inspection
Rather than guess on the likely cause of the accident here, you should ask yourself whether you were at fault at all. If you think you were not, but be brutally honest otherwise you will waste your time and money, then obtain an independent inspection and report either through one of the motoring organisations if you are a member or from a fully qualifed motor engineer.
You then need to start writing some letters to the dealer stating clearly what has happened and your belief that it was as a result of their failure to exercise sufficient care and skill in servicing the brakes prior to your purchase of the car and in provding you with an unroadworthy vehicle that the accident occured. You should send them a copy of the independent engineer's report. You have statutory and common law rights.
The independant report is most important. It should be conducted by a competent motor engineer and might cost you some money. It may provide the basis whether you have an action against the dealer from whom you bought the car back in November last year. Police reports if they were called as well as witness statements will be helpful.
The fact that it is now July almost 8 months later is not necessry fatal to any claim. You will have to show that the dealer did not service the car with reasonble care and skill and supllied it to you in an unroadworthy condition Given this was 8 months ago this will be very difficult to establish, as in 8 months you have presumably clocked up 6-8,000 miles poss more and there has been normal wear and tear through normal usage of the car which would require servicing. How old was the car?
You will also have to prove that if indeed the efficiency of the brakes was below standard it was due to the work of the dealer. I think this will be very difficult given the many variable factors and the time that has since passed since your purchase.
Did the dealer give you any warranty and how tightly drawn was it, ie the exclusions did they make these clear to you? Did the vehicle still have any manufactures warranty? If so you may have an action against them. You should seek approprate legal advice.
They (the dealer)will argue that when you purchased the car the condition was satisfactory. If 8 months down the line you are claiming that they failed to service the brakes properly prior to your purchase and the subsequent failure was so severe, why didn't you notice this before? This is where the independent motor engineer's report is so important. If you are not prepared to have one of these either because of cost or fear of them finding that the brakes were satisfactory and did not contribute to the accident or the accident would have happened anyway ie the brakes were not the cause then you need to ask yourself whether you are really trying to blame someone/something else for your lack of anticipation.
Do you have legal assistance with your insurance policy if so you might avail yourself of this, however they maybe reluctant to take on an issue which is really a consumer issue. An alternative opinion might be that the accident might well have occurred even if your brakes were in excellent condtion. Therefore the performance of the brakes was not a cause of the accident but your standard of driving fell below the standard of a reasonable and cautious driver. You have to ask yourself these questions otherwise your having a laugh. It is also a requirement that you keep your vehicle in a road worthy condition. An MOT is only valid for the day on which it is issued and even then it is not indiciation of a vehicle's condition. If your brakes had shown signs of wear or fatigue and you ignored or postponed getting them rectified and drove on the road then you may well be liable for this omission and could face prosection.
What was the damage to each vehicle and was anyone injured?
This is a complex matter and I feel it really needs careful consideration before you decide to proceed with your claims. An independent report of the conditon of your vehicle is crucial. I would recommend that at the same time or before you seek some legal advice. You may have to pay for this or it might be provided by your insurers but I think unlikely as the purchase of your car was an earlier consumer contract governed by the Sale of Goods Act, and the Sale and Supply of Goods and Services Act.
Best get some proper advice. It will take a long time and maybe expensive. But be aware of the length of time since you purchased your car and issues of causation.
On the limited information that you have provided it appears that you were at fault.
Good luck,
A.
