Need a bit of advice.

In the middle of a car deal at the minute, exchanging the other half's Clio for a Ford Focus.

The guy is calling himself Imperial Motor Company and is operating out of the front drive of a rather large house in a rather nice area of Southampton.

So we did a deal in principle around a week ago, I left

 

Walk away

 

I second that walk away, and report the dealings. If you feel something is not right, that is likely to be the case.

 

Why are you even asking the question ?

Walk !!!

 

 

I understand why dealers don't like credit cards, but something smells, I'd run.

 

But if he is on Autotrader, which he is, is this any guarantee of him being legit ?

His Autotrader web page shows the correct address and the stock matches up to what he has. I may delay him for a day or two to get some more information. I'll definitely phone Black Horse to see if they know him and I will speak to Autotrader too, to get his history and see if there have been any complaints.

It could just be that the guy is a bit scatty/busy/amateurish and was keen to do the deal. If he had just been there today and done the deal normally then I wouldn't have batted an eye lid.

My deposit was paid on credit card. If this does go tits up, on what grounds will I be able to make a claim with the CC company ?

Ta.

 

If it's legit then it wont go tits up, if it's not then what protection do you have against fraud?

Something does smell funny but if the HPI checks out, the car is his to sell and you pay cash then you should have no problems right?

 

That's how I see it Danny, just didn't feel comfortable today.

Only thing that could go wrong is that car is a ringer, hence why I want to speak to Autotrader tomorrow to find out how long he has been using them and if there have been any complaints. I'll do the same with Black Horse.

It could all just be circumstantial, you never know. I'm not ruling out the deal just yet, i like to give everyone a fair chance, but I also don't like to rush in, especially if something doesn't seem quite right.

 

Buying cars should be a piece of piss.
If it isn't.... buy elsewhere.


Paying by credit cards are OK - but you may need to pay 3% extra ( the fees )

Debit cards - you have no protection if anything goes wrong. ( no fees )

Buying in someone's house when they are trading as a business is a no-no for me. ( They could just be house sitting.... and not live there )


Sounds odd to me.