a problem.

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I kept a very in-depth and detailed record

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of everything that had happened.

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'Because I really felt strongly that there was a problem with the car.'

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Over a period of four months,

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Catherine had another two reports done

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and was back and forwards to the dealership.

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She was given a courtesy car and an offer to resolve the dispute.

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'The courtesy car was exactly the same model and specification'

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and I said, "The courtesy car drives much better than mine."

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And he said, "Well, do you want that car?" And I said, "No,

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"it's got thousands of miles on it."

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Just shy of 10,000 miles, in fact.

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The offer of a second-hand car as a replacement wasn't exactly

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the result Catherine was expecting.

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She simply wanted her car put right or a brand-new replacement.

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'Frustrated. Annoyed.

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'It felt like we had to go out

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'and prove that there is something wrong with the car.'

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Catherine had sent through

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a blow-by-blow account of her complaint -

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dates, times and who she spoke to and what they said -

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and this really helps when I take on a case.

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Catherine and John are convinced there is a problem

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with their car, but the dealers have checked it five times now

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and said there's nothing wrong with it.

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So, here lies the problem - they've spent over £9,000 on a car

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which they're not happy with and they feel they're stuck with it.

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So let's see if I can get this case moving along.

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With over two million cars sold in 2013,

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Vauxhall are one of the market leaders,

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with around 12% of the cars sold being theirs -

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they're definitely big players.

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Now, although the car is built by Vauxhall, my first port of call

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is to go to Bristol Street Motors, the dealer that sold them the car.

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I've sent them an e-mail to see what they've got to say about everything.

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I tell them about the car's juddering and hesitation

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and ask them to give me their take on Catherine and John's concerns.

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Hopefully, I won't be left waiting too long for a response

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and I'm keen to see what they will say.

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Is this a problem which you have come across before with this model?

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We are all familiar with the frustration

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of dealing with call centres.

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Automated answering...

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'Press one for customer services.' HE SIGHS

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..and being passed from one department to another.

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For some of us, it's the bane of our life. What?

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'Press three for technical support.'

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I have to go through loads of options and menus

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until, after ten minutes or even more, I am directed to the adviser.

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I would say 70% of the time you get the run-around.

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The UK contact centre industry employs around 1.1 million people,

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that's nearly 4% of the employed population.

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There are around eight billion calls

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made to UK contact centres each year.

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But whenever I call, I just feel like I'm being read a script.

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And I'm not alone.

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I think people in call centres are told to only answer a certain

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set of questions, but occasionally you will get those people who go

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the extra bit to help you out that you need them to.

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One of the UK's largest call centres has opened its door to us.

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They handle calls for a variety of companies

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and should be able to help us understand how they work.

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As you can see on the screen, we've got the opening salutation here,

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which says, "Good afternoon. Thank you for calling

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"the Don't Get Done Get Dom consumer helpline.

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"You're through to..." It will take the name of the agent.

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So, here, it says, "David." Then, "How may I help you today?"

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And then we've got a list of different call types.

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So we have "make a complaint"

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and then it goes to this bit of scripting here.

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We would say, "If you have had a bad experience with a company

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"and you think you're not alone, Dom may be able to help.

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"If you'd like to get in touch with Dominic Littlewood, I can

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"take a few details from you now or provide you with our e-mail address."

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Crikey. It's like having my very own PA.

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'Press two for complaints.'

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We phone call centres for many reasons

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but one of the main ones is to complain,

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meaning sometimes the agent ends up getting an earful.

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I'll tell you what.

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Spare a thought for the person on the other end of the phone.

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I mean, it's not the easiest job in the world.

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And bear in mind they can probably give you a few tips

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on how to get what you want.

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David Freedman, managing director of Confero,

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is the man in the know when it comes to call centres.

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Don't pick up the phone and shout.

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No-one wants to get into a shouting match.

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Talk, explain your whole circumstance.

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Let the agent guide you through the best course of action.

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And just... If you treat them as a friend,

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they are going to have that same level of respect.

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If you shout and scream at them, they are going to immediately

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get their back up and you're treated as an enemy, not a friend.

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Remember, stay calm.

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And if that doesn't work, what other options do you have?

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There are times where every consumer feels like they're

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just not getting the answer.

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They're not getting what they're hoping they were going to

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when the came through on the call, which is effectively a resolution.

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There are always supervisors and managers that are there

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and available to help.

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Right, you've spoken to the rep, you've spoken to the supervisor

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and you're still not happy.

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If you need to escalate your complaint and you've reached

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the highest level, if you like, on the phone, do ask for an e-mail

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address or a written address for the head office of that business.

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You can ask for the head of customer services, for example,

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and they may or may not have that information available or be

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able to give it, however, write to the head of customer

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services at the address given and that claim will always be escalated.

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So, stay calm, explain your case clearly,

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if you're not happy with the outcome,

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escalate your call to a superior

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and, most importantly, remember, they are simply trying to help you.

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Good advice, and worth remembering the next time that you're having

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a call centre crisis.

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No, Dominic. No, not Roderick. Dominic. D-O-M-I-N-I-C.

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Catherine and John are now the owners of a Vauxhall Corsa

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but they're not happy with the way it drives.

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It's hesitant, it judders.

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It feels a bit like you're driving with kangaroo petrol

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because it is jerking all the time.

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The issue here is Catherine wants to reject her car

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but has been refused because the Vauxhall mechanics

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are saying there is nothing wrong with it.

