Charles Hurst Group Anmeldelser 

We had our car serviced today at Charles Hurst in Portadown. Our car was collected on the time they said. Had the service carried out and everything perfect. Car was left back when they said it would be, they even washed it!! Very happy overall. So thank you Charles Hurst for a job well done 👏

If you buy a car from Charles Hurst after reading this, you deserve what comes next.

In July 2025, I bought a 2018 Audi A5, 1 owner from new, 47k on the clock. Car looked in great condition and came with an RAC 180 point check carried out by Charles Hurst themselves that had every box ticked green. There was even an invoice to say they installed a new battery, new number plates and an invoice for the oil and filter from the service they just gave it.

I checked over the car, read through all the paperwork and even checked the old MOTs online, aha got ya! The car was MOTd 3 months previous and had an advisory for both rear suspension mounts perished. Flagged it with the team that they were marked green on their report, but an advisory at MOT. They swore regardless of their appearance they were road legal but to keep me happy and get the sale they would replace them. An investment of around £500 from them plus they knocked £300 quid off as the DSG system needed a service and meant I could bring it to Audi, great deal or so I thought.

2 days and less than 100 miles of ownership the car broke down at the roadside. Had to call the RAC through the provided 6 months warranty (stay tuned this gets dodgy). As it was a public holiday I couldn’t get towed to Charles Hurst, so instead got towed to a local garage until they opened. They opened 2 days later and I informed them of the issue. Long story short RAC only tow once per breakdown, so I had to pay £120 to have the car towed over to Newtownards for inspection (never got this refunded despite being told I would).

Turned out the alternator belt had snapped. When I went to pick it up the next day, the mechanics said these exact words “that belt has been slipping a long time, you could see the rust on the alternator wheel”. Guess what, it was marked green on their report. And the flat battery was replaced to get it out the yard and now they’d just got paid £600 from RAC for replacing a belt they already knew was faulty, plus the new battery packed in after the belt snapped so another new one of those.

Fast forward a couple of weeks the car is in with Audi getting the DSG oil changed. They completed a health check and discovered all the tyre pressures were low (around 20psi) and that all four tyres were cracked on the side wall and in danger of blow out and required immediate attention. 2 front control arms were completely knackered with the other 2 on their way out. Needed new spark plugs, cost me £150.

As I collected my car to bring it back to Charles Hurst to have the controls arms looked at, the tyres now at the correct PSI the knocking and shaking from the faulty control arms was impossible to miss. They’d under pressurised the tyres to hide the fact the tyres were damaged and that the control arms were faulty. RAC again paid £1100 to Charles Hurst to repair a fault they already knew about!

This car was sold with “a full bill of health” but had perished suspension bushes, unsafe tyres (replaced by myself at £550) faulty control arms and a damaged alternator belt. I drove my wife and kids in this car and we’re lucky to be alive.

They received £1700 with their RAC warranty scam, and I’m out £820 on tyres, plugs and towing costs.

It doesn’t end here.

When my car was in with Audi I set up the connect app that allows my car and phone to talk to each other and communicate with Audi. Phone call from them today, 20/01/2026 to say the oil sensor has detected that the oil quality is perished and is due a service. Couldn’t be I said it was only done in July by……. Sorry sir, doesn’t sound like it was. They apparently serviced it 7 months / 7k miles ago and it’s due already. Something doesn’t sound right!!

I will never, ever deal with this company again and if you do you are an absolute fool! Taking people for clowns as they think they’re too big to be challenged or caught!

