Customers have expressed their frustration after a Bury car dealership suddenly closed its doors.

The Car Group on Derby Way has been temporarily closed since Tuesday, November 5 due to an “internal operational issue”, however, the director has insisted that the business is “not going anywhere".

Raza Habib, director at The Car Group, said: “We are not going bust, I want to make that very clear. We have not gone into liquidation.

“We are working hard to get things back up and running again soon.”

Regarding claims from eyewitnesses that “stock has been cleared out”, Mr Habib said that this was due to a stock take that was carried out by funders.

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Paul Levin had a “frustrating” experience with the dealership after his daughter-in-law, who lives in Whitefield, bought a car from them in March and was left with an £18,000 repair bill four months later.

Mr Levin said: “She paid around £29,000 for a Land Rover that had 33,000 miles on the clock. I was driving it to Nottingham, where I live, and it began pouring with smoke.

“A police officer saw it and advised me to get it looked at immediately. I took it to a nearby specialist who advised that it needed a new engine, among several other things.

“I spoke to The Car Group who told me they could find a cheaper engine and that’s when alarm bells started ringing for me.

“I had to pay for the diagnostic checks before they [The Car Group] agreed to come and collect it and offered us another car in the meantime.”

Mr Levin said he then faced months of issues and phone calls to recoup his money and end the finance agreement.  

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He said he was eventually successful, but criticised the "slow" process and felt that the companies involved were “passing the buck".

He added: “After three months, seven hours of calls and three visits, I managed to unwind the finance agreement and get my daughter-in-law’s deposit paid back.  

“Everything just felt odd from the start to the end. I feel sorry for people who may have the wool pulled over their eyes."

Hundreds of people flocked to social media to share their experiences and speculative opinions following the closure.

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The Car Group is still listed as active on the government’s Companies House and is an appointed representative of Ingeni Services Group Limited.

Sarah Sykes and her husband Richard are from Halifax. They part-exchanged their car at the Bury showroom four weeks ago and are still owed more than £4,000.

Sarah said: “The whole thing has been a shambles.

“We were told the car had been serviced but it hadn’t. There were problems with a faulty light, air filters, oil and coolant, a leaking radiator and all the tyres need replacing.

“When I complained, they repaired it but we are still having issues with the car so it was booked back in for tomorrow [November 8] but they cancelled the appointment.

She added: “We were told it would take five to 10 working days for the money to go into the bank but still haven’t had it. I kept calling and couldn’t get through.

“I was eventually told that the accounts person was off sick. They have been a nightmare to get in touch.

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“We have been passed from pillar to post and are being fobbed off.

“I rang again on Monday and was told it was closed temporarily. They have said that they will pay us but they don’t know when.

“I have reported it to Trading Standards but the lack of communication is worrying.”

Sarah Sykes and her husband Richard part-exchanged their car four weeks ago Sarah Sykes and her husband Richard part-exchanged their car four weeks ago (Image: Sarah Sykes)

Mr Habib said that the business had suffered from IT issues earlier in the week, which was the reason for the recent lack of communication, however, could not share a date for reopening when asked by the Bury Times.

He added: “We are making it our priority to get hold of customers who have cars with us and to make things right. 

“We have sorted it [IT] and have a dedicated email address for customers who are having issues to get in touch.”

Mr Habib said The Car Group can be contacted on customercare@thecargroup.co.uk.