F & I Auto Benoni - Refund Outstanding (for 3 weeks now) on faulty vehicle sold

I bought a vehicle for my 24 year old son from F & I Auto in Benoni in mid-May 2022. It was a Blue 2021 VW Polo Comfortline with R-line package and a number of other extra's. The owner of the dealership Faeez, brought the vehicle to my house for inspection and to allow us to test drive the vehicle. The vehicle seemed in good order and came with 6700 km's, and a service plan and warranty with VW. I paid cash of R391,850 for the vehicle.

After having the car for less than 2 weeks the engine light came on as well as the wipers light. We then took the car to VW Hatfield Rivonia to check on the problem. They fixed the wipers but also confirmed that the catalytic converter in the car had been removed, which is *******. Under these circumstances no VW dealer can apply the warranty or service plan and they indicated that it would cost in excess of R50,000 to replace the missing part.

I contacted Faeez immediately with the outcome of the diagnostic assessment from VW Rivonia. I then told him that I would like to return the vehicle and get my money back. It's been 3 weeks now and I still have not been able to get a refund of the monies paid. The car is unsafe to drive with the engine light on and I am concerned about my sons safety.

F & I motors are claiming that they cannot return my money as they are waiting for a refund from the dealer that they bought the car from. This is not my problem as I had no dealings with their dealer. They are entirely responsible for the refund and this should not be dependent on another third party.

The owner has claimed to be making part payments into my account but no funds are currently reflecting in my account to date.

Please do not buy a vehicle from this dealership. I have found them to be dishonest and prone to blaming third parties for matters which they should be resolving timeously themselves. The delay in the repayment of the purchase price has furthermore caused me to lose a vehicle I had tried to purchase from a reputable dealer this time. I also had to pay additional charges for the diagnostic from VW Rivonia (R1685), the cost of moving the tracker from 1 vehicle to another (R1100) and registration costs for the faulty vehicle of R1900 which has now been lost. Additional on the road costs for a replacement vehicle from a reputable dealer is R5000.

I have also lodged a complaint with the Automotive Industry Ombudsman who can hopefully assist me in getting my money back asap.