Upheld: supply of goods not of satisfactory quality; failure to remedy defects complaint against MONEYBARN NO.1 LIMITED trading as Moneybarn

Decision detail

Summary

Mr P purchased a used car under a conditional sale agreement from Moneybarn in March 2025 for £6,548. The car developed multiple defects including clutch, coolant, and engine management issues within months. After an independent inspection confirmed the defects were likely present at purchase, Mr P stopped using the car on 9 August 2025 and sought to reject it. Moneybarn initially offered repair and limited compensation, but both parties eventually accepted the car was not of satisfactory quality. The dispute centred on the extent of compensation, particularly regarding garage storage costs (which Mr P had to pay from October 2025 onwards) and distress compensation. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, ordering full reimbursement of garage costs, all repayments from 9 August 2025, the deposit, and £300 additional distress compensation, along with removal of adverse credit information.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman upheld the complaint because both parties accepted the car was not of satisfactory quality under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. The key disputes were resolved as follows: (1) Full garage storage costs from 1 October 2025 should be reimbursed because Mr P was paying for storage of an unusable car and did not retain use of 50% of the garage space; (2) £375 total distress and inconvenience compensation is fair (£75 already paid plus £300 additional), reflecting the upset, time and effort spent resolving the issue, and need to acquire a second car; (3) All monthly repayments from 9 August 2025 should be refunded, with the amount already paid towards arrears used to reduce this figure to avoid double payment.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website