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So, I e-mailed Bristol Street Motors a few days ago

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and their commercial director, a guy called David Crane,

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has got back to me already. Now, he says,

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"Our honest opinion is that the vehicle is operating normally.

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"There is no doubt that Mrs Gibson is unhappy with

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"the performance of the vehicle and our assurance that it is not

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"displaying a fault are not likely to change.

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"We can offer to replace Mrs Gibson's car, which is

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"a white one-litre Corsa S, with another white one-litre Corsa S.

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"For clarity, the replacement car will have been

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"registered in the September..." So, a few months old.

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"..and will have been used as a courtesy car in our accident

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"repair centre and it's got less than 1,000 miles on it."

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Now, whilst I appreciate that the offer of exchanging the car

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like-for-like is quite a generous one,

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you have got to bear in mind that Catherine won't be getting

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a brand-spanking-new car which she did pay for

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and she also won't be getting the lifetime warranty because

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the replacement one is technically classed as a second-hand one.

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We've also taken her complaint to Vauxhall headquarters themselves.

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After all, Catherine did try to reject the car through them as well.

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They have also got back to me

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and have arranged to pick her car up for one lot of final tests.

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It sounds positive.

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But Bristol Street Motors has so far already run a total of

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five diagnostics and no fault has been found

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and, on top of that, the couple have had three independent reports

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done which all state that the car doesn't drive as it should.

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"When changing from first to second gear and from second to third,

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"there was a slight hesitation/judder which was evident." And it agreed

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with the independent mechanic's report that we'd already had.

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"It had a worrying loss of power

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"and the car was not fit for purpose."

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When we took the report to Bristol Street they still said there was

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no problem with the car and we said it was an ex-Vauxhall mechanic

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had driven the car and he said that his mechanics live

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and breathe Vauxhall and basically implied that this mechanic

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didn't know what he was talking about.

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OK. We've got numerous mechanics saying different things.

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This is mysterious.

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'With the Corsa at head office undergoing tests, I think

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'it's best I just get on the blower.

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'I give Dennis Chick,

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'the communications director at Vauxhall HQ,

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'a call to talk through the case.'

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RINGING

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-Oh, hi, is that Dennis?

-'Hi, Dom, it's Dennis here. Hi, how are you?'

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I'm fine, thanks.

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What can you tell me about the Catherine Gibson case so far?

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'Well, I'm aware of the issues she's had and

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'I'm aware of the independent tests she's had.

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'It's an interesting little case, this, I think.

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'Let's get it right, do it step-by-step.

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'I'm open-minded about this. I want to drive the car myself.

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'I want to feel it for myself. I'll come to you after tomorrow.

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'I'll let you know how I feel and then we'll take it from there, Dom.

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-'OK?'

-Yeah, that's perfect. Can I just ask -

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is this a problem which you've come across before with this model?

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'No, it isn't. That's the issue. It isn't.

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'You know, it's a very robust small car.

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'It's quite a heavy car for the little, tiny engine

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'and you have to drive it with a certain technique.

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'Well, not a particular technique but you have to drive it

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'in consideration of having a very small engine.

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'So it may feel underpowered to some people, but that's what it is.

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'If you want more power, you go up to 1.2 or 1.4.

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'I want to see whether that is what maybe she is feeling and

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'give you my opinion of that

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'and then, as I say, we should go from there.

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'I want to see if there is a hesitation

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'because I will notice it if there is one.'

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I'd love you to have a drive.

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You're obviously the director up there, you're the main man.

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Have a drive and give us your opinion. Let us know.

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-Nice talking to you again, Dennis.

-'Thank you. Cheers, Dom.'

-Bye-bye.

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I like the way that call went.

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He's going to drive the customer's car himself. That's the director.

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I'm going to give him the whole weekend to do that

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then call back next week and see what he's got to say

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and hopefully we'll be able to sort this out for Catherine once

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and for all. Nothing more we can do at this point.

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'Apart from investigate another area of Catherine's case.'

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Now, she tried to reject her car three times to the dealer,

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then the manufacturer and then her finance company.

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All three rejected her rejection.

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So, what exactly are your rights if you're not happy with your new car?

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Motor Codes is a Government-backed self-regulatory body

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for the motor industry,

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which operates a Trading Standards-approved

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code of practice across all things car-related.

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If you are unhappy with your vehicle, you've got your legal rights

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in addition to the warranty protection that the manufacturers

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give you for the new-car warranty.

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The Sale Of Goods Act states that goods should be fit for purpose

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and/or of satisfactory quality.

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There is no automatic entitlement to a refund.

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A common misconception from the high street

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is that you will get a cooling-off period automatically

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when you buy goods, which isn't actually the case.

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So, when you buy a new vehicle, you are only entitled to

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exercise your legal rights and look at rejection if there is breach of

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contract and that's if it is not fit for purpose or satisfactory quality.

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So, if you've just had a change of heart or didn't like the colour

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then, unfortunately, there's no obligation.

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So make sure you know what you're buying

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and everything's agreed upfront before you enter into the sale.

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In Catherine's case,

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she doesn't believe her Corsa is of a satisfactory quality or

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fit for purpose but, as we know, Vauxhall don't agree.

0:16:260:16:30

If you're not happy with the vehicle you've purchased then

0:16:300:16:33

always let the seller know as soon as possible that you're unhappy.

0:16:330:16:36

It's usually considered reasonable to give at least two or three

0:16:360:16:39

opportunities to try and fix the vehicle before looking at other

0:16:390:16:41

options such as exchanging it or looking for a refund on the goods.

