MARTIN Lewis’ Money Saving Expert website has explained how car finance compensation works after some drivers received unexpected payouts.
In its latest newsletter, MSE explained that some people have been receiving payments from car finance providers out of the blue.
1
It comes after the findings of an investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) uncovered evidence of widespread unclear and excessive car finance costs, affecting millions of UK drivers.
In recent weeks, it has been announced that the outcome of the investigation, which could lead to payouts worth £1,000s, has been pushed back from September 2024 to May 2025.
However, MSE said that some people have also received unexpected payouts recently which are not related to the car finance scandal.
The company was contacted by a number of drivers who were left confused after receiving automatic payments from companies including Black Horse, MotoNovo, and VW Financial Services.
READ MORE ABOUT CAR FINANCE
The confusion was caused by the fact that the payouts were given at the same time that many people are submitting claims about mis-sold commission.
However, after contacting the providers, MSE confirmed the payments are not related to the FCA investigation.
MSE said that in one one instance, a driver received a payment from Black Horse due to an administrative error made by the company.
The error meant the borrower had been charged more interest than they should have done when extending the term of their motor finance agreement, so customers affected are now getting payouts.
VW Financial Services told MSE it is contacting current and former customers who had repayment difficulties and didn’t receive good levels of service.
However, MotoNovo didn’t specify why some people may have received payments, even though it said it isn’t currently making any goodwill payments related to the FCA’s investigation.
The FCA said it expects providers to rectify any problem and, where needed, make offers to customers.
It also said providers should say why the payments are being made – and MSE urged anyone who is unsure about the reason why they got a payout, to check with their provider directly.
The MSE newsletter explained that you can still apply for compensation as part of the ongoing FCA investigation even if you received these payouts, because they are two different things.
And drivers have been urged to submit their claims sooner rather than later so that they can be logged.
The newsletter reads: “Even if you’ve recently received a payout from a car finance firm, if you took out a PCP or HP agreement on a vehicle before 28 January 2021, you might still be eligible to make a claim as part of the ongoing investigation into discretionary commission arrangements.
“There’s no need to use a claims management firm to complain – it’ll take a cut of any money you’re due.”
What is the FCA investigating and who is eligible for compensation?
What is being investigated?
The FCA announced in January that it would investigate allegations of “widespread misconduct” related to discretionary commission agreements (DCAs) on car loans.
When you buy a car on finance, you are effectively loaned the value of the car while you pay it off.
These loans have interest payments charged on top of them and are often organised on behalf of lenders by brokers – usually the finance arm of a dealership.
These brokers earn money in the form of commission – a percentage of the interest payments on the loan.
DCAs allowed brokers to, to a certain extent, increase the interest rate on a loan, which in turn increased the amount of commission they received.
The practice was banned by the FCA in 2021.
Who is eligible for compensation?
The FCA estimates that around 40% of car deals may have been affected before 2021.
There are two criteria you must meet to have a chance at receiving compensation.
First, you must be complaining in relation to a finance deal on a motor vehicle (including cars, vans, motorbikes and motorhomes) that was agreed before January 28 2021.
Second, you must have bought the vehicle through a mechanism like Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) or Hire Purchase (HP), which make up the majority of finance deals and mean you own the vehicle at the end of the agreement.
Drivers who leased a car through something like a Personal Contract Hire, where you give the car back at the end of the lease, are not eligible.
What’s the car finance scandal?
Before January 2021, some car finance lenders allowed brokers who arranged loans to set, or increase, interest rates for customers.
It was known as a “discretionary commission arrangement”, and the higher they set your interest rate the more commission they earned.
Customers did not know this was in place or that they were paying over the odds for car insurance.
The practice was banned in January 2021 by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Since then, complaints have rocketed, with more than 17,000 filed to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
The FCA told car finance firms to review their practices and fix any wrongdoing — but this hasn’t happened.
Around 30,000 motor finance complaints were dealt with by major lenders between January 2019 and the end of June 2023.
Of these, 99 per cent were rejected because lenders do not think they have done anything wrong.
At the start of the year, the Ombudsman ruled that two complaints, one against Black Horse Finance, part of Lloyds Banking Group, and one against Barclays Partner Finance, be upheld and compensation paid.
If the FCA decides a large number of customers are owed money it could set up an industry-wide compensation scheme.
It will now report its findings in May 2025.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories