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RAC Approved Dealer - Alternative Dispute Resolution Service

We set up the RAC Approved Dealer network to help you find a used car you can trust, at a fair price. And to make sure our approved dealers meet the high standards we demand, we audit every dealer 6 times a year.

For added peace of mind, we also offer a service to help customers resolve any disputes. So, if you’re unhappy with your experience with an RAC Approved Dealer, we’re here to help get it sorted.

Our Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) service is completely impartial. And it’s been fully approved by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI).
 

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How do I make a complaint?

 If you’re unhappy with the service you received from an approved dealer, or with a product you purchased from them, here’s what to do:

Step 1. Contact the dealer with your complaint

Please contact them in the first instance to give them the chance to resolve the matter for you. You should explain your concerns in detail and let them know what you’re looking for them to do to resolve your complaint. Once you’ve raised your concerns with them, they have up to 8 weeks to confirm their final position to you.

Step 2. Decide whether to escalate the complaint

If you still feel they haven’t resolved the issue, or if you haven’t received a response from them after 8 weeks, you can turn to our ADR service. The service is completely impartial and free to use, and has been approved by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute. It can assist with disputes that may arise between a consumer and one of our approved dealers. For more information on our ADR service, please see the RAC Used Vehicle Code of Practice.

Step 3. Send us a dealer enquiry form

To contact us please download, print and fill out the enquiry form. Once completed you can post or email it to us using the information below. You should include:

  • The full details of your complaint.
  • Confirmation of what you’re expecting from the approved dealer to resolve your claim against them.
  • Copies of all invoices and supporting evidence that you’d like us to consider, including a copy of their final response to you.
Please see our Scheme Rules for further information. You can obtain legal advice or be represented by a third party if you wish.

Download form 

Where should I send my dealer enquiry form?

You should email your completed form with your supporting information to [email protected].

Alternatively, you can post your claim to us at the following address:

RAC Approved Dealers
The Warranty Group
The Aspen Building
Floor 2
Mitcheldean
Gloucestershire
GL17 0AF

Please note that while sharing of documents is not a standard requirement, it can be routinely done as a method of "good practice". You should therefore be aware that all documents involved in the case must be shared, if requested, by either party.

What happens next?

Once we’ve received details of your complaint, one of our case handlers will assess the information you’ve provided to ensure the business is accredited to the RAC Used Vehicle Code of Practice.

If we’re unable to provide our ADR service, we’ll confirm this to you, along with the reasons, within 5 working days.

Once we’ve confirmed we can provide our ADR service to you, we’ll let you know within 5 working days. Our next steps will be to:

  • Review all the information and evidence you’ve provided.
  • Obtain a report from the approved dealer.
  • Reach a decision based on the available facts.
  • Confirm our findings to both you and the approved dealer.

If we feel the approved dealer has acted incorrectly, or is responsible for your claim, we’ll issue recommendations to them in an effort to bring your complaint to an acceptable resolution.

If we feel the approved dealer has demonstrated a good level of service and followed the RAC Used Vehicle Code of Practice, then we’ll explain our reasons for this to you.

In some instances, we may not be able to reach a decision. If this is the case, then we’ll confirm this to you as soon as we can.

You should also be aware that our outcome could differ to any decision made by a court.
 

How long will it take?

We’ll keep you updated with the progress of your complaint and let you know as soon as we’ve received all of the information from the business to complete a full review.

Once we’ve received all the information we need to reach a decision on your case, we'll notify you of the outcome within 90 days, unless there are exceptional circumstances. In these instances, we'll let you know when you can expect to hear from us.

If your vehicle is off the road, we’ll do our best to prioritise your complaint as long as this is made clear to us at the outset.

If you wish to withdraw your complaint, then please let us know. It’s your right to withdraw from the ADR process at any stage.


We’re unable to offer our ADR service if:
 
  • You’re not a consumer (any services provided by an approved dealer to a business would not be covered).
  • Your claim exceeds £10,000.00. 
  • A legally binding decision has already been made regarding your claim.
  • You’ve already accepted a full and final settlement offer.
  • Another ADR provider has already issued their findings.
  • You’re claiming personal injury.
  • Your claim relates to any criminal activity.
  • It’s been more than 12 months since you received a final response from the business (or 12 months since you raised a complaint with the business if no response was received from them).
Can you help me with complaints against another dealer?

We can only consider complaints against a business that adheres to our Used Vehicle Code of Practice.

Can you help me if I’m not a UK resident?

All RAC Approved Dealers are located within the UK, but you can still use our ADR service if you’re not a UK resident as we do accept cross border disputes.

What authority do you have with an RAC Approved Dealer?

We’re able to issue one or more of the following recommendations to an approved dealer:

  • An apology and explanation.
  • A refund.
  • A goodwill gesture.
  • An offer of repairs.
How do I know you’re impartial?

All of our ADR officials are employed on a permanent basis by Assurant to ensure our ADR service is completely impartial.

We currently have one ADR supervisor and two ADR case handlers.

Our Used Vehicle Code of Practice is approved by the CTSI Consumer Codes Approval Scheme and audited by them to ensure our Approved Dealers are compliant with our code. Our ADR service is also approved and audited by CTSI to ensure impartiality.