0:16:410:16:45

More often than not, it will be quicker to try and repair

0:16:450:16:47

a vehicle than to go down a more formal channel to reject them.

0:16:470:16:51

Catherine has given them five chances to repair the car

0:16:510:16:53

and has three independent reports which seems to echo

0:16:530:16:56

the couple's concerns about the way the car drives.

0:16:560:17:00

A seller could refuse rejection of a vehicle

0:17:000:17:02

if they can offer a remedy. So it might be someone is looking

0:17:020:17:05

to have a refund but the vehicle could be repaired under the warranty

0:17:050:17:08

but if they are rejecting their request

0:17:080:17:10

then they need to be clear about why that is

0:17:100:17:13

and what remedies they are going to put in place instead.

0:17:130:17:15

If negotiations break down, then put everything in writing so there is

0:17:150:17:19

always a paper trail of anything that has been agreed or discussed.

0:17:190:17:23

As we know, Bristol Street Motors have been clear

0:17:230:17:25

that, in their opinion, there is nothing wrong with the car,

0:17:250:17:28

and they've offered a solution. But, as Catherine isn't happy

0:17:280:17:31

with their offers, they've reached a stalemate.

0:17:310:17:35

More often than not, you should be able to enter into discussions

0:17:350:17:37

and negotiates towards a resolution.

0:17:370:17:39

If there is a difference in opinion about what the fault is or

0:17:390:17:42

if there is a fault on the vehicle, then a second opinion or

0:17:420:17:45

an expert report should be sufficient for you to demonstrate your case.

0:17:450:17:49

We are able to effectively manage expectations

0:17:490:17:51

and make sure that both parties can work towards a middle ground.

0:17:510:17:54

More often than not, a consumer might have higher expectations than

0:17:540:17:57

what they are entitled to but, likewise, it might be that

0:17:570:18:00

the manufacturer or retailer isn't offering a fair resolution.

0:18:000:18:03

We can actually enforce an outcome that we think is fair to

0:18:030:18:06

resolve a dispute, where necessary.

0:18:060:18:08

Catherine has done everything by the book

0:18:080:18:10

but she's still got a car she's not happy with.

0:18:100:18:13

But my investigation seems to be picking up speed.

0:18:130:18:16

Vauxhall's head office in Luton has got back to me

0:18:160:18:19

'after the head honcho took the car out for a test drive

0:18:190:18:22

'and their mechanics gave it a sixth going over.'

0:18:220:18:25

I've had an e-mail from Dennis at Vauxhall and he says, "The car

0:18:250:18:29

"has no technical faults and drives like any other one-litre Corsa.

0:18:290:18:34

"I have driven the car personally..." Pleased about that.

0:18:340:18:37

"..and find that it drives well

0:18:370:18:39

"and certainly does not exhibit any hesitation or judder.

0:18:390:18:43

"It did, however, serve to remind me how different a three-cylinder car

0:18:430:18:46

"feels to a four-cylinder in terms of its sound and character."

0:18:460:18:52

Bingo.

0:18:520:18:53

So, if there is categorically no technical fault then this

0:18:540:18:58

whole case could come down to the car just being less powerful

0:18:580:19:01

than Catherine was expecting

0:19:010:19:03

and could explain some of the car's characteristics she described to me.

0:19:030:19:07

In order to discover more about the engine type they've bought,

0:19:070:19:10

I've asked them to do a bit of research

0:19:100:19:12

and see what online reviews say about their model.

0:19:120:19:16

We've done some more research on the Corsa ecoFLEX S one-litre

0:19:160:19:20

and What Car? says that it's best avoided.

0:19:200:19:24

"You might be tempted by the low price but the weedy one-litre engine

0:19:240:19:27

"will make you wish

0:19:270:19:28

"you'd forked out for a bigger engine in a higher trim."

0:19:280:19:31

I found another review that says, "The one-litre petrol engine

0:19:310:19:34

"is noisy and painfully slow."

0:19:340:19:36

If I'd read this before I bought the car, I wouldn't have bought the car.

0:19:360:19:40

After reading the reports,

0:19:400:19:42

it looks like obviously Vauxhall has put a one-litre engine

0:19:420:19:45

into a Corsa what's too small for the type of car that it is.

0:19:450:19:49

I was aware that the car was a one-litre.

0:19:490:19:51

I knew that was the car I was buying. I had a one-litre car for years.

0:19:510:19:55

A little Micra, a little run-around and it was great.

0:19:550:19:58

I never had any problems with it at all.

0:19:580:20:00

After reading the reviews, it's really disappointing to

0:20:000:20:03

read that the car is actually best avoided.

0:20:030:20:07

We didn't do any research, sadly, before we bought the car.

0:20:070:20:11

We wish we had, in hindsight.

0:20:110:20:13

If I buy another car, I will do research on the internet.

0:20:130:20:17

It's really easy just to find out. Just put a few words in,

0:20:170:20:20

you can see other people's reviews and you can find out

0:20:200:20:23

if you're buying a good or bad car.

0:20:230:20:26

Now, these reviews come from a respected car magazine

0:20:260:20:29

and there is an interesting point here because if you're going to

0:20:290:20:32

shell out thousands of pounds on a new car,

0:20:320:20:35

it's important to know exactly what you're buying and remember

0:20:350:20:38

what Motor Codes said about doing your research before you buy.

