Philippa N

2yrs to get £ back & they got a CCJ

Received the car July 2022, the gear box was making noises. I had it collected. It was returned to me Oct 2022, the window had been polished with a high abrasive and was scratched beyond the point of repair, rendering it an MOT failure, 2 car tyres were cracked and unsafe, the brake pads were so worn down that I was advised by a 3rd party garage that I should replace them immediately, and the battery was dead. At that point I requested a full refund, but Fenlake refused and stated they were willing to contribute towards the brakes, battery and Tyres, but not fix any of the other issues, including the windscreen they had damaged, beyond repair. I commenced legal proceedings to gain a full refund, however, Fenlake then asked if I would allow them to complete all repairs instead. I said yes and stopped the instructions with my solicitor. Mid Nov 2022 the car was collected, and then impounded by the police for 4 months for a 'Complex investigation'. The reason the car was stopped was because Fenlake had not completed the V5C document, to register the car in my name, when they sold it to me. I received the car back on 4th March 2023 - 8 months after I had purchased it. I had a 3rd party garage check it, only to be told that the gearbox & transfer box had a significant leak and was going to be drained of oil very soon, so it was unsafe to drive! At this point Fenlake agreed to a refund for the original price of the car, plus a few out of pocket expenses on 30th March 2023 and that the refund would be given within 7 days of them receiving the car back, and if not received, I would start court proceedings for this, plus tax, insurance and solicitors costs (Which were increasing monthly). They collected the car but didn't pay me, then tried to renegotiate the deal, which had been agreed to in writing, for damage on the car that they had known about when they agreed the refund. It took 2 court cases with 2 judgements over a 5 month period, over a 2 year timeline, from the initial purchase date, for this to finally be done and dusted. CCJ number: K53YX312