cambelt on my recently bought ford puma is 3 years overdue company i bought it from says they are not liable?

Question

the cambelt shaftdrive should have been done in 03 and was not my puma is still with bristol st motors, if this cambelt change is 3 years overdue isnt it potenially dangerous to drive. think i might need to contact watchdog as they say if i want this doing i should pay as they did not do the service 3 yrs ago. But then shouldnt the service they carried out recommend the cambelt change hlep help help

Answer 1

I think you are out of luck. In the UK the purchase is "Caveat Emptor", buyer beware. If you have no additional guarantee you will have no legal redress unless you believe, under the Sale and Supply of Goods Act your rights have been breached. I would look to your local citizens Advice Bureau

Answer 2

How do you know it was not done.
If the change is due at at a service and the garage dont do it but charge for it thats fraud or theft, If for some reason the owner agrees not to have it done it is down to the owner, this could happen for all sorts of reasons, new belt fitted at lower mileage as cheap "insurance" for instance,
If you present the car for a service which does not include a cam belt change, then you cannot expect the garage to do it, services are mileage or time which ever comes first, equally if sold with a full service history that is no guarantee that the work has been done just that records have been kept.

I really do not see what the fuss is about, Bristol Street clearly feel the need to warn you that they feel the belt should be changed to cover themselves,
Bristol street have no liability for a service which they did not do
so I suggest you pay Bristol Street to change it before they start charging you for storage.
Next time you buy a car get a new belt fitted straight away, forget the service history, and if you can get to it mark the old one with tipex and ask the garage to leave it in the car after the service.
That should guarantee that a new one actually gets put on.
plenty of London area cars have dome 100 000 miles plus on the original belt, Garages have charged for 3 new ones down the years but never fitted them, big con. Wouldnt get away with it in Cornwall or Wales.

Answer 3

If someone sells you a second hand car, there is an implicit warranty that it is fit for its purpose. A Ford main agent shouldn't have sold you a car with a dodgy cam belt.

First, write to Bristol Street Motors. Tell them that since they have refused to replace the cam belt, you are going to get it done elsewhere and you hold them liable for the cost.

Now find somewhere who will do it for you, but who will also be prepared to provide an expert witness if you go to court. You will probably find that a rival Ford main agent would be delighted to get one over on Bristol Street Motors and their service manager is prepared to explain to the court what a cam belt is and how replacement was overdue.

Send a copy of the bill to Bristol Street Motors Head Office with a full description of where you bought the car, why you had to get it repaired elsewhere etc. Tell them that if they haven't reimbursed you within 14 days, you will start court proceedings.

14 days later, issue a County Court summons (you can do this online). You'll get paid next day.

Answer 4

Cam belts are to be changed at 60,00 miles , this company that said they are not reliable was this the MFG or someone that does not know how to take care of a vehicle ? I assume its not the MFG any car is good if you do the regular scheduled maintenance, these people drive there cars till the break, and if it happens to be a ford they say oh fords crap, just the opposite the people that say that are crap, ask them if they brush there teeth and the answer will be no with a mouth full of cavities

Answer 5

no, the cambelt is not dangerous if it goes. Unless you include the potential to lock the wheels...but then you'd include many part of the engine.

Second hand car is just that, you bought it as seen with all its liabilities. Dealers sometimes offer some guarantees but it rarely includes preventative maintenance such as a cam belt change.

Fee free to contact Wachdog, personally I'd rather fix my car if I genuinely though there was a problem with the cam belt.

Answer 6

Most the time car resellers do not do the major services they just sell the cars as fast as they can. It is up to you to check out the car and barter for maintenance at the time of sale. I will buy this puma if the XX service is preformed. Timing belt can leave you stranded and worse in interference engines with bent valves and huge repair expense don't wait and please do the water pump and cam seal(s) and crank seal. and replace all the drive belts too.

Answer 7

They are only liable if they claim to have replaced it.... "buyer beware" - it it your perogative to ask if work has been carried out - not for them to volunteer information.

And it is NOT a safety issue - it is "preventative maintenance" which is at the OWNERS discretion.

And as they did not do the service that SHOULD have changed it - they are NOT liable. They sold you a car....obviously they are not taking the responsibility for another garage, or the previous owner.

Live and learn....

Answer 8

The owner of the car 3 year ago should have got it replaced.

You should have checked before you bought it if the belt had been replaced, and either negotiated a reduction in price or bought on condition that the belt was replaced before you took delivery. As you didn't check, its not anyone's fault but your own. Sorry, but your liable.

Its not actually "dangerous" in the way that faulty brakes are dangerous - it won't cause an accident or cause injury to you or anyone else - but it may destroy your engine if it fails.

Answer 9

a bit unfortunate really, as with all the other replies to this question , i don't think your going to get anywhere with the garage, it was the last owners responsability to have the cam belt changed and you can't even go back to them about it, they may not have been able to afford to have it replaced at the time it was needed so thought it would be ok, so if you wan t it changing your going to have to pay for it yourself, i had a 2000 v reg fiesta done and it cost me £175 including labor, but its cheaper to have it done than for the belt to go and f uck the engine up

Answer 10

whenever anyone buys a used car unless they have all of the documents for the services performed they should start from scratch and replace needed fluids,have brakes inspected and replaced as needed and replace maintenance items such as cam belts. if you had done this you would not be trying to lay the blame on someone else and would be driving your car