Bought a Mini cooper used 2 years with 19k in October. I was given a 2 year platinum RAC warranty to seal the sale . I had another Mini in mind at Bavarian which was the same price.
Within a few weeks the front passenger seat jammed in forward and could not be moved. I took it to CH Toyata under the warranty and was told there was nothing wrong with the seat. Two week s later it happened again the next time it was moved forward. I brought it back and left it for a day to be repaired. When I returned to pick it up I was told it needed a new seat! Then after a week I was told it was not covered by warranty! I would have to pay for a new seat . When I rang Charkes Hurst used they said to contact the warranty company RAC. They said under the T&C seats were not covered . The warranty cost £979. DO NOT GET IT as it’s worthless! The customer service from CH Used is very poor. Once they sell the car they do not want to know . The cars are not checked. It reeked of cigarettes smoke and cost me £130 to valet and air fresheners treatment and replace air filters and still smells!
The manager William sold me the RAC warranty to seal the sale. The service is dreadful all round though Kaitlyn at Toyata has done her best . It is a faulty seat. now they cannot even remove it and have asked BMW to come and look at it.

Purchased a car from used direct near the end of May. Initially buying the car was straight forward with no issues. But by September I had to leave it in for 2 track rpd ends and drop links. Just before leaving it in for this repair to happen the engine started to overheat with obviously a warning light coming on. When I left it in for repairs and to be investigated they found oil in the engine coolant. They deemed this complete engine failure and needed replacing. From the start of October through to the start of December they had the car and were back and forth with the warranty company. Communication to myself and the warranty company was awful with no updates the 1st month at all. On the other end the warranty company kept delaying and delaying. Asking for more and more evidence with Hurst then taking time to reply. The whole time they refused to provide a courtesy car or anything. By start of December after only actually driving the car 4 1/2 months I contacted my finance company who were able to help me cancel the policy and return the car. Even the finance company had trouble with communication with hursts.

As a customer for over ten years, the experience was absolutely awful from start to finish.

Initially dealing with Ryan Sloan in useddirect, who told me Charles Hurst would meet my current cars settlement figure and find us a new Mercedes GLC, told him I’d call down with my partner on a Thursday night, arrived down to be told by staff “that fella doesn’t exist”.

Turns out Ryan was new and gave wrong address to us. Great start.

Instead we spoke to James Beattie, told him our budget, our part exchange agreement with Ryan and what we were after.

Emails back and forth with James over the next week or two where James said instead of giving us the settlement figure part exchange alongside the £500 event, that he’d instead offer us £1500 less.

More back and forth with James by email who came close to settlement figure but as soon as we mentioned not bothering with finance and taking out a personal loan instead his interest ended, replies were few and far between and dropped part exchange price again by £1000.

I explained that I was literally ready with money in account to buy the car within 24 hours and all I wanted was for Charles Hurst to honour what was agreed with Ryan and then James.

I tried to explain my position and then James…just stopped replying.

I followed up with him two or three more times and not even a reply.

Not even the common courtesy to explain anything more, just ignored and gaslit.

Suffice to say, I’ll never be using Charles Hurst Used Direct ever again, more than ten years of business and maybe 4 cars…done.

Great way to treat repeat loyal customers. Wasn’t looking special treatment, basically looking what was already agreed.

Thankfully I’d a lot better experience with Shelbourne Motors, who were very happy to take my £20,000+ and treat me and my fiance with a bit
Of common courtesy and respect.

Realistically, you haven’t just lost my custom for good, but my father was also interested in buying an electric car from you, but I’ve told him to stay clear of Charles Hurst Used Direct.

PS: Customers know when you’re using AI to reply to emails, the false platitudes that don’t correlate with the personality we’ve spoken to in person, the em dashes, the waffling, it again just sums up how little effort is put into looking after customers.

I identified an issue with the Diff on test drive, which was witnessed by Saleswoman and I was advised would be fixed. 1 week later I went to pick car up, and issue was exactly the same. Their Workshop manager was sent to witness the issue and his opening words were, I Dont have time for this.. If your not happy, then there are plenty of other cars for sale. He quietened a minute later when he witnessed the issue. 6 weeks later I was finally told the car was ready for collection, only to find the same issue still existed Not as bad but still there. - Customer service was terrible - No apology for wasting my time and actually made it out as if I was wasting their time.. If this was their service during a sales process, what would the aftercare service be like??

