A TOP lawyer has revealed that Brits are likely due “billions” in compensation over dodgy car finance deals, dubbing the scandal the “next PPI”.
Coby Benson, whose firm Bott & Co brought the case that kicked off the investigation into shady practices by loan brokers, explained how you can make your claim.
The FCA launched a probe into the use of Discretionary Commission Arrangements earlier this year, which is due to conclude in September.
The practice was banned in 2021 but it is believed that millions of Brits could have unknowingly overpaid the interest on their car loan, boosting brokers profits in the process.
Industry insiders have already told The Sun how “ridiculous” rip-offs were encouraged by bosses, despite the fact that they “knew it was illegal”.
Now, the issue is coming under significant scrutiny, with consumer champion Martin Lewis at the forefront of the campaign for compensation.
Sitting down exclusively with Sun Motors, Coby explained the sheer scale of malpractice throughout the car finance industry.
He said: “If there was a decision to pay people out automatically for this then the scale would be enormous.
The safest thing people can do is get their complaint in early
Coby Benson
“Like only surpassed by PPI, in which tens of billions were recovered.
“Here, it would also be billions of pounds.
“And that’s simply because millions and millions of people were undoubtedly affected.
“Probably approaching 10 million people could have been affected by this misselling scandal.
“Also we suspect the average compensation payout will be over £1,000.”
Coby was confident that the FCA would find evidence of these illicit practices and claimed that the investigation would largely be about determining a framework through which to compensate people.
He also explained how disgruntled drivers can go about submitting their claim to get their money back.
He went on: “People can make a complaint by contacting their lenders.
“They will have to write a letter, which they can send by email.
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.
You can check whether you might be owed money and submit a complaint using Martin Lewis’ free tool here.
“But there is a deadline for making complaints.
“That’s usually within six years of the unfairness occurring, so usually six years from the beginning of the agreement.
“However, the FCA is quite generous…they say people can also complain within three years of finding out what has happened.
“The safest thing people can do is to get their complaint early…then there’s less risk of the lenders turning around at a later date and say they’ve made their complaint too late.”
Brits can use a number of free online tools to help find out who their lender is and draft a complaint, including on Bott & Co’s website.
A similar feature on Martin Lewis’ MoneySavingExpert site received a “staggering” one million entries in just over a month of its launch.
Once you have made your complaint, Martin also revealed the four next steps you can take.
For most people, this will involve sitting tight until the FCA makes its report in September.