0:20:380:20:42

After looking at the reviews on the Corsa then, in retrospect,

0:20:430:20:48

we would have gone to the dealership

0:20:480:20:49

and asked more questions for why it's got such a bad review

0:20:490:20:53

and what size engine or different specs of the car, so we'd have been

0:20:530:20:57

made more aware of the situation that we'd put ourselves in.

0:20:570:21:01

How many of you actually do do your homework

0:21:010:21:03

before splashing out on a set of wheels?

0:21:030:21:06

There are some key questions you should ask before buying a car.

0:21:060:21:09

Whether it's a three or a four-cylinder,

0:21:090:21:11

a one-litre engine or bigger.

0:21:110:21:13

I've come to meet Emma Butcher to find out more.

0:21:130:21:16

-Hi, Emma.

-Hi, Dom.

-'Emma works for What Car? Magazine

0:21:170:21:21

'and test drives hundreds of different cars every year

0:21:210:21:24

'and I'm keen to find out

0:21:240:21:25

'what she thinks of John and Catherine's situation.'

0:21:250:21:28

She felt the car was faulty.

0:21:290:21:31

It's been checked and proved that it's not.

0:21:310:21:34

What do you think might have happened there?

0:21:340:21:36

Well, from what you tell me, it sounds like she may not have

0:21:360:21:39

bought the right engine for what she actually needs.

0:21:390:21:42

How much difference are we talking about, as far

0:21:420:21:44

as a driver is concerned, between a three and a four-cylinder car,

0:21:440:21:47

let's sat, a one-litre and a 1.2?

0:21:470:21:49

Well, three-cylinder engines can have a lot more power in them

0:21:490:21:52

these days but you will probably notice slightly less power

0:21:520:21:55

than in a four-cylinder engine.

0:21:550:21:57

You know, you need to apply more power in order to get more

0:21:570:21:59

-power out of the engine.

-You've got to drive them harder, haven't you?

0:21:590:22:02

Absolutely, yeah.

0:22:020:22:03

So it clearly does make a difference to the way the car drives

0:22:030:22:06

and is the sort of thing that you should be looking for

0:22:060:22:09

when you test drive a car.

0:22:090:22:10

Now, if somebody was about to buy a new car, what would you say to them?

0:22:100:22:14

-Is a test drive essential?

-A test drive is absolutely essential.

0:22:140:22:18

Once you've decided exactly what sort of car you want and you've

0:22:180:22:22

narrowed down your choices, you do need to go to the showroom and ask

0:22:220:22:25

the dealer for a car that most closely matches the car that you

0:22:250:22:29

are interested in, and get out on the road and give it a good old test.

0:22:290:22:33

Our advice is to get the car out on the road

0:22:330:22:35

for as long as you possibly can.

0:22:350:22:37

So don't be fobbed off with a quick ten-minute blast around the block.

0:22:370:22:40

You really need to get a good feel for the car

0:22:400:22:43

and that means spending some decent time in it.

0:22:430:22:46

So we would say at least half an hour, if not longer.

0:22:460:22:49

Now, what important points should people bear in mind

0:22:490:22:51

if they're going to test drive a car?

0:22:510:22:53

Well, the first thing you need to do is make sure that you're testing

0:22:530:22:56

the car that you're actually going to buy.

0:22:560:22:59

Now, you might not be able to get the exact match because, obviously,

0:22:590:23:04

dealers can't stock every single car in their showroom.

0:23:040:23:08

However, the thing that you really need to do is to make sure

0:23:080:23:12

that you get the right engine. That's the absolutely crucial point

0:23:120:23:16

because that is going to have the biggest effect on your enjoyment of

0:23:160:23:19

the car and whether it can actually cope with your day-to-day needs.

0:23:190:23:22

So make sure that you ask for the engine that you want.

0:23:220:23:26

Emma stresses just how important doing your research is

0:23:260:23:29

and how crucial making sure the car you test drive

0:23:290:23:32

is as similar as possible to the one you end up buying.

0:23:320:23:35

With this in mind, I give Catherine a quick call to find out

0:23:350:23:38

from her exactly what specification of car John test drove.

0:23:380:23:42

RINGING

0:23:430:23:45

-Catherine, hi. It's Dominic Littlewood from the BBC.

-'Hi there.'

0:23:470:23:50

Catherine, I've just been trying to sort something out with your car.

0:23:500:23:54

-'Yeah.'

-There's a couple of things I need to check up on.

0:23:540:23:57

When you went to buy the car,

0:23:570:23:59

did you have a test drive in a like-for-like model?

0:23:590:24:02

'That's what we don't know, Dominic.

0:24:020:24:05

'We went out in a car, a Corsa,

0:24:050:24:07

-'but we've got no proof that it was the same car.'

-Right.

0:24:070:24:11

'We didn't actually look at the time.

0:24:110:24:13

'We didn't actually make sure that it was a like-for-like.

0:24:130:24:17

'John thinks that it possibly was not like-for-like.'

0:24:170:24:20

OK, so leave it with me

0:24:200:24:22

and I shall see what I can do for you and give you a call back.

0:24:220:24:24

-'Lovely. Thanks, Dom.'

-Thanks, Catherine.

-'Thanks, bye.'

0:24:240:24:29

'It's not good that the couple didn't pay attention to what car

0:24:290:24:32

'they actually test drove on the day.

0:24:320:24:34

'John may think it was a bigger engine but what proof does he have?'

0:24:340:24:39

John, I just had a word with Catherine about the car.

0:24:390:24:41

Do you know what engine size that was?

0:24:410:24:45

'Well, we are presuming it was the same model

0:24:450:24:51

'but obviously we can't prove that. We can't be sure about that.