I purchased a vehicle from Charles hurst dundonald back in August 2024 within 3 weeks the car started to develop issues with rattles and electrical faults it was sent to Charles hurst Nissan Boucher road and went in on 7 occasions to resolve nothing they did resolved any of the issues when I took the car to an independent dealer they identified that the car was loosing water and setting off the
Electrics and that the underpinning
Of the chassis had been removed and not put back in they sold me a dangerous and faulty vehicle and had ample opportunity to notify me and never did

My husband was buying a van here and has wasted so much time and had to walk away. The finance was quoted at £330 ISH per month for 4 years with £2500 deposit. The sales guy really must have thought we were stupid because he tried to make it £2500 down and £330 per month for 5 years or double the deposit. What a joke!!

All for a van that had a massive scrape down the side.

The Vauxhall rang me for a recall as faulty cars they sold that year. The man on the phone told me he would tell them to replace the chain and timing belt for free. So I had to take time out of my days to leave car up get a lift back that’s 2 cars up and down twice! The man laughed says they get paid a fortune for recalls and they never done anything to it total waste of my time! The girl in reception no people skills very sour should get a different job as doesn’t suit her. As for all these recalls they get paid for they should come and lift the cars vans etc with there own lorry as they get paid I don’t total waste of time wouldn’t be in it they need do away with Vauxhall as all scrap

Easily the most disgraceful customer service my parents have ever dealt with at Charles Hurst.

They paid a reservation fee and were promised a simple refund. Instead, they’ve been fobbed off for more than two weeks with the same empty excuse that it “takes 10 days.” Still no refund. No urgency. No accountability.

The manager’s behaviour was shocking. Rude, arrogant, and completely unprofessional. He tried to defend the delay by saying “even VIP customers wait 10 days,” and then actually tried to blame my parents for the car not selling despite them clearly telling the sales team they were no longer interested. His attitude was appalling, and he clearly has no grasp of basic customer service or his own company’s policies.

The refund is still missing, and the way this department treats customers is unacceptable. Avoid this place unless you want stress, excuses, and zero respect.

Just an update
After raising a complaint about the management, the same manager I complained about contacted me directly to dismiss the issue. When I requested that someone else handle the complaint, I received yet another email from the same manager, closing the matter completely and telling me I should refrain from coming to the showroom. This shows exactly why the complaint was made in the first place there is no accountability, no impartiality, and no willingness to address customer concerns properly.

Brilliant service,all staff very friendly,especially Lloyd who sold me a Kia,very patient with all my questions and the whole experience was efficient and courteous.

I bought a 3-year old car which developed a fault after 2 days. I allowed them to fix it but the same problem occurred a week later. After being dealt with very off-hand by the service department I requested a full refund. This was paid with a delay of a couple of days at least. The payment was held until a week later.

We have had an awful experience with Charles Hurst, Vauxhall on the Boucher Road, Belfast. We bought a car in January 2025 and have had nothing but problems. To start with the car used to just shut off when driving which was extremely dangerous, we took it back to them twice with this issue. We’ve took it back for a third time when the engine light came on and a pipe needed replaced which of course, wasn’t included in the warranty. The engine light is now on again and they are asking us to pay for diagnostic even though the car is still under warranty and we haven’t had to pay this any other time we have taken it. Not to mention the staff were rude when we were there, never called us back when the car was ready to pick up and we had to call them multiple times before we got a response. We are extremely disappointed with the car and the customer service.

Car has a oil consumption issue. Has been back to dealer several times since August with no answers or fixes. Warranty runs out on Saturday 29/11. Imagine starting a warranty 2 weeks before you get the car. I raised a complaint nearly 2 weeks ago. They acknowledged it on a phone call. But heard nothing since. I'm doing all the chasing as neither budget direct or Hurst Seat ring back.

