Key takeaways
- A rejection letter is a legal notice, not a complaint
- Identify the car, state the fault, cite the Act
- Demand a refund with a 14-day deadline
- Within 30 days, reject outright; agreeing to a repair can cost that right
- The letter is the start. The dates after it are what win
When your new car or used car turns out to be faulty, writing the right rejection letter can mean the difference between a quick refund and months of back-and-forth. Here's how to get it right first time. The letter is one step in the wider process — for the full picture, see our complete guide on how to reject a faulty car.
What a car rejection letter must say
A rejection letter is a legal notice, not a complaint. It needs five things, in this order.
1. Who you are
Your full name, address and contact details, and the date. The date matters more than it looks: it fixes where you are in the 30-day and six-month windows.
2. Which car
Registration, make and model, VIN, the date you bought it, the mileage at purchase and the price. Leave any of these out and a dealer can claim confusion about which sale you mean.
3. What is wrong
Facts, not feelings. What the fault is, when you first noticed it, how it affects the car, and any warning lights or codes. "The engine warning light came on on day three and the car went into limp mode" is stronger than "the car is rubbish."
4. The law
Name the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and say which of its standards the car fails: satisfactory quality, fitness for purpose, or as described.
5. What you want
That you are rejecting the car, that you want a full refund, and by when. Fourteen days is standard.
What the letter looks like
This is the opening of a rejection letter for a used car bought from a dealer. The same wording works for a new car.
The paragraph that changes with your dates
The opening is the same for everyone. The paragraph after it is not, and it is the one dealers read first. It depends on how long you have had the car.
First 30 days
Short-term right to reject
Your strongest right. Reject outright and demand a full refund with no deduction. The dealer cannot insist on repairing it first, and the refund is due within 14 days.
30 days – 6 months
One repair, then reject
Allow one repair or replacement. If it fails (or they refuse), you gain the final right to reject. The fault is presumed present at purchase, so the burden is on the dealer.
6 months – 6 years
Rights continue — you prove it
You must show the fault was present or developing at sale, usually via an independent inspection. Claims run up to 6 years in England & Wales (5 in Scotland).
- Inside 30 days, the letter exercises the short-term right to reject and asks for a full refund. It does not offer a repair, because the Act does not require you to.
- Between 30 days and six months, the letter asks for one repair or replacement, and states that if it fails you will exercise the final right to reject. Skipping this step is the most common mistake, and it hands the dealer an argument.
- After six months, the letter still rejects, but it has to show the fault was there when the car was sold, which usually means an independent inspection.
Get the window wrong and the rest of the letter is wasted. The free check works out your window from your purchase date and tells you which of the three applies. If you then want the letter written for your car, with that paragraph and the sections of the Act that go with it, the letters are £49.
Or have the letter written from your answers.
- Enter your reg
- Get your verdict
- Reject your faulty car
Free · No card · About 2 minutes
Can you reject a new car with this letter?
Yes. You are rejecting under the same Act. Two things are in your favour with a new car. It is held to a higher standard of satisfactory quality, so a fault that might be arguable on an older used car is usually clear-cut. And the 30-day right runs from the day the car was delivered, not the day you ordered it. Our guide to rejecting a faulty new car covers the franchised-dealer and manufacturer side, which is where new-car rejections get complicated.
Not sure which window you are in? Put in your reg and find out, free.
How to send it
Email and post, with recorded delivery for the posted copy, and keep a copy of everything. If you are close to day 30, email first and follow up by post. If you bought on finance, send a version to the finance company too: it supplied the car and carries the same responsibility as the dealer, so see the finance guides.
Inside 30 days, a dealer who asks to "have a look at it first" is asking you to give up time. You do not have to agree. Stay factual throughout, and mention Trading Standards and the small claims court only as the next steps they are.
What happens after you send it
This is the part most guides skip, and it is where most rejections are won or lost.
Give the dealer 7 to 14 days. In that time, keep the car safe, drive it as little as possible, and write everything down: photos, messages, who you spoke to and when. Do not agree to a repair inside the 30 days.
Then one of three things happens. The dealer accepts, and your refund is due within 14 days of them taking the car back. The dealer accepts and then stalls on collecting it, which has its own fix. Or the dealer says no, or says nothing, and waits for you to give up. A chase letter with a final date goes next, then a letter before action, then the Ombudsman if there is finance, or the court if there is not.
Each of those steps has a date, and the dates are what the dealer is watching. Missing one is how a strong case goes quiet. The full platform keeps those dates for you, sends the reminder when one is close, and has the chase and escalation letters ready: that is what the £89 is for, not the first letter.
When to get help
If you bought on PCP or HP, the finance company is often the quicker route: it legally supplied the car, it has eight weeks to give a final answer to a complaint, and after that the Financial Ombudsman can look at it. If there is no finance and the dealer will not move, the small claims court is a realistic option for most car disputes.
Not sure whether to handle it yourself? FaultyCar.co.uk against doing it yourself sets out both routes honestly.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write a car rejection letter?
Give your details and the car's details, describe the fault factually, name the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the standard the car fails, and say plainly that you are rejecting the car and want a refund by a set date. The paragraph in the middle depends on how long you have had the car.
Do I have to reject a car in writing?
It is strongly advised. A written rejection creates a dated record of what you asked for and when, which is decisive if the dispute reaches an ombudsman or the small claims court. A phone call leaves you with nothing to rely on.
How long does the dealer have to refund me?
Once the dealer accepts your rejection and takes the car back, the refund is due within 14 days, by the method you paid. Within the first 30 days there is no deduction for use.
What if the dealer ignores my rejection letter?
Send a chase letter with a final date, then escalate: a letter before action, then the Financial Ombudsman if there is finance, or the small claims court if not.
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