What Car? Q&A August 2010 - A dealer has misled me. What can I do?

Q) A dealer has misled me. What can I do?
Last week I put down a deposit on a two-year-old Vauxhall Astra, and have just discovered it used to be a lease car. The salesman didn’t tell me that. Can I ask for my deposit back, or expect compensation?
John Riley

A) The salesman should perhaps have given you more detail about the car’s history, but it sounds like he didn’t misrepresent the Astra. If you’d asked a direct question and he’d lied, that would be different.

The fact that this is an ex-lease car shouldn’t affect its value or reliability. Lease cars aren’t necessarily treated worse than privately-owned cars.

In the interests of customer service, the dealer should offer to refund your deposit – or transfer it to another car – if you’re still unhappy. We doubt you could get compensation, though.