0:24:510:24:54

'We didn't go very far.

0:24:540:24:56

'We just went down the street and up a bit of a dual carriageway.

0:24:560:24:59

'It was only probably two miles, that's all we did in it. That's it.'

0:24:590:25:04

Right.

0:25:040:25:05

'The actual car what we test drove, cos I test drove,

0:25:050:25:09

'it didn't drive anything like what Catherine's got at the minute.

0:25:090:25:13

'You know, the hill what leads up to Bristol Street Motors,

0:25:130:25:19

'it's a fairly steep hill

0:25:190:25:21

'and Catherine's car struggles to get up it.

0:25:210:25:23

-'Well, this one didn't seem to struggle at all.'

-Right, OK.

0:25:230:25:28

-Nice talking to you, John.

-'OK. Thanks a lot. Cheers. Bye.'

0:25:280:25:34

Neither John or Catherine are sure about the spec of car

0:25:340:25:37

he test drove, but John seems to think it felt very different

0:25:370:25:40

to what they ended up buying.

0:25:400:25:42

It really doesn't help that Catherine didn't do

0:25:420:25:44

the original test drive for a car that was meant for her,

0:25:440:25:47

and John only took it out for a couple of miles.

0:25:470:25:50

To get some clarity,

0:25:500:25:52

'it's time I started asking the question elsewhere.'

0:25:520:25:55

Now, as Vauxhall have shown, there is

0:25:550:25:57

no mechanical fault with this car.

0:25:570:25:59

This complaint has reverted back to Bristol Street Motors.

0:25:590:26:03

So, I e-mailed David Crane to get confirmation on the exact

0:26:030:26:06

specification of the Corsa John drove.

0:26:060:26:09

Buy now and pay later.

0:26:140:26:16

It's a term we've all heard of a million times

0:26:160:26:19

but an awful lot can happen in 6, 12 or 24 months

0:26:190:26:23

and finances can be pretty awkward to keep track of.

0:26:230:26:26

Meet Chris and fiancee Nadia.

0:26:260:26:29

Chris is a mechanic in the Army who spends a lot of time away

0:26:290:26:32

and likes to make full use of his time at home.

0:26:320:26:34

When I go home, I want to keep my fitness up.

0:26:360:26:39

So, in 2012, when Chris returned from a tour of Afghanistan,

0:26:390:26:43

he decided to treat himself to some new gym equipment.

0:26:430:26:47

So, I just felt, you know, I'll go in and I'll get myself a weight bench

0:26:470:26:51

just so I can keep ticking over when I go home.

0:26:510:26:54

Chris went down to his local branch of Argos.

0:26:540:26:57

I've previously used Argos many a time to buy different

0:26:570:27:01

products from there.

0:27:010:27:02

Always have a look there when you're shopping round or whatever.

0:27:020:27:06

I went in there to buy it and it was a good price, £130,

0:27:060:27:10

with different accessories.

0:27:100:27:12

But rather than pay cash, Chris was offered an Argos card which allowed

0:27:120:27:16

him to buy now and pay later with a period of interest-free credit.

0:27:160:27:20

I was offered six months and I only wanted to pay it over three

0:27:200:27:23

but I still had...

0:27:230:27:25

So it was three payments over six months is what I chose to do.

0:27:250:27:28

The timing of the offer was perfect, as it was an expensive time

0:27:280:27:32

for Chris and Nadia.

0:27:320:27:34

Next month, I was due to get married so, you know,

0:27:340:27:37

paying it off over a couple of months seemed the logical thing to do.

0:27:370:27:40

I arranged for a direct debit

0:27:400:27:42

to be taken out at the start of every month.

0:27:420:27:44

I get paid at the end of every month

0:27:440:27:46

there's no way money couldn't be there.

0:27:460:27:49

I was told if it wasn't paid by six months, I'd be informed

0:27:490:27:52

and charged interest.

0:27:520:27:53

And Chris certainly didn't think he'd need to worry about that.

0:27:530:27:57

A couple of days later, the weight bench arrived.

0:27:570:28:00

I was very happy with it. Got plenty of use out of it.

0:28:000:28:02

When I go home now, to this day, I still use it.

0:28:020:28:06

By spreading the cost of his weight bench,

0:28:060:28:08

Chris had opted to pay a shade over £43 per month for three months.

0:28:080:28:14

'I expected the first payment to come out in March 2012.'

0:28:140:28:17

'It never came out until April,'

0:28:170:28:19

which I didn't mind. I had six months.

0:28:190:28:22

I didn't think anything of it at the time.

0:28:230:28:26

In fact, the couple forgot all about their interest-free deal.

0:28:260:28:30

'The next time I thought about the Argos finance package was

0:28:300:28:34

'in about...I think it was July'

0:28:340:28:36

and Chris's mum had mentioned it

0:28:360:28:38

and I just thought it should have been paid off.

0:28:380:28:41

So, Nadia popped into her local bank branch to check.

0:28:420:28:45

When I asked the bank teller,

0:28:470:28:48

she said that the last direct debit had been taken out over a month

0:28:480:28:52

ago so I presumed all the payments had been paid

0:28:520:28:55

and that we had none left.

0:28:550:28:57

Because of that, I decided to cancel the direct debit.

0:28:570:29:01

And that was that. Everything paid off.

0:29:010:29:04

Around this time, the couple had relocated from North Wales to

0:29:040:29:07

Army accommodation in Yorkshire.