I would not recommend going to any of Hurst's dealerships at the minute. To the reply for them I followed your guide on lookers that's how I logged the complaint. I have a ticket from your systems. Still no updates from it.

Arrived at Charles Hurst, Peugeot, Belfast last Friday for an oil and oil filter change.
After checkin, their service personnel took my keys, drove away without informing me where he was going.
After a few hours, I was notified my vehicle was ready for collection whereby I noticed they half washed the exterior.
The same chap returned my keys, supplied a receipt with zero balance to pay, which I found odd.

Having already checked the cost for this basic service is usually between £68 and £113 at an independent garage, while a full service including an oil change will be between £151 and £238 at most franchised or main dealerships.

Of little surprise, Charles Hurst service department contacted me for an unbelievable fee of £289.

Not only do I feel cheated but it was a disgrace how I witnessed an old gentleman struggling to understand his bill when a female employee listed the faults for his vehicle which he debated saying his son was a mechanic which he hadn't detected most of the faults listed.

Needless to say, the chap who dealt with me mentioned additional faults with my brakes, shoes and a drum needing replaced soon at an approximate cost between £700 - £800. The following Tuesday, I took my same vehicle to an independent garage whereby I was assured that brakes & shoes were perfectly fine with only slight wear and tear.

Trading Standards. office Of Fair Trading etc should be all over this company as they are clearing ripping customers off

I bought a used 2015 mitsubishi outlander (with 69,500 miles) from Charles Hurst Dundonald in March 2024. From day one the car just didn't sound correct. It is a big suv but the engine sounded like a dying tractor. I was reassured that it had been fully serviced and checked to Charles Hurst high standards and it was "all good" . A few months in and the car battery needed replaced. No big deal. But the AA recovery guy told us to get Charles Hurst to look at the engine as it didn't sound as it should. Again, Charles Hurst confirmed that the car was fine and I felt somewhat dismissed on the matter. I have put in and around three thousand pounds in repairs to the car in around 18 months that was just to get it through the mot. My mechanic now thinks the suspension is gone and the 4 wheel drives overheating and potentially needs replaced. I had a company out that purchases cars to buy it off me. As soon as he started the car his face dropped. He done his apprenticeship with donnelly group specifically mitsubishi. He rang his Co worker to come and have a listen as he also previously worked for mitsubishi. They both confirmed and told me that the balance box was wrecked and to not even start the car as its a ticking time bomb. Repair parts and labour will cost in and around 5k. He could not believe when I told him that Charles Hurst Dundonald sold it to me like this, as to make matters even worse my wife was eight and a half months pregnant at the time. I don't think the car was ever fit for purpose or had been previously serviced at all. My wife has only done six thousand miles on the car!!!! Have tried phoning the dealership on many occasions to no avail, hence leaving this review. Extremely disappointed as you think buying from a long standing large company, that things like this would never happen. I paid an initial 11k for the car, 3k in repairs, and now potentially 5k minimum for balance box or new engine and a few grand for suspension problems and 4WD. The car is now only good for scrap. You really couldn't make this up. If I could give zero stars I would. My advice, avoid! I would hate this to happen to anyone else!

Recovered my vehicle to Renault Charles Hurst Belfast for control unit coding. After two days with no update, I called to confirm they’d received it. It had, but turns out it hadn’t even been looked at yet. That was fine, but after a full week of silence, I rang again and was told the car was ready.

When I arrived to collect it, I was informed they’d spent 1.5 hours on the job, despite originally quoting one hour. I was charged an extra £89.40 without any prior authorisation or communication.

The lack of updates and failure to confirm additional labour costs left a sour taste. The work may have been done, but the customer service and transparency were practically non-existent.

As always I have to commend the efficient service I received for the Vauxhall Dealership in Portadown. Brian Aston is always meticulous in his attention to me and is an excellent representative for the company. I should also mention his able assistant Amanda from whom I also have received expert assistance when setting up my service plans. The two are a thoroughly exemplary team.

