Deposit paid on SLK at MB then it's sold to someone else

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Palfrem

Palfrem

MB Enthusiast
Joined
Aug 11, 2005
Messages
2,965
Location
Solihull, near Birmingham
Car
W124 E36 AMG, G 300 GEL his, SLK 200 hers
This is a development on this thread - just wanted to give it a wider airing and pick your brains.

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/insurance-finance/107136-slk-needs-tracker-covered-theft.html

Her Ladyship (on phone to MB salesman yesterday) puts a deposit down, sight unseen, on a tidy SLK 200 Komp with agreement to get it to our local MB Direct on Wednesday so she can give it the once over and sign on the line if all OK.

Finest of fine tooth combs already in handbag.

About ten minutes later salesman calls back to say car has been sold to someone else.

Where do we stand here?

Is the guy now legally / contractually bound to get another car at the same deal?

Or do we just shrug our shoulders and use it to wring a few more quid out of them on the next car?

Many thanks
 
I should think that if , unknown to salesman , car was already sold when he took your deposit , then it is just a genuine mistake and no real comeback . Perhaps a bit of goodwill from the garage ( free floormats / service / whatever ) on another car should you purchase from them might be a nice gesture .

On the other hand , if they took your deposit , and THEN the car was sold to someone else , I'd say that was breach of contract and they might be under some obligation to you .

Either way , as long as the deposit was returned promptly , no great harm done other than hopes being dashed .
 
I concur with Pontoneer's view. I'd also make the point that it would be pretty nigh impossible to determine whether it was c**k-up or conspiracy, so while it may technically fall into breach of contract territory, I doubt you'd ever prove it to be such. Not to mention that there is (probably) no loss involved, so what's the point?

Best idea is to use it as a bargaining chip if you do choose to buy another car from them.
 
Yes chaps, I agree - it's difficult.

The salesman was very keen to make a sale, maybe he should have done his homework at the other site a bit more thoroughly.

Shoulders being shrugged and note to self - "remind salesman just how sorry HL was to miss out on car of dreams" Violins being booked as we speak.
 
if its MB approved used (i have had 2 cars from them) they access a pool of cars online...
They then arrange to have the car in question brought down from wherever it may be (as seems to be the case with yours). bearing in mind its getting close to deadlines/ targets for the dealerships; there is a mad rush to try and sell cars and everyone else is having a go from the same available pool; so it's obviously a case of someone else getting in there quicker...

i would make my displeasure known and use it to your advantage next time you settle on one...
remember; it's bargain time of the year, so go get some :)
 
Next time you go back - ask to deal with any salesman other than the one you dealt with orginally.

Teach him a lesson on his commission!
 
Palfrem said:
Yes chaps, I agree - it's difficult.

The salesman was very keen to make a sale, maybe he should have done his homework at the other site a bit more thoroughly.

Shoulders being shrugged and note to self - "remind salesman just how sorry HL was to miss out on car of dreams" Violins being booked as we speak.
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Id just move on and go elsewhere. Not worth the hassle. There are plenty of SLK's to choose from.
 
Yes move on. Why make someone else's day miserable as well.
 
Slightly bad form from the dealer, but these things happen and it wouldn't be worth the hassle chasing up something that has already sold.
On the contrary, use it as a positive and say to the salesman 'the next SLK that you get, there should be a great deal for us, no?'
 
its a case of some one didn't act quick enough...
being you deciding if you wanted to put the deposit down on the car?
or the salesman not booking it....

when my lass bought her car. we looked at one of the dealer ships to see what they had. all slightly over priced.. went to another owned by the same company different town...

they told me about a car they had at the previous pitch and at a really good price.

gave the deposit. told him to get it down.... was a car that we looked at and decided it was to expensive... but some clerical error meat we had a couple grand nocked off the asking price before i started to haggle...

winner
 
It's annoying but there you go, that's life. I'm sure you and HL will find another. If you end up buying from the same dealer be sure to remind them of this episode and tell them there needs to be a huge bunch of flowers in the new car when she collects it :).

Cheers,

Gaz
 
Similar thing happened to me a while ago with a lovely black a200 with leather etc etc...great spec, at Ayr branch ....paid deposit, arranged to have it brought to Glasgow for final once over/pick-up etc....2 days go by, car arrives and I go to see it, love it and about to set off on a test drive when sales manager comes out and says sorry but just sold it to a women in Ayr who has just paid in full.!!! He refunds my deposit and says will look for another.......

Their loss, I complained to mb uk, all the way to top but only got their apologies and offer of goodwill services etc if I used another dealer


Well , not only have I not been back to them but I use another dealer and went on to get an e class, a GL and now my c class, also got the mrs a b clas and another A class.....not to mention the 2 X smart for fours and a smart roadster I've also bought from my not local but excellent dealer.......


My advice......Vote with your feet but make sure you name and shame them at MB HQ......they like to apply a corporate boot to a dealerships ar5e now and again.
 
Its a mistake, I'd ask politely for him to source another car for the same price as your Mrs wants one and see what he comes up with
 
If MB work the same way the Ford network does then it is actually easily done.

During my Ford sales days I did the exact some thing your salesman did, due to the fact that several dealers have access to the same pool of vehicles and, if the salesman at the other dealership who sold the car didn't immediately sign it off as sold on the stock list, your guy (ane me, in my case) wouldn't be able to tell from the group stocklist that it's sold, until the system picks it up, hence the phone call several minutes later. It could be as genuine as that.
 
bpsorrel said:
If MB work the same way the Ford network does then it is actually easily done.

During my Ford sales days I did the exact some thing your salesman did, due to the fact that several dealers have access to the same pool of vehicles and, if the salesman at the other dealership who sold the car didn't immediately sign it off as sold on the stock list, your guy (ane me, in my case) wouldn't be able to tell from the group stocklist that it's sold, until the system picks it up, hence the phone call several minutes later. It could be as genuine as that.
Click to expand...

I agree in this case but in my case there was 48 hrs of deposit sitting on the car and it had been brought up from one dealer to the other, therefore it was sold unseen to another person while it wasn't there :doh:
 
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