0:29:070:29:09

With my job, I'm supposed to move every two to three years,

0:29:090:29:13

give or take what posting you're on.

0:29:130:29:15

As moving is such a regular occurrence, Chris tends to

0:29:150:29:18

use his parents' address for much of his correspondence.

0:29:180:29:22

The bank and the finances, they always stay to one address.

0:29:230:29:25

It saves getting messed about and important letters getting lost.

0:29:250:29:29

A few months after the move to Yorkshire,

0:29:290:29:32

Chris was sent away again.

0:29:320:29:33

'I went away on tour in October.

0:29:350:29:38

'I was away for about four months.'

0:29:380:29:40

In that meantime, Nadia had been staying at home with my parents.

0:29:400:29:44

But when Chris came home, the pair made a surprising discovery.

0:29:440:29:49

'We went up to check on the house in Yorkshire

0:29:490:29:51

'to check everything was in order.

0:29:510:29:53

'When I opened this letter,

0:29:530:29:54

'it said I owed £930.20 and it was a final notice.

0:29:540:29:59

'I couldn't believe it, you know. I started looking through the post

0:29:590:30:02

'to see if there was an initial notice.'

0:30:020:30:04

There wasn't. It was just a final notice.

0:30:040:30:05

When I phoned up the debt collection agency I was saying,

0:30:050:30:08

"Look, you've made a mistake here.

0:30:080:30:10

"Someone's got my card and they've done fraud against me.

0:30:100:30:13

"Something's gone wrong like this." Then, when the penny dropped,

0:30:130:30:16

they actually said it was to do with a weight bench.

0:30:160:30:19

I just thought, "No, it couldn't be. How could it be that?"

0:30:190:30:23

Because it was all paid for. It was done.

0:30:230:30:28

Chris contacted Argos, who told him the third payment of £43

0:30:280:30:32

hadn't been collected because they had cancelled their direct debit.

0:30:320:30:36

They said interest had accrued on the unpaid amount.

0:30:360:30:38

But hang on a minute.

0:30:380:30:40

What I don't understand is, where did 930 come from?

0:30:400:30:43

Exactly. Chris needed to get to the bottom of what this amount

0:30:450:30:49

was in relation to, and why the first they'd known about it was

0:30:490:30:52

when they got a letter from debt collectors.

0:30:520:30:54

'Argos said to me they'd sent me letters.'

0:30:540:30:56

I said, "Well, we've received just one."

0:30:560:30:59

'She then went on to say, "Well, no,

0:30:590:31:01

'"we've sent numerous letters and they've gone to your old address.

0:31:010:31:04

'"The new tenants have sent them back."

0:31:040:31:06

'I then started laughing.'

0:31:060:31:08

I said, "Well, that's funny, isn't it? My parents live there.

0:31:080:31:10

"My wife has been staying with them and she has permission to open

0:31:100:31:13

"all my letters and my parents would not send letters back to you.

0:31:130:31:16

'"So, you know, where are these letters?"'

0:31:160:31:19

Argos' response was that they couldn't show me the letters

0:31:190:31:22

they'd sent that had been returned to them, cos they destroyed them.

0:31:220:31:26

The company maintained that Chris owed £930.

0:31:260:31:30

But whilst the couple were trying to resolve this worrying situation,

0:31:320:31:36

Chris's R&R had come to an end and he was back on tour.

0:31:360:31:39

'My husband was there and I was trying to sort it all out.'

0:31:410:31:44

Yet, despite Nadia's best efforts,

0:31:450:31:47

when Chris returned two months later,

0:31:470:31:49

things still weren't resolved.

0:31:490:31:51

I've arrived home now, in the middle of April, still no answer.

0:31:520:31:56

Nadia had tried to follow it up but... I think we must have sent them

0:31:560:31:59

three or four letters and every time we were sincere with what

0:31:590:32:02

we were saying, or we were very bothered about what was going on.

0:32:020:32:06

Whichever way you look at it, this was a strange situation.

0:32:060:32:09

So the couple contacted me and I got on to Argos.

0:32:090:32:13

They investigated and things started to become clearer.

0:32:130:32:16

It turned out Chris previously had another Argos card

0:32:160:32:20

and there were two items on there, including a £505.94 laptop

0:32:200:32:25

that hadn't been paid off within the interest-free period.

0:32:250:32:29

As a result, these outstanding balances were subject to

0:32:290:32:32

a hefty 29.9% APR.

0:32:320:32:35

Now, that's a word of warning for any consumer taking

0:32:360:32:39

advantage of this type of offer.

0:32:390:32:41

Buy now, pay later is often free for the first year or a set

0:32:430:32:47

period of time, which means that you won't have to pay anything.

0:32:470:32:50

After that time, you will be charged interest

0:32:500:32:52

and that can be up to 30%, which really does add up.

0:32:520:32:56

But when it comes to avoiding these charges, the onus is on us consumers

0:32:560:33:00

to make sure we pay off our balance whilst the interest is free.

0:33:000:33:05

In a perfect world, a company would tell us

0:33:050:33:06

when a deadline is approaching. Once you've signed the contract,

0:33:060:33:09

they have no responsibility to tell you.

0:33:090:33:12

It's really up to you to make the payments.

0:33:120:33:14

Of course, Argos say they wrote to Chris

0:33:140:33:16

but he claims he never received the letters.

0:33:160:33:19

He does now acknowledge the laptop was not fully paid off but he

0:33:190:33:22

didn't realise this at the time, and because it was his responsibility

0:33:220:33:26

to check, Argos didn't have to contact him to tell him.

