Thread: Deposits on cars

Originally Posted by Pedro_The_Swift

The money kind,

If someone puts a 1K deposit on a car thats for sale, then 8 days later on inspection say No Thanks,

What are the legal requirements?


Late Edit;; Private car sale.

Great question and great answers. If the keen person put the $1000 deposit down the wording of want they wanted for that and what you said for that is a legal contract according to my VCE/TEE legal studies on Verbal or Written contracts

Devil is in exactly what was said not on what was thought or implied I think.

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

Great question and great answers. If the keen person put the $1000 deposit down the wording of want they wanted for that and what you said for that is a legal contract according to my VCE/TEE legal studies on Verbal or Written contracts

Devil is in exactly what was said not on what was thought or implied I think.

To a point, James. Your legal studies would have emphasised the differences between contract terms and conditions. And just because an agreement is written down doesn't necessarily make it "legal" or enforceable. Think silence and acceptance.
When deciding on the nature of a given contract the courts may well consider what was in the minds of the parties at the time the contract was made. But we're not going there for $1k!
We can't really give valid advice until the OP gives us all the details.
Decades ago we rented our house out to an interstate company who paid the first months rent and then decided not to proceed. As we had taken the house off the market and changed some things at their request, we declined to refund the "deposit" as we had lost that amount in opportunity costs (i.e. not renting to someone else). They had no choice but to accept our decision.
A couple of months ago I paid in full on arrival on-site for a used kitchen I was planning on chopping and channeling (to suit our tent on the Island - you'll know what I mean). My son and I came prepared with all the tools and ability to remove the kitchen on the same day as agreed with the seller. But after having a closer look we realised that we would never be able to make it work and had made a mistake. Although the kitchen was "legally" ours (offer, acceptance, consideration) the seller understood the situation and immediately refunded the money, thus cancelling the contract. Mind you, we pointed out to him that the period Baltic pine flooring he was planning on dumping was actually quite valuable if lifted properly, so we more than made up for wasting his time.

Originally Posted by DieselLSE

To a point, James. Your legal studies would have emphasised the differences between contract terms and conditions. And just because an agreement is written down doesn't necessarily make it "legal" or enforceable. Think silence and acceptance.
When deciding on the nature of a given contract the courts may well consider what was in the minds of the parties at the time the contract was made. But we're not going there for $1k!
We can't really give valid advice until the OP gives us all the details.
Decades ago we rented our house out to an interstate company who paid the first months rent and then decided not to proceed. As we had taken the house off the market and changed some things at their request, we declined to refund the "deposit" as we had lost that amount in opportunity costs (i.e. not renting to someone else). They had no choice but to accept our decision.
A couple of months ago I paid in full on arrival on-site for a used kitchen I was planning on chopping and channeling (to suit our tent on the Island - you'll know what I mean). My son and I came prepared with all the tools and ability to remove the kitchen on the same day as agreed with the seller. But after having a closer look we realised that we would never be able to make it work and had made a mistake. Although the kitchen was "legally" ours (offer, acceptance, consideration) the seller understood the situation and immediately refunded the money, thus cancelling the contract. Mind you, we pointed out to him that the period Baltic pine flooring he was planning on dumping was actually quite valuable if lifted properly, so we more than made up for wasting his time.

I defer your clear knowledge to my smarty pants commercial law at a Perth Tafe not T.T.E. Recalled that now my brain has enjoyed a kick start from a run and a coffee

Devil is in details "tent on the Island"- details sounds like lovely Sunday to me

On a private if he took 8 days to decide not to proceed i would be keeping at least 10%.

Originally Posted by loanrangie

On a private if he took 8 days to decide not to proceed i would be keeping at least 10%.

Sounds like it was subject to inspection though from first post…

Buy a cartoon of beer and refund the remainder.

Originally Posted by W&KO

Buy a cartoon of beer and refund the remainder.

Or give him the slab and keep the change.

Originally Posted by Eevo

incorrect, those buyers have moved on and purchased another car that was avaliable.

Guesswork,many spend weeks,even months searching around before purchasing,depending on circumstances.

Eight days is bugga all in the whole scheme of things.