My 2021 Citroen c4e broke down 4 weeks ago, showing an electric traction system fault and the vehicle would not go into drive mode.
I had it recovered to Charles Hurst Citroen in Belfast, believing that to have it with the manufacturer’s service centre would be best.
After many diagnostic tests, I was told that a part was required at a cost of approx. £1.5k for it together with labour. This was delivered but was actually for a petrol car. I was then advised that the same part would bring my bill to £3.5k for my electric vehicle (inc labour).
After some homework I decided to authorise Charles Hurst to carry out this work and order the part - which I was being required to pay for up front. I was met with “are you sure?”, as though I really had any other choice when my vehicle will not even start and this worried me.
The manager then decided that a “second opinion” would be sought and so the “master tech” looked at the car again and decided that an entirely different part was needed which was less expensive - imagine if I had spent almost £4k and the part wasn’t correct!
So the apparent correct part was ordered and fitted - this has not resolved the problem and all I keep getting told is “more checks” are required.
Throughout I have felt dismissed and have been made to feel that this should all be acceptable. Which it is not. I am paying finance and insurance for a car that is not on the road. There is no sense of empathy or understanding and I have less and less confidence that my vehicle will be road worthy. I have also been refused a courtesy car as I this is only provided when there is a part on long term back order.

UPDATE: 23/10/2025: If you don't have time to read the whole thing, here's a summary. I finally got my money back - €2,785 for a repair that I had to pay for. The solution seems to be: go to their website, find the names of the directors, and copy them on your email with the people you are dealing with. I copied Jeff McCartney (Sales Operations Director) and Andrew Gilmore (Aftersales Operations Director) on the whole email trail, and the very next day I got a call back and got agreement that they would refund me. The above people's email addresses are firstname lastname at charleshurstgroup dot co dot uk (same format as all other email addresses). Worth a shot if you're not getting the responses you need.

Original review:
I purchased a used Nissan Navara from Charles Hurst Use direct in Newtownabbey. Being from Ireland, I bought the vehicle online after speaking with Matthew Sloan, the Dealership Manager. He assured me the vehicle had been comprehensively tested and came with a full 6 month comprehensive warranty. On that basis, I purchased the vehicle online, transferred the payment in full and went to collect the vehicle. The first time I drove the vehicle was when I was the new owner, and driving it out of Belfast it felt very sluggish. I wasn't sure if that was normal, but continued driving anyway. It was fine on the motorway, but not around town. 4 days later I checked it with a local Nissan dealer in Ireland, only to find out the smaller turbo was faulty. I contacted Charles Hurst and they rushed to get the warranty in place, and handed it over to the warranty company. They offered very little support and asked me to deal with the warranty company. After a repair bill of €2750 and about 6 weeks, the warranty company Assurant declined the claim because they said it's a pre-existing fault and Charles Hurst were liable. I contacted Paul McCormick, the Service Manager at Charles Hurst Nissan who I had been dealing with, and he said he would get the Sales Manager to call me back. That was 3 weeks ago. I've had zero contact from anyone. I've left numerous emails and telephone messages, but they refuse to engage. I'm still waiting to be reimbursed for a defective car they sold, and they continue to avoid making any contact. I will be contacting the Ombudsman in the UK and taking this further. I would not trust them. A bunch of scumbags.
In response to their reply, yes, I have already emailed Customer Complaints @ Lookers and have been waiting for 2 weeks with no reply. Please let me know when you will get back to me.
UPDATE: 16.10.2025: Still no further response from vehiclecomplaints-lookers.co.uk, and no response from Paul McCormack or Matthew Sloan at Charles Hurst. Vehiclecomplaints-lookers.co.uk - can you let me know if you will ever get back to me? Or do you just post comments here to pretend that you actually follow up?