0:33:260:33:29

There is some good news, though.

0:33:330:33:35

Since I contacted them, Argos have written to Chris and Nadia.

0:33:350:33:39

"As a gesture of goodwill for the customer on this occasion,

0:33:390:33:41

"we have refunded the fees applied to the account before it was

0:33:410:33:44

"referred to our administrators in January 2013.

0:33:440:33:48

"However, the remaining balance of the account does need to be cleared."

0:33:480:33:53

As a goodwill gesture, Argos has wiped

0:33:530:33:55

a total of £120 charges from the account and they told us

0:33:550:33:59

customers are sent a paper statement of their account and

0:33:590:34:02

outstanding balances every month and that 19 letters were sent to Chris.

0:34:020:34:08

When mail is returned to them,

0:34:080:34:09

they check their records to ensure the customer's address is the same.

0:34:090:34:13

If it is, as it was in this case,

0:34:130:34:15

they have no reason to keep the letters.

0:34:150:34:18

If you want to take advantage of a buy now, pay later deal,

0:34:180:34:21

there are some important things to remember.

0:34:210:34:23

The first thing you should do is set up a reminder for the payments

0:34:230:34:26

or, better still, set up a direct debit.

0:34:260:34:28

Let's hope Chris and Nadia will be heeding that advice in the future.

0:34:280:34:32

We'll go to Argos again, we just won't get an Argos card.

0:34:320:34:35

It's a hard lesson for this young couple

0:34:380:34:40

but it's a lesson for all of us.

0:34:400:34:42

Keep a handle on what you owe and pay your bills on time.

0:34:420:34:45

I've been helping John and Catherine

0:34:510:34:53

get to the bottom of what was wrong with their juddering Corsa.

0:34:530:34:56

When we took the reports to Bristol Street,

0:34:560:34:58

they still said there was no problem with the car

0:34:580:35:01

and we said it was an ex-Vauxhall mechanic had driven the car

0:35:010:35:04

and he said that his mechanics live and breathe Vauxhall and basically

0:35:040:35:10

implied that this mechanic didn't know what he was talking about.

0:35:100:35:13

But Vauxhall have looked at the car for the sixth time and I'm also

0:35:130:35:17

now of the thinking that there's nothing wrong with it, but that

0:35:170:35:20

the couple purchased an engine size that didn't meet their expectations.

0:35:200:35:25

After reading the reports,

0:35:250:35:26

it looks like obviously Vauxhall has put a one-litre engine

0:35:260:35:29

into a Corsa what's too small for the type of car that it is.

0:35:290:35:34

Catherine and John didn't do any research into this model

0:35:340:35:37

prior to buying it, and also only took it out for a very short test

0:35:370:35:41

drive and John remembers the car he originally test drove felt

0:35:410:35:45

more powerful than Catherine's present Corsa,

0:35:450:35:48

but the couple cannot give me the exact spec of the car.

0:35:480:35:51

It's a bit of a mystery.

0:35:510:35:52

To get confirmation, I e-mailed Bristol Street Motors to find out

0:35:590:36:02

what car John did take out and David Crane got back to me.

0:36:020:36:07

He confirms that John would have test driven the same car

0:36:070:36:09

as Catherine ended up buying

0:36:090:36:12

and, like Vauxhall, Bristol Street Motors maintain there is nothing

0:36:120:36:15

mechanically wrong with it and that the problem simply lies with

0:36:150:36:19

the fact that the couple just aren't happy with the engine.

0:36:190:36:21

But despite this, they are willing to put another

0:36:210:36:24

offer on the table. Time to call David.

0:36:240:36:27

Right, let's chase this case up and see what I can sort out.

0:36:300:36:33

BEEPING

0:36:350:36:36

'A new offer does sound promising so let's see what he's got to say.

0:36:360:36:40

'And I've got my fingers crossed.'

0:36:400:36:43

David, hi, it's Dominic Littlewood from the BBC. Good afternoon.

0:36:430:36:46

I just wondered if you can tell me what it is you're going to be

0:36:460:36:49

proposing now for Catherine as a resolve.

0:36:490:36:53

'David and I have a good chat about the case and whilst he maintains

0:36:530:36:56

'there's nothing wrong with the car, and they did test drive

0:36:560:36:59

'the one-litre three-cylinder model,

0:36:590:37:01

'he has got another offer for the couple.'

0:37:010:37:04

OK, so are we happy to end it on that then, David?

0:37:040:37:07

We'll speak to you, tie up the loose ends.

0:37:070:37:09

Thanks very much for your help. Appreciate it. Bye-bye.

0:37:090:37:12

I think I've got as far as I can with this investigation

0:37:150:37:18

so it's time to head up north.

0:37:180:37:21

I'm in Newcastle to meet Catherine and John because I've got

0:37:210:37:23

some news for them which I don't think they're expecting.

0:37:230:37:26

I think rain is due, it's cold, it's miserable, but I love Geordies

0:37:260:37:30

because my mum was one.

0:37:300:37:31

-Catherine.

-Hi. Hi, Dom. Thanks for coming. Nice to meet you.

0:37:370:37:40

Come in.

0:37:400:37:41

What I noticed, Catherine, is when you contacted me,

0:37:430:37:47

you e-mailed through a really, really thorough,

0:37:470:37:51

comprehensive list of dates, times, who you spoke to,

0:37:510:37:55

what their response was, etc, etc, etc.

