Douglas Park parts department

E

ed80

New member
I have bought a number of items from Douglas Park (BMW dealer in Hamilton) on eBay and it has been very smooth (and nicely discounted too), so I decided to try them for a parts order for my suspension refresh. The prices came in a bit lower than Sytner or Cotswold, so I placed the order. The next day I took my car for an alignment, and the guy recommended I fit camber adjustable top mounts with my new suspension, so I told Douglas Park to cancel the two top mounts and refund that part of the order.

They have been insisting that since those parts had to be ordered in from BMW Germany then I would have to pay a restocking fee. This is illegal under distance selling regulations, but they have not budged. After several days going back and forth over email, they are still insisting on the fee, so I have cancelled the whole order with them. If they withhold any funds then I will have to initiate a chargeback or go through small claims. I'll reorder from Cotswold who have always been brilliant in the past.

Just a heads up that they don't seem to understand the law around distance selling, and you may have the same hassles as I did if you order parts through them.
 
Pretty sure I’ve been told by main dealers before that anything ordered from Germany is non returnable.
 
RMB said:
Pretty sure I’ve been told by main dealers before that anything ordered from Germany is non returnable.
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Me too. But the one in Norwich actually told me that and confirmed I wanted to go ahead.
 
Yup had this multiple times, always warned beforehand if that's the case though and asked to pay up front. Seems kinda fair tbh, dealers only have so much space for parts so can't stockpile stuff that people order and then cancel. If the parts are already within the UK network though never had any issues with cancelling without charge.
 
*shrug* there are very clear consumer protections, that have existed for ages now. If you take an order by phone or online, and the product is not made to order, you must accept returns and cancellations and cannot charge a restocking fee. I don't see why every other company has to comply but BMW dealers think they are exempt.
 
ed80 said:
*shrug* there are very clear consumer protections, that have existed for ages now. If you take an order by phone or online, and the product is not made to order, you must accept returns and cancellations and cannot charge a restocking fee. I don't see why every other company has to comply but BMW dealers think they are exempt.
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Yeah, I mean not arguing with your logic. Just saying that every BMW dealer (admittedly only 4 or 5) I've used has mentioned this to me when ordering stuff from Germany so don’t think it’s specific to Douglas.
Why’s your alignment guy suggesting different top mounts out of interest? A reasonable amount of adjustment with standard ones and can shim them out if you need more.
 
Would be interesting to see the County Court interpretation of this. Even for non-stock and if advised at the time of ordering.

It is something BMW do, as others have said. Contract terms can't restrict your legal rights, but I would expect BMW to include a waiver that by ordering you waive and accept the term. The counter to that would be that it is neither clearly and specifically articulated and accepted in writing.
 
ed80 said:
*shrug* there are very clear consumer protections, that have existed for ages now. If you take an order by phone or online, and the product is not made to order, you must accept returns and cancellations and cannot charge a restocking fee. I don't see why every other company has to comply but BMW dealers think they are exempt.
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Best post on the thread.

I am not saying that the law is right and fair, but it is the law. There seem to be a lot of people / companies who assume that they know the law, and are very keen to tell you that you can't do x or y or get a refund, with no concept of the fact that legally you can.

I don't believe it is generally possible to opt out of the law. People cannot generally give up their legal rights even if they wish to (but they can, of course, choose not to exercise their legal rights. Morally one might make an argument that if the company explains in writing and in advance that they wish to avoid the law, then you should accept that and go elsewhere if you want legal protections - but you don't need to).

One of the few exceptions as far as I know is the 1954 Landlord and Tenant Act which give statutory protections to tenants on commercial leases. But if the landlord wishes he is able to tell a prospective tenant that he does not wish the provisions of the '54 Act act to apply, and tell the prospective tenant that he should take legal advice on the implications of giving up his rights, then if it has all been done in writing an according the law then the protections of the law do not apply.
 
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