'I have a faulty electric car, can I get a refund?'

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Dear Which?,

In December last year, we bought a new electric vehicle (EV) costing more than £22,000 from Marshall Mercedes-Benz in Portsmouth. Unfortunately, within six months, the car developed a fault that meant its battery would no longer charge.

The dealership told us that the required repair part wasn't currently available anywhere in Europe and we were given a courtesy car to use in the meantime.

More than three months later, the dealership still haven't found the part needed to fix our car and are unable to specify when it might become available. We feel we've waited more than a reasonable amount of time for the car to be repaired.

The part is still unavailable and Mercedes can't give us any update as to when it will be in stock. We just want our money back so that we can buy another electric car from another manufacturer. Can you help us?

Ben and Arnold

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Put to Rights

Hannah Downes, Which? consumer rights expert, says:

With no clear timeline on when your car will be repaired, it's little wonder that you want your money back so you can go elsewhere.

As the Which? legal advice service explained, you do have rights to a refund if repairs to a faulty product take far longer than you'd expect.

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, if you notice a fault with a product within 30 days of owning it, you're entitled to a refund. If you notice the fault after 30 days, but within six months, you're entitled to a repair or replacement, which must be carried out in a reasonable timeframe.

If the retailer fails to repair or replace your faulty product in a reasonable time, you can choose to reject it and get your money back.

This in mind, we contacted the dealership, urging them to accept your rejection of the car.

Marshall Mercedes-Benz told us that there was a shortage of the part it needed, which was causing lead times to constantly change. Thankfully, it accepted the rejection request and has offered a refund amount that Ben and Arnold have since accepted.

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source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/i-have-a-faulty-electric-car-can-i-get-a-refund-aWBTY9l1ZihB