May apply when
- A serious fault the consumer guarantees cover
- The same fault back after repeated repairs
- The dealer told you something about the car that wasn’t true
- The dealership couldn’t deliver what was agreed
Usually doesn’t help
- You’ve changed your mind
- You’ve found a better deal somewhere else
- A small fault the dealership fixes in a reasonable time
- You bought the car privately
When a refund may be on the table
A refund on a car usually isn’t something a dealership hands out on request, but it isn’t out of reach either. It comes down to why you want one.
A serious fault is the most common reason. Under the consumer guarantees, a car bought from a dealership has to be safe, durable, free from faults and able to do what cars of its kind are used for. Where a fault is serious enough, broadly one that would have stopped a reasonable person buying the car, that makes it unsafe, or that can’t be fixed in a reasonable time, the choice between a refund and a replacement may be yours. The same fault coming back after repeated repairs can get a car there too. What counts as a defective vehicle covers which faults tend to count.
Being misled is the other main reason. If the dealership told you something about the car that turned out to be untrue, and you relied on it, unwinding the sale may be an option. That’s covered in returning a car to a dealer after purchase.
When it usually isn’t
A change of mind usually doesn’t lead to a refund. Nor does finding a better deal, or deciding the car isn’t quite right for you. Outside a short state cooling-off period, or a dealership’s own policy, a car with nothing wrong with it generally doesn’t have to be taken back. Is there a return policy on cars in Australia? covers both.
A smaller fault that the dealership fixes properly and within a reasonable time usually won’t lead to a refund on its own. That can change if the repair drags on or the problem keeps returning.
Finance, deposits and trade-ins
If the car is on finance, a refund usually goes to paying out the lender first, with anything left over coming to you. The loan keeps running until then, so keep paying.
A deposit is a different question. Whether it comes back depends on the contract and on why the sale didn’t go ahead.
A trade-in may be returned if the dealership still has it. If it has been sold on, its value is usually treated as part of what you paid.
Where brokencar fits
Whether a refund may be on the table for your car is the part we look at. Send us the paperwork and we’ll tell you honestly whether there may be a claim worth making. If there is, we take it up with the dealership and the manufacturer on your behalf. It costs nothing to find out where you stand, and nothing is attached to it. See what you may be owed and how the free review works. If you’re not sure the problem counts yet, start with been sold a faulty car?
Not sure where you stand? Send us the paperwork and we’ll take a look.
Further reading. the ACCC on repair, replace or refund, the regulator’s summary of when a refund may apply.