Not upheld: satisfactory quality of goods - used car complaint against Lendable Ltd trading as Autolend

Decision detail

Summary

Miss C purchased a used car through a hire purchase agreement with Autolend in September 2024. The car was nearly eight years old with over 83,000 miles. After experiencing an exhaust noise issue that was eventually repaired in October 2024, the car suffered a broken timing chain in June 2025, rendering it undrivable with estimated repair costs of £4,000-£7,000. Miss C complained that the car was not of satisfactory quality when supplied and sought rejection of the car and refund of payments. The ombudsman found that while the initial noise issue was successfully resolved, there was no clear evidence that the timing chain fault was present at supply or caused by the earlier repairs, and therefore did not uphold the complaint.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the Consumer Rights Act 2015 standard of 'satisfactory quality', considering the car's age, mileage, price and condition as relevant factors. While the initial rattle/noise issue was successfully remedied, the ombudsman found no clear evidence linking the later timing chain failure to a fault present at supply or to the earlier repairs. The engineer's report, though confirming the timing chain fault, was silent on causation and whether the fault was inherent or pre-existing. The ombudsman noted that timing chain failure in an eight-year-old car with 91,000 miles is not unusual and that acquiring a used car carries inherent risks of component failure due to wear and tear.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website