Private seller or dealer: your rights

Buying from a dealer

A dealer is a professional and you are a consumer. The seller is responsible for defects that existed at delivery and appear within 2 years. For second-hand goods you can agree a shorter period, but it must be at least one year from delivery.

You report defects directly to the seller. Ask for the invoice and the warranty terms, signed, before you pay.

Buying from a private person

A private person is not a professional, so the consumer rules do not apply. The Civil Code applies. The seller is responsible for hidden defects, meaning defects that existed at handover and that you could not have found without a specialist. They are responsible even if they did not know about them, unless you agreed otherwise. Tell them within a reasonable time after you find the defect.

A clause that limits or removes liability, such as “seen and accepted”, does not protect the seller for defects they knew or should have known about. So write into the contract everything you were promised: mileage, accidents, number of owners and technical condition.

Withdrawal within 14 days

The right to withdraw within 14 days without giving a reason applies only to distance contracts with a dealer, for example when you buy online without meeting. It does not apply to a purchase in the showroom. From a private person there is no such right at all.

How to protect yourself in both cases

• Check the seller's identity against their ID and the registration certificate (certificat de înmatriculare).
• With a dealer, look up the company tax ID (CUI) and customer reviews. Tell them you want to take the car to a mechanic.
• Pay when the car and papers are handed over, never an advance into a third party's account.
• If you have a dispute with a dealer, you can report it to the National Authority for Consumer Protection (ANPC).