0:37:550:37:58

It was absolutely spot-on

0:37:580:38:01

and I really, really admire people who do that.

0:38:010:38:04

Cos as soon as you get a problem, no matter what it is,

0:38:040:38:07

they're the things which can help make or break a case.

0:38:070:38:09

I noticed, coming up the drive, there is an Astra there,

0:38:090:38:11

which must be yours, John, and obviously you own a Corsa,

0:38:110:38:14

-Catherine, so fair to say you are probably Vauxhall fans, yeah?

-Yeah.

0:38:140:38:17

Always been happy with them.

0:38:170:38:19

-But you're not a happy chappie at the moment, are you?

-No.

-Why not?

0:38:190:38:22

-What do you think is wrong with this car?

-It judders,

0:38:220:38:24

it hesitates when you change gear

0:38:240:38:27

and when you pull away from the roundabout

0:38:270:38:29

there's just not the power.

0:38:290:38:30

Was it OK for a while and then you thought it had a problem or

0:38:300:38:32

were you disappointed from the start?

0:38:320:38:34

Disappointed from the start, as soon as I drove it.

0:38:340:38:37

In an ideal world, what would you like?

0:38:370:38:40

Ideally, I'd like to reject the car, to take it back.

0:38:400:38:43

The bad news is, I spoke to various different people,

0:38:430:38:46

people you bought the car from, Vauxhall,

0:38:460:38:47

they're not going to give you money back for the car.

0:38:470:38:50

I think probably the best thing we can do now is

0:38:500:38:52

I'd like to go out with you, Catherine,

0:38:520:38:54

and just have a little drive in the car just to get a feel of what

0:38:540:38:58

you think the problems are and see

0:38:580:39:00

if we can sort of point the finger in any direction.

0:39:000:39:03

-Are you happy to do that?

-Yeah.

-Brilliant.

0:39:030:39:06

'Catherine's car has been at Vauxhall's head office in Luton.

0:39:060:39:10

'We've arranged for it to be delivered back to Catherine's house.

0:39:100:39:13

'But there is little surprise for her.'

0:39:130:39:15

That's not my car.

0:39:150:39:16

-Is that not your old car then?

-No, that's not my car.

-Right.

0:39:160:39:21

OK. Because that is a 1.2 SXI, 16 valve.

0:39:210:39:25

That's got 85 PS compared to your old 65 one.

0:39:250:39:29

SHE WHISTLES

0:39:290:39:31

Well, shall we just keep this?

0:39:310:39:34

Well, it's 13 and a half grand. You know what? You can.

0:39:340:39:38

Because Vauxhall are exchanging your old car for this one.

0:39:380:39:43

-Really?

-Yeah.

0:39:430:39:45

They're giving you a 1.2 SXI, four-cylinder, 16 valve

0:39:450:39:51

85 break horsepower car, brand-spanking-new,

0:39:510:39:55

pre-reg, no-one's owned it, they registered it.

0:39:550:39:58

That would normally cost you 13 and a half grand

0:39:580:40:00

and they're giving it to you as a straight swap.

0:40:000:40:02

They want you to be happy.

0:40:020:40:04

I can't believe that.

0:40:060:40:07

Thank you so much. Thank you.

0:40:090:40:11

I can't believe that. I'm so grateful. I really am.

0:40:150:40:20

-I think you need to have a little drive.

-Yeah.

-Yeah? Come on then.

0:40:200:40:24

Come with us.

0:40:240:40:25

We wrote to Bristol Street Motors regarding the case

0:40:380:40:41

and they sent us the following statement.

0:40:410:40:43

I think I'd say it is.

0:41:050:41:07

We also sent to the same request to Vauxhall, who replied saying...

0:41:080:41:12

There are lessons for us all here.

0:41:360:41:39

Research and test drive are the two key elements you need to do

0:41:390:41:42

when buying a car.

0:41:420:41:44

Know what you are buying before you sign on the dotted line

0:41:440:41:46

and save yourself an awful lot of bother.

0:41:460:41:49

That is absolutely unbelievable.

0:41:490:41:53

This has been a great outcome for Catherine.

0:41:570:42:00

She has now got the car which she probably should have

0:42:000:42:03

bought in the first place. She's over the moon. John's over the moon.

0:42:030:42:06

He even had a little tear in his eye. I'm over the moon.

0:42:060:42:09

Do you know what? It's been a great, great day.

0:42:090:42:11

Everybody's happy.

0:42:110:42:13

Apart from the fact I'm stuck in Newcastle

0:42:130:42:15

and it's a long way back home.

0:42:150:42:17

Right. Taxi!

0:42:170:42:18

-I can't believe what's just happened.

-No.

0:42:210:42:24

I never thought in a million years that Dom would be able to get

0:42:240:42:27

the outcome that he has,

0:42:270:42:29

let alone this gorgeous car.

0:42:290:42:31

It's a huge weight off our minds, isn't it?

0:42:310:42:34

I know to other people it probably seems like a small thing

0:42:340:42:38

but when, you know, you're experiencing it,

0:42:380:42:42

the frustration of just getting nowhere.

0:42:420:42:45

We thought, "We're just stuck with that car,"

0:42:450:42:47

and that was it and I just want to say a huge thank you to Dom.

0:42:470:42:51

Yes, thank you very much, Dom.

0:42:510:42:52

'I'm really looking forward to driving the car.

0:42:520:42:55

'I'm looking forward to driving again and feeling confident

0:42:550:42:57

'while I'm driving, hopefully.'

0:42:570:42:59

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