Partially upheld: goods not of satisfactory quality; irresponsible repair cost allocation complaint against STARTLINE MOTOR FINANCE LIMITED

Decision detail

Summary

Mr W purchased a used car via hire purchase from Startline in August 2024. The 7-year-old car with 47,000 miles developed multiple faults shortly after supply, including catalytic converter and oxygen sensor issues within days, and a valve cover gasket fault nine weeks later. Mr W paid a £136.15 excess on the October repair. In July 2025, the turbo failed after 52,000 miles. The ombudsman upheld the complaint in part, finding the early faults indicated the car was not of satisfactory quality at supply, but the turbo failure was not linked to these defects and fell within reasonable expectations for a used vehicle of this age. Startline was ordered to refund the £136.15 excess with interest and pay £200 compensation for distress and inconvenience.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the Consumer Rights Act 2015, which requires goods to be of satisfactory quality. For a used car of 7 years old with 47,000 miles, a reasonable person would expect some wear and tear but not significant mechanical failures within weeks of purchase. The faults occurring within days (catalytic converter, oxygen sensors) and nine weeks (valve cover gasket) of supply indicated these were present or developing at point of supply, breaching the satisfactory quality requirement. However, the turbo failure at 11 months and 52,000 miles, supported by independent engineering evidence stating it was not developing at inception, was not attributable to the initial defects and fell within reasonable expectations for a used vehicle of this age and mileage. The consumer should not have borne the cost of repairs for faults present at supply.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website