Hello there reader.
I write this blog with a heavy heart. I am saddened by the fact that it seems that in my family we always learn the hard way despite doing our best to learn from past mistakes of our own as well as those of others from whom we have been fortunate to witness or know about.
My sibling approached the Renault dealer in Midrand on New Road to buy a Renault Duster and she ordered a brown 1.6 expression. She was willing to wait for the right color to be found and as much as she wanted the navigation system that came with the dynamic model, she could not over extend herself to its cost because she felt she had already stretched herself with the one she ordered.
Some time later the salesman called and informed her that they had found the color she wanted but it would take some time for it to get to them. She was not worried as there was still time and she expressed her gratitude to him for finding it.
Not long after that the salesman calls and tells her that he has a dynamic model on the floor and it would only cost her about +-R60.00 more on her monthly installment and as much as she loved the color she had ordered, she felt that passing up on a good offer because of a color preference would be foolish and she agreed to take the expression.
After all the financing amendments she was called to come sigh the contract and take delivery a week earlier that expected. In hindsight, I see that they were trying to get rid of this car as fast as they could and because we cannot tell a current year model from a previous year model if it comes with low mileage indicative of a brand new car we trusted that the car was a 2014 model. This we discovered later when we were having endless issues with the car and they were just making excuse after excuse and fixing way too many things on a brand new car of less than three weeks.
Misrepresentation is against the law and results in a contract that is without consensus, which is a requirement for a valid contract. This is grounds for repudiation of the contract or insistence of the agreed upon performance where one wishes not to repudiate.
The problem with repudiation is that they tend to discourage people because in that instance, it seems irrespective of who was at fault, you as the customer bears the costs and they include contract cancellation fees, vehicle registration cancellation fees, fees related to your use of the vehicle and whatever expenses you may incur to restore the car to the dealer. All this you are never made aware of unless you find yourself in a situation where you are now looking to enforce your rights under the contract of sale/purchase.
Peace be with you and thanks for reading.
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