Your Legal Rights When Buying a Used Car from a Dealer

Buy a used car from a dealer in the UK and the law is firmly on your side — far more than most buyers realise, and far more than when buying privately. Here's what you're entitled to, in plain English.

The Consumer Rights Act 2015: the big one

When a dealer sells you a car, the law says it must be:

• Of satisfactory quality — taking into account its age, mileage and price. A ten-year-old car can have wear; it can't have a failing gearbox the dealer didn't mention.
• Fit for purpose — it does what a car should do, and anything specific you told the dealer you needed it for.
• As described — the advert and what you were told must be accurate. "Full service history" must mean full service history.

These rights apply automatically. They can't be signed away, and "sold as seen" has no legal force in a dealer sale to a consumer — a dealer displaying that phrase is either confused or hoping you are.

The first 30 days: the short-term right to reject

If the car develops a genuine fault in the first 30 days that means it wasn't of satisfactory quality at the point of sale, you can reject it for a full refund. You don't have to accept a repair (though you can choose one, and doing so pauses the 30-day clock while the car is with the dealer). The fault must be real and present at sale — running out of fuel or kerbing a wheel doesn't count.

Days 31 to six months: repair first, then reject

After 30 days but within six months, the process gains one step: the dealer gets one chance to repair or replace. If the repair fails or another fault emerges, you can reject the car for a refund — though the dealer may make a reasonable deduction for the use you've had.

Crucially, during the first six months the law assumes any fault was present at the point of sale — it's the dealer's job to prove otherwise, not yours to prove it was. That reversal of the burden of proof is a powerful protection most buyers don't know they have.

After six months

Your rights continue for up to six years (five in Scotland), but the burden flips: you'd need to show the fault existed at sale, usually via an independent engineer's report. Claims get harder, but serious hidden defects — undisclosed accident damage, clocked mileage — remain actionable, and misrepresentation rules apply regardless of time.

Warranties: extra, never instead

A dealer or third-party warranty sits on top of your legal rights, never replaces them. A good warranty is convenient — faults fixed without argument — but read what's actually covered: some budget warranties exclude so much (wear items, electronics, anything "pre-existing") that they're mostly marketing. And if a dealer points you to the warranty company for a fault in the first six months, remember: your Consumer Rights Act claim is against the dealer, and it doesn't depend on what the warranty covers.

If something goes wrong: the playbook

1. Stop driving the car for anything non-essential and document the fault — photos, videos, dates.
2. Contact the dealer in writing (email is fine). State the fault, when it appeared, and what you want: repair, refund or rejection. Keep it factual.
3. Give them a reasonable chance to respond — a few working days for an answer, prompt booking for a repair.
4. If you get nowhere, escalate: many dealers belong to The Motor Ombudsman, whose dispute service is free to consumers. Paid by card or finance? Section 75 or your finance company gives you another route to a remedy.
5. Last resort: small claims court (up to £10,000 in England and Wales) — designed for consumers, no solicitor needed.

Buying privately is different

Almost none of the above applies to private sales — the car merely has to be as described and the seller's to sell. That's the real price of a private "bargain".

We built Carluvo around these rules rather than in spite of them: every car is inspected and history-checked before sale, faults get fixed before you ever see the car, and if something does slip through, you know exactly where you stand — because it's the